building a studio
Hi everyone, Tawny here!
Some of the most frequent comments I see on my videos are ones asking about my gear and studio build. And I’ve never answered because to be honest... it’s a very long answer.
So last night I finally decided to put together this brief guide on how to create a recording space for voice acting, YouTube videos, reels, shorts, and tiktoks
Notice: Before we get started, I need to be very clear that if your goal is to be a competitive full-time voice actor with a broadcast quality recording space, it is absolutely essential to get a consultation with a specialized voice over engineer. It is almost impossible to create your own recording space that will be up to broadcast standards without the help of an engineer who very specifically specializes in recording spaces for voice actors. So take the information below to your engineer and get some help fine tuning your setup. The vast majority (if not all) of engineers these days are able to consult on these spaces and help build them virtually.
Again, I can not stress this enough – if you want to be a professional voice actor, get a professional voice over engineer to create a professional recording space.
My engineer has been Emmett Andrews since 2017. He’s helped me with all of my setups since then and I highly recommend his engineering services.
I’m going to go over each recording space I’ve worked in at various times in my career, starting with the most affordable and finishing with my custom in-home studio.
BOOTHS
When I was in my early 20s, still working at my day job, and voice acting part-time, I was predominantly doing small local independent work. At that time, I had a little hanging booth like this. Today, this is what I would recommend if you’re just starting out but want something that sounds a little better than just sitting in your closet on a rug. Something like this would be good for, again, small independent projects but typically isn’t going to cut it for something that needs to be broadcast level quality. These hanging booths are also called travel booths and can be great if you’re on the road and need to submit a quick audition.
This was the last kind of recording space I was using while I was building my in-home studio. An isolation booth can deliver a very professional sound with the assistance of an engineer. These are super easy to build but can take a little elbow grease if you don’t have another set of hands to help build the structure. This is a great option if you want something that can deliver quality sound and won’t break the bank.
Note: All you need to do after you build the frame is add the acoustic blankets. Below are the ones I used.
Here’s another version that can sit on a desk or table.
GEAR
I only buy my gear from Sweetwater. There is no guarantee that you’re getting an authentic and quality product anywhere else (believe me, I’ve tried). Sweetwater also has impeccable customer service and is just a fantastic company all around.
