Sorry for the bolds and underlines. This site keeps "encountering errors" so I can't fix the HTML. 'sigh'

Hey Matt and Jeff, I love the NT1A. My guitarist sold me his with shock mount for $75 and I said "what the hell". It is my go to mic for recording drums as a room mic, it's pretty much my favorite mic for vocals - male AND female. I can say nothing bad about it whatsoever.

And Karen, you're right, perhaps I did miss the point, I think I may have taken it for granted that people were stating what was probably already pretty obvious.

I would be interested to hear if anyone detects the comb filtering. I do notice that it sounds less bassy. But no matter, I was able to get the vox sounding great (after a bit of comping) in the mix.

I thought this discussion on Comb Filtering was interesting: http://www.ecoustics.com/...s/articles/572305.html

I really wouldn't expect to have significant refection coming back in from the cardboard box. Sure it'll be there, but I wouldn't think it'd be too noticeable. It very clearly cuts out much of the room sound. You do sound louder, but that could be a perception thing due to it being more dry. It also sounds very boxy, as you would expect because it's only going to be attenuating high frequencies and the low/mid stuff is going to pass right through the box. Still, the box is clearly a better result regardless. It's funny what you can use but I don't really find it that surprising. Have you ever put a sheet of paper up in between your tweeter and ear? It cuts out LOADS of highs. Why do you think the NS10's were notorious for people putting tissue over the tweater? Now we're dealing with a cardboard box! It's going to cut plenty of noticeable stuff - as your experiment has shown! I'm interested to hear how your 'more studio friendly' design sounds. See if it loses some of the boxiness.

I personally think I can hear a bit of harshness (high end) in those recordings. I've noticed this same thing on my cheap mics but not my expensive ones. Does anyone agree, or is it just me? It's something I hear more and more in cheaper microphones these days. Not necessarily a problem, as long as you are aware and work around it. I find a better quality mic can safely be pushed a lot farther with strong high end boosting and harmonic exciters than cheap ones before it starts to sound bad. But then again, my mic experience is very limited, this is only on what I have experimented with.

Karyn


No-one is missing the point that it's an experiment,   we all experiment.

No-one is saying it's not making your vox sound better.

You're missing the point we're making, that the reason your vox sound better isn't because your cordboard box is a good reflextion filter, it's because it is reflecting your voice back to the mic...

exactly.  I don't think anyone responding was "judging" you for anything, Scott.  so there's nothing for us to feel foolish about, no one argued with you that your vocals didn't sound better - we simply stated that there are problems with that approach.
 
I think you're overreacting here.

Matt, that is all very interesting. You may be right about low/mid stuff passing right through the box, hence the "middy" / "high end" sound to the recorded result. It does also sound "boxy" (no pun intended), I wonder if it was more "breathable" if this result would diminish?

In looking at some of these reflexion filters online, some (or most) of them seem to have some sort of perforated metal at the very rear, and padding in front (on the inside facing the mic) to minimize reflections. Is this so the low end information DOES pass through? I'm thinking of the construction of my bass traps, that they are designed to allow (absorbtion) of low end frequencies by enabling them to pass through by their perforated, breathable backs. However, as Jeff pointed out, it would change your tone, especially if you were a Baritone, eh?

I was thinking of almost using some sort of plastic bucket, cut in half, design but this would prevent sound from passing through. Would this be a bad thing, even with foam lining the inside?

Thanks for the insight Matt!

sounds boxy.

  Thank you for that.

+1 Spindlebox

Excellent thread!!!!!!!!!!!  I've tried it all: for vocs, guitars, drums, and other instruments.

... And if your mic is relatively cardiod, I don't see how comb-filtering reflections even becomes a factor.  You're experiment proves it.  You're apparently preventing other basement reflections from entering the mic's cardiod field with your shoe box.

I suppose the reflections from behind you can be dampened with a curtain there or something.

I'd prefer your room-set-up over Ethan Winer's clumsey reflexion filter ("portable-vocal-booth") in my 'acoustical' studio.

In looking at some of these reflexion filters online, some (or most) of them seem to have some sort of perforated metal at the very rear, and padding in front (on the inside facing the mic) to minimize reflections. Is this so the low end information DOES pass through? 

I have wondered that myself.  My home made reflection filter does n't currently have the holes; I've wondered how it would effect the sound to use some kind of perforated metal backing sheet with holes.