Portable Vocal Booth for Home Studio, Echo-Free Recording Booth with Premium Acoustic Blankets for Studio-Grade Sound

I've been recording, mixing, mastering, and playing guitar for over 19 years now. In that time, I've used a ton of audio gear, including (more recently) another high-end portable vocal booth from a different company around this price-point. I will say this: I was honestly pretty impressed by this vocal booth (the ZIGZAG-BLK XL model). Here’s what stood out compared to the one from a rival company that I tried:WHAT THIS BOOTH IS AND IS NOT:Quick word of caution – this IS NOT a sound isolation booth. If you’re trying to block out street noise, barking dogs, or obnoxious neighbors at 2 am on a weekday, this won’t do the trick. It's not designed for that (and doesn’t claim to be).This vocal booth’s job is absorbing unwanted sound reflections. In plain English, it soaks up echo and reverb bouncing around your room. Ever seen foam pads all over the walls in professional studios? Same idea here. When you're mixing or mastering, reflections mess with your perception of the audio, and your track might sound great at home but terrible everywhere else. The same principle applies when recording vocals – if your room has hardwood floors, glass surfaces, or bare walls, you'll pick up all kinds of ugly echoes and harsh frequencies that can ruin your recording. This booth helps you avoid all that. It gives you a nice, dry vocal track that’s ready for mixing, EQ, compression, reverb, or whatever effects you want to use without the hassle of trying to clean up bad room tone later.Believe me, if you’ve ever spent a few days straight getting perfect – I mean PERFECT – vocal takes in a closet at the recommendation of your best friend as an impromptu vocal booth only to find out that EVERY SINGLE TRACK was ruined due to the reflections creating unfixable problems in your recordings (d’oh, thanks Jake, you idiot! I guess I’m the idiot! Lesson learned: don’t be an idiot); and then using iZotope’s RX Advanced to try to fix the unfixable anyway for several weeks, obsessing 12 hours at a time and forgetting what day it was or who you are or what you’ll be when you grow up … just to be able to START your mix … well, long story short, this will prevent that scenario lol.PACKAGING & ATTENTION TO DETAIL:The vocal booth I bought from another well-known company at this price point threw all the sound absorption blankets in a dusty box with no protection, which is not fun! You have to unpack them outside if you don’t want that dust spreading into all your gear like an audio cancer, panicking with a vacuum in-hand in a single-bedroom apartment at 2:15 in the morning (yes, the neighbors in the apartment below loooove me). Not this company – they really did go above and beyond. It was the little details they thought through that impressed me on several counts:- Everything was neatly organized – blankets vacuum-sealed in reusable bags, PVC pipes bagged, joints and accessories individually boxed. No surprise warehouse-box-dust-bombs here, like one of those old novelty “peanut” jars that shoots snakes out of it and ruins your life haha.- The blankets are thick, high-quality, and come in reusable vacuum-sealed compression bags with a little hand pump to suck out air, making repacking them pretty easy and convenient (not like those cheap “five-person” tent bags that you can never squeeze things back into and have to use half a leg and two arms to hold the bag together, finally emerging victorious in your camping war, like some unseen tree-hidden stage magician). They even include adjustable straps to help compress blankets before sealing. And the vacuum-sealed bags fit the blankets in comfortably and without too much trouble. They’re like big ziplock bags with a hole for the pump to suck the air out. They seem durable enough if you treat them with care.- The PVC frame is pre-cut, fits snugly together without glue, and stays stable once built. It took me a little while to set up, but doing so was pretty easy and straightforward – just make sure you have enough floor space, and do it on carpet if you can. You have to build each half and then put them together by stacking the top on the bottom, so you will need some room.- There’s a decent USB-C rechargeable LED light with multiple color temperature options, attachable by reusable zip-ties or magnetic adhesive pads (both included) that you can attach to the vocal booth frame. It’s not the Ritz-Carlton, but it works just fine.- Included is a basic phone holder and a handy little tray that both attach to your mic stand. I was worried the tray might scratch my expensive DR PRO and Atlas stands, but it has a protective coating and it didn’t harm anything. The phone holder is pretty basic and might need some adjustment to fit tightly around the stand (it has rubber spacers/padders for thicker stands, I guess, but you should be able to remove them for a tighter fit). It does the trick though and is a nice plus if you don’t have one or need an extra.- Heavy-duty clips are provided to seal any gaps between blankets or hold the entrance open if needed.- A floor blanket covers around 97% of the booth interior, which is super handy and important if you have hardwood floors. Mine wasn’t placed perfectly (I rushed it), but if you take your time, you'll probably get full coverage or pretty close.SETUP & PERFORMANCE:Assembly wasn’t bad at all, and not that difficult. The instructions are super simple: set up the frame, attach the two side blankets via velcro straps that are attached across the top of the blankets, and put the roof on (which fits tightly over the top of the frame and is secure). No glue required for the frame (some other vocal booth companies do require that) – just slide the PVC joints together, assemble two halves, stack them, and you're good. Setting up on carpet helps.Note that I ordered the ZIGZAG-BLK XL version, which comes with all black blankets, inside and out. However, the roof was white on the inside (the rest was black), but that wasn’t a big deal. I didn’t even notice when I was inside – it’s like a black hole in there and is super cool.Testing it out, I used an SM7B with a Mogami XLR cable and a high-end metal pop screen inside the booth. Compared to untreated rooms I've recorded in before, this was a noticeable improvement. The vocal take was dry, clean, and ready for mixing and layering effects. Just remember: this booth absorbs reflections, not external noise. Keep your AC off, and background noise minimized for best results, just like you would anytime you’re recording with a mic.You can get a pretty darn professional sound using this if you have a decent home studio, equipment, and know more or less what you’re doing.SPACE & COMFORT:The XL model is really spacious inside (see the attached photos) and much larger than I thought – it took up most of my living room! But that was a good thing, because it’s pretty comfortable inside with a lot of room for mic stand accessories or whatever your decades-of-vocal-recording-planning-and-dreaming-leading-up-to-this-day-and-moment can dream up. It can get warm after a while, but nothing unbearable. I usually cool my apartment (67–70 degrees F) first and then record very comfortably. Just take a short break, step out of the booth, and run a fan or put the AC back on briefly when taking breaks, if needed.EXPERIMENTAL BONUS: GUITAR AMP TESTINGOne reason I got the XL was to try recording guitar amps inside, even though this booth isn't advertised or designed for that. It’s spacious enough to fit half or even full amp stacks, so it’ll be interesting to experiment with. Again, the company specifically states this is a VOCAL booth, and it’s not designed for micing guitar amps or other instruments, etc. But it’s something fun I’ll experiment with, and could even work pretty well. We’ll see. But the company doesn’t advertise or claim that it can be used for anything other than vocal recordings, so keep that in mind if or when experimenting.THINGS I DIDN’T LIKE:Honestly, not much. My only small complaint: some residual polyester fibers on the blankets after removing them from their vacuum-sealed bags, I guess left over from the factory. They stuck to the fabric pretty well and didn’t scatter everywhere like a dust virus, though, so a lint roller and/or vacuum across the blankets should take care of that with a few passthroughs, I’d assume. By comparison, the other vocal booth I have from another company came with unprotected blankets that were dusty as a rotten catacomb in a desiccated desert – I had to unpack them outside to avoid a mess, as I mentioned, and then stuff them in the included duffle bag. This booth was much, much better packed. Still polyester fibers to deal with (but no fiberglass, thank goodness), but not hard to solve, and not very messy either. Big improvement.CLOSING THOUGHTS:This is a pretty wicked-cool vocal booth. It's great for home studios, voiceovers, or podcasts – especially if you're recording in untreated rooms. The packaging and attention-to-detail are impressive, the sound absorption blankets are professional-quality and definitely on par with two of the best rival vocal booth companies that I know of, and everything actually does pack into the provided duffel bag with a little room to spare and without too much difficulty (thanks to the vacuum-sealed bags and compression straps for the sound blankets). With my other booth, I couldn't even get the PVC pipes back in its bag, let alone the accessories. No such problem here.Okay John D. Warrior, I know what you’re thinking: Why not just cut your own PVC pipes and get some furniture pads, as your friend Rusty Shackleford might have suggested? Well, for one thing, cutting those pipes is messy, time-consuming, and a pain to do. For another thing, in my opinion, these sound blankets don’t seem to be just another gimmick or marketing ploy. (I did some research with sound absorption blankets, and these, again, definitely seem like good quality.) I think these ones actually will and do absorb reflections better than furniture pads will. (Feel free to test that theory if you want – meanwhile, I’m going to be rockin’ out in this bad mama-jama-of-a-booth making music to take over the world while you look for used sofas). They’re designed to absorb reflections and are specifically made for a vocal recording/studio application. And they seem to do a great job.“But wait, wait, Doktor DJ!,” you scream. “What about a mic shield or a cheap foam studio booth that goes right over the head of the microphone? Or even one of those portable/mobile booths that go on your desk and you put your head and mic in/under like a big box you found at a Six Flags alleyway behind a Dippin’ Dots dumpster somewhere? Won’t those work instead at a fraction of the cost?” The answer is: no, not really lol. The problem with those – and what those companies don’t always mention – is that a lot of microphones use a cardioid polar pattern. That means they’re primarily sensitive to sound directly in front (on-axis, i.e., your voice), have less sensitivity to sound from the sides, and the least from directly behind (this is known as off-axis rejection). But here’s the catch: the unwanted reflections typically aren’t coming from behind the microphone – they’re bouncing off the walls, ceiling, and surfaces behind and around you, and then straight into the front of the mic. Mic shields, those foam “booths” that go over the microphone, and those Dippin’ Dots dumpster box booths usually have sound absorption on the back and partly to the sides of the mic, but leave open the most crucial area: the space behind and around you! In short, the missing absorption makes them a lot less effective than something like this vocal booth, which fully encloses you on all sides.Expensive? Sure, somewhat. But it can make the difference between a muddy bedroom-warrior vocal recording with grandma Jedediah screaming at the cat in the background, versus a near-professional (or even professional) one that you can put in your audio portfolio to land a decent audio engineering gig, or even press/publish professionally.If you're on the fence, I say go for it. If you’re serious about improving the quality of your vocal recordings and want to cross that rare audio Rubicon separating the amateurs from the pros, this is a great step toward that goal. And if you’re thinking about going with one by another company, save yourself the hassle. There are about two other companies that make vocal booths in this price range at this quality (trust me, I’ve done the research). This is going to be your best bang for your buck with the least amount of hassle setting up, packing up, and/or transporting in the future.That’s my opinion, bucko. Now go make some music. (Remember? The whole purpose of buying this vocal booth, you goof!)

It was very easy and intuitive to set up. I'm short, and I was still able to set this up with ease, as the pipes are lightweight and the covering is easy to attach to the top with its built-in Velcro straps. Mine came with a tray that connects to any of the corner pipes inside that I use to hold my tablet which I read off of. It also has a separate phone/tablet holder that straps to the pipes as well which actually has a strong enough grip to hold my audio interface. The space does get a little warm inside after a while, but that is expected, as the covering is thick - which of course is the point, since it dampens outside sound. I just leave the curtains open when I'm not using it. Also it comes with a nice big bag that can carry all the parts of the booth disassembled, so the booth is truly portable if you're on the road. Especially with the price, I would definitely recommend this portable booth compared to others.

I want to first extend my thanks to the person listed here as “Doktor DJ”. They wrote a phenomenal review that answered all my questions and actually convinced me to get this one. I got the White zigzag XL. If you are on the fence like I was, search out Doktor DJ’s review. There’s really not much to add. I will add these thoughts though:This thing is a beast. I mean, it’s pretty heavy. If it doesn’t arrive at your door, bring wheels.I opened the box, and as I was unpacking the booth, I remarked to myself that it must have been packed at IKEA! Beautifully engineered packing. Also, what I would consider foolproof assembly. Funny thing is, after all that, I started looking on Amazon to find out where it was made because there was nothing on the directions to tell me! Great instructions btw. Easy to follow if you need them, and, printed on heavy card stock! Nice touch. Turns out, printed right on the box, once I turned the flap back over, it says “Designed in Sweden…” and then in smaller print “Made in China”. :-D LOL.My main concern with this thing was the possibility of ANY odor, and there was Absolutely None!!! The walls were vacuum sealed and have no odor or scent whatsoever! I could not be happier.It is not a soundproof booth, nor does it claim to be. But it does provide a fantastic, pure sound (if you take precautions) and because the XL is so big, it’s doubles as a great meditation space!I have my own lighting and I’m glad I got the white. I think the dark might be a little claustrophobic for my tastes, even with the light.Speaking of phobic, you should probably get this now while prices are still reasonable. Maybe just get three dolls for Christmas this year. (???)

Voctent portable vocal boothI recently started voice over acting classes. It’s important to have a good quality home studio for my voice recordings.So when I saw the Voctent portable vocal booth, I ordered it and it didn’t disappoint. It goes together easily and everything fits into the travel bag with room to spare. The blankets come in their own space blankets with accompanying air pump for easy storage. The “blankets” are thick, heavy, good quality material. This unit comes with floor protection which is important if you have hard surface floors. With the ceiling and floor treatment along with the heavy “walls”, the echo and reverb are reduced but ambient sound is still available.The white interior removes some of the claustrophobic feelings of the black ones. Its added accessories are very helpful. The led light has different levels to suit your lighting requirements. The tray for audio interface and the mount stand for iPad or phone are easy to install.I recorded a voice over demo and my recording passed the ACX Standards, which is important if you want to record audio books.