Review : ModTrap Acoustical Panels
By Fred Grittner* 14th December 2007

Reviewers have external and internal deadlines to deal with when they agree to examine and write about a piece of software or hardware. In the case of CakewalkNet, our editor Hans van Even is a gentle soul who rarely goads us into completing reviews. He knows that we do our best to submit reviews on a timely basis. That is why I feel so bad about the delay in writing about ModTrap acoustical panels that fit on microphone stands.   ModTraps are an affordable solution for taming home studio room acoustics and preventing instruments from bleeding into other microphones. So, eight months after I received three ModTrap panels, I am finally delivering the reviewing goods.

The main reason for the delay: the recording, mixing, and release of my new album Sugar Babe. You can check out samples at www.fredgrittner.com and decide on the audio quality of the tracks. Early listeners and reviewers have commented on how well the album sounds, especially when they find out I recorded it in my home studio using SONAR 6 Producer and a minimal amount of gear.  Moreover, my delay in reviewing ModTraps turns out to have been for the better.  I had the chance to try them out on vocals, instruments, and the final mixes of the ten songs.

Room with a VU

In the past two years much attention has been paid in music magazines and web forums on the need to improve home studio room acoustics. Gear Acquisition Syndrome (GAS) tends to lure us towards sexy things like microphones, preamps, and high-quality sound cards. As many writers and posters have stated, the shiny boxes and mics won’t make a dramatic improvement in sound quality if the studio’s acoustics are a mess. However, many of us cannot glue acoustic panels to our walls and ceilings because (a) the room is used for other purposes; (2) we rent our living quarters and can’t risk the damage deposit; and/or (c) our partner or spouse would kill us!  In the past I have made do with the standard DIY approach: A large comforter or blanket draped on two mic stands, positioned behind the singer or player.

A number of products have appeared in the last year that seek to improve sound by installing a shield around the microphone. Whether made with metal or acoustic panels, these products seek to improve the recordings of vocals, narration, and acoustic instruments by limiting the amount of room sound that the microphone captures. With the track “dried out” the engineer is free to add ambience with reverb and delay. These devices can also be used to control room sounds when recording a small guitar amplifier.

Trap Set

Enter ModTrap panels.  As I researched this type of product I discovered that the manufacturer of ModTraps is located in my area, the Twin Cities of Minnesota. I emailed Bryan at the company and within a few days I was able to pick up two regular size panels (16” x 24”) and one large panel (24” x 30”) at his home studio.

I installed the regular panels on two boom stands and the large panel on a straight stand, before moving the large panel to a boom. (I needed the straight stand for my microphone.)  Though the panels are fairly light I still had to adjust the boom extensions so the panels didn’t tip. Finding the correct center of gravity is critical, as you don’t want a panel toppling onto your ribbon microphone.  Once adjusted, raising and lowering the mic stand was easily accomplished.

Mod About You

I used the panels in my home studio, which is located in a large bedroom. The room has multiple surfaces: two closets, a bathroom door, and large windows on the west and north walls.  The room, which has no curtains, is also carpeted. To record acoustic guitars and mandolins I wanted a reflective surface and came up with an inexpensive solution. I went to a home improvement store and purchased a box of interlocking wood flooring. I assembled a large square that I position as I wish.  Over time I ended up using the square for recording vocals as well. 

I recorded some test tracks and the vocal tracks dried up quite a bit.  However, I was stilling getting reflections from the rear. In the past I had used the hanging comforter setup to absorb these reflections, but now I placed the large panel three feet behind me. I did feel a bit boxed in but I kept an exit lane open to my right that dampened any feeling of claustrophobia.  With my trusty Frontier Tranzport remote control at my side I hit record and started working on my final vocals.

After the first session I let my ears rest before reviewing the vocals. I played the tracks through my monitors and soloed them now and again. I was very pleased to hear dry, focused vocals that could be comped into a master track. The level of PC noise was virtually undetectable (a combination of the panels, the location in the room, and the position of the mic capsule). I quickly loaded compressor and reverb plug-ins and listened again. It was apparent to my ears that I could record tightly focused vocal tracks that would respond well to EQ, compression, and reverberation.

As spring turned into summer I brought in my former bandmate, Dan Lippert, to record some bluesy and jazzy harmonica parts. Dan likes to sit when he plays, so I put a chair on the wood flooring and lowered the three panels. Dan is not thrilled with headphone monitoring, so on the first take of “Heavily into You” I experimented by having him play along with the backing track coming through the monitors. Because I had “walled off” the microphone and kept the monitoring volume low, I was able record the take with no feedback or excessive bleed.  After that I insisted on headphone monitoring. Dan knocked out multiple takes on both songs and was out the door in two hours. When I reviewed the tracks for “Heavily into You” I concluded that Dan had done some of his most inspired playing on the first take. I was worried that the sounds of the first take would clash with the later takes, but again I was pleasantly surprised with the performance of the ModTraps.  I believe a careful listener would be hard put detecting which phrases were recorded without headphones.

I had recorded a bluesy mandolin part (think Ry Cooder) for the title song using my wood-bodied mandolin. However, my wife, the Sugar Babe, gave me a National resonator mandolin for Father’s Day.  I immediately decided to recut the part with this glorious instrument. I sat down in the same configuration used for the harmonica, put on my headphones, adjusted the angle of the mic, and hit record.  Luckily I was inspired that afternoon and got it on the first take. The mandolin sounded funky but pristine—quite a concept to conjure up. During mixing I needed to feather it into the arrangement, bringing it up here and there between vocal phrases. The dryness of the recording helped me at this point. I did add a touch of reverb to create the illusion of being in the room with the guitar and vocal, but it wouldn’t have sounded as good if the track contained excessive room sound.

A Mix Review

By early July I had completed recording at my studio and had received files via the Internet from singers and musicians in three locations. Bryan suggested I position the three panels behind me two or three feet as I sat at my mixing desk. The two regular panels were angled to match the position of the monitors and the large panel was centered behind my head.

I mixed at a low volume level for the most part, as I have powered nearfield monitors. Nevertheless, the panels contributed to a more controlled mixing environment. I did not move them during the course of mixing and remixing ten songs. Frankly, I forgot they were there after a few hours.  I was very pleased with the way the instrument tracks came together and supported the vocals. The mastering engineer tweaked the bass and applied light compression but he didn’t have to do any wholesale overhauls. I invite you to listen to excerpts at either my website, www.fredgrittner.com or CD  Baby.

Packing it In

After I sent off the master CD to the manufacturer I was thoroughly sick of the songs. The nice thing about the ModTrap panels is that I unscrewed the three nuts, removed the panels from their stands, and stood them up in a closet. Within minutes the room became less cluttered and I could sit back and listen to music made by others.  However, within a month I was back to recording and pondering this review. I decided to record a vocal without the panels and confirm what I thought I was not hearing. I cut a vocal to a slow folk song and got a strong take that I used on my demo. Listening to it soloed and then in the mix, I heard a strong, sharp echo when I sang a few words forcefully. If I had been recording more than a demo I would have assembled the ModTraps and redone the vocal. 

I am sure a person handy with tools could make something very similar to these panels, but they are reasonably priced and they have a professional look.  I would encourage readers to check out the ModTraps if they want to improve the quality of their home studio recordings and mixes.

*Fred Grittner is a singer-songwriter living in St. Paul, Minnesota. You can contact him at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it and www.fredgrittner.com