reviews

EQ Magazine

ModTrap Acoustical Absorber ($99.95) The ModTrap panel is a 2" thick broadband absorber wrapped in fire-rated acoustical fabric, and available in two sizes: 16" x 24" (reviewed here) and 24" x30" ($129.95). The "special sauce" is that they attach to a bracket that can swivel about the center of the panel, and attach to a mic stand. Thus, it's easy to put the panel where you want: Between a mic and wall, to isolate a guitar amp, serve as a divider between drums, reduce cymbal splash, and so on.

I tried placing it between a mic positioned about 5' away from a fairly reflective wall, and could hear there were less reflections coming back. So I tried putting two in a corner, to check if they could reduce the bass bump detected when I was testing out the ARC. Sure enough, there was a slight reduction in two 'humps' at about 120Hz and 45Hz, but no effect on the mids or highs. Although not sold as conventional bass traps, it was interesting to note the Modtraps made a difference anyway.

But the main value is for isolating instruments and mics somewhat from the effects of a room, or from other instruments or sounds playing simultaneously. In that respect, the mic stand mounting thing is smart—you can tweak placement almost as easily as you'd tweak a knob, and the panels are light enough you don't need a super-heavy mic stand. Overall, the ModTrap is useful, functional, and affordable.