Acoustic treatment

sei046

Cheers man.

jtsuited

don't know if someone has already said it but this month's Futuremusic has a good DIY guide to making acoustic panels.

*Gets macho voice and stance ready for trip to the builders' providers*

sei046

Ok.. I might not go for the booth, I really need to treat my mixing room but as you can see from the drawing its an awkward shape! I have very little depth. Does anyone know a supplier in ireland for that eggcrate foam?

PaulBrewer

A small vocal booth needs to be very dead as any ambience left in it will be ugly.

Hence only thick (4 inchish) treatment is of any use .

Thinner foams will only attenuate the higher frequencies leaving the low mid and bass frequencies to roll around the place leaving a very unattractive sound to record.

sei046

Yup so i think I might just stick with gobos. I will make some bass traps and and there are a few spots i want to just put up some egg crate

Neurojazz

By the way, here's a top tip - sry if you already know this

Get a SPL meter (cheap as chips) - and mount it where your head is going to be with a decent mike (so both in your sweet spot).

Get cooledit/soundforge to make a long passage of white noise or rising frequency (so you get the whole tonal range) and turn it up to 85db - set the mike to record and leave the room/hide in corner screaming 'my ears!, my ears!' - then after a little bit stop the recording...

(this is not perfect, but you'll get the idea)

Now preview what's been recorded through the mike - you should see the rooms mode as the loudest frequency (so remember this frequency and Eq this down from your mixing [make a mastering preset that does this for you as it will be universal on all your mixes])

There should be dips and peaks according to what's been damped and what hasn't - ideally in perfect 25k studio it will be flat (and also your wallet!)

Hope that's helpful.

PaulBrewer

Neurojazz wrote: »

By the way, here's a top tip - sry if you already know this

Get a SPL meter (cheap as chips) - and mount it where your head is going to be with a decent mike (so both in your sweet spot).

Get cooledit/soundforge to make a long passage of white noise or rising frequency (so you get the whole tonal range) and turn it up to 85db - set the mike to record and leave the room/hide in corner screaming 'my ears!, my ears!' - then after a little bit stop the recording...

(this is not perfect, but you'll get the idea)

Now preview what's been recorded through the mike - you should see the rooms mode as the loudest frequency (so remember this frequency and Eq this down from your mixing [make a mastering preset that does this for you as it will be universal on all your mixes])

There should be dips and peaks according to what's been damped and what hasn't - ideally in perfect 25k studio it will be flat (and also your wallet!)

Hope that's helpful.

I feel this is 'incomplete' science as it doesn't allow for frequency/phase response of either the speakers or the mic preamp etc.

ogy

that approach really only works well in a fairly diffuse sound field.

in a control room thats not treated very well there will be frequency peaks and troughs all over the gaff, so eqing your monitors can be dodgy, a walk around the room, or even a slight tilt of your head, and you'll be hearing something totally different. no point pinking your bedroom!:)

frobisher

sei046 wrote: »

I have very little depth. Does anyone know a supplier in ireland for that eggcrate foam?

Remember that different foams have different ratings and that as far as I know foam is rarely an effective broadband absorber. Some foams are basically nothing more than multi purpose storage foam cut to look like acoustic foam and have properties a couple of points above useless. Have a look here for some info: http://www.gearslutz.com/board/studio-construction-acoustics/

sei046

Ah I know yeah. The plan is to do up a few 2x4 bass traps

PaulBrewer

sei046 wrote: »

Ah I know yeah. The plan is to do up a few 2x4 bass traps

Here's the Test Data for Auralex products -

http://www.auralex.com/testdata/

PaulBrewer

http://www.esoundproof.com/Screens/Basics/Academy/Sound%20Measurement/Sabins/Sabins.aspx

and there's a link to help understand the above Auralex link

sei046

Cheers paul. Will take some research!

Neurojazz

PaulBrewer wrote: »

I feel this is 'incomplete' science as it doesn't allow for frequency/phase response of either the speakers or the mic preamp etc.

as per the original thread '(this is not perfect, but you'll get the idea)' - i know it's far from the perfection of a 25k budget and all the problems inbetween, but think about catching a glimpse of what the room is doing (especially that 'mode' which is a isolated spot and quite a peak) - unless your a genuis with math and have an accurate knowledge, it's a very, very cheap way of giving you an insight of what the single largest bane of most studio mixes is - it's not the windows, or the stuffed toys in the corner, or that matress tied to the ceiling, but the room mode.

Anything that shows you that is a blessing! - if you still think i'm mad i'll post the math

dav nagle

sei046 wrote: »

Ok.. I might not go for the booth, I really need to treat my mixing room but as you can see from the drawing its an awkward shape! I have very little depth. Does anyone know a supplier in ireland for that eggcrate foam?

I would not agree! go for the booth

jtsuited

actually speaking of which, does anyone here know which building providers definitely stock Rockwool?

PaulBrewer

Neurojazz wrote: »

as per the original thread '(this is not perfect, but you'll get the idea)' - i know it's far from the perfection of a 25k budget and all the problems inbetween, but think about catching a glimpse of what the room is doing (especially that 'mode' which is a isolated spot and quite a peak) - unless your a genuis with math and have an accurate knowledge, it's a very, very cheap way of giving you an insight of what the single largest bane of most studio mixes is - it's not the windows, or the stuffed toys in the corner, or that matress tied to the ceiling, but the room mode.

Anything that shows you that is a blessing! - if you still think i'm mad i'll post the math

The simplest way is by maths on a regular room - there are lots of online mode 'finders' - Generally acousticians I've worked with are only interested in primary modes. Secondary ones sort themselves out within the treatment for RT time.

sei046

Do you have bass traps in your booth? what foam did you use dav

sei046

For anyone who is interested here is a pic of my mix area.

It extends twice that to the right so as you can see its not an ideal position.
I was standing at the door taking it so there is not a MASSIVE amount of space between the back wall and me.

dav nagle

sei046 wrote: »

Do you have bass traps in your booth? what foam did you use dav

Hey man,

No I don't use bass traps in my booth but I do in my mixing room! They suck up the sound in a good way. When I posted you earlier on in this thread explaining ''just go for it'' I really meant it. It is very hard trying to get the dimensions and sound right at the first go but it 'IS' worth it if you go ahead with it. On boards you are getting some excellent advice with regards to the booth but it is also slightly daunting advice and it would certainly scare me.

dav nagle

Here is a snapshot of my booth. It is at a right angle as I explained earlier so its impossible to get the entire booth in 1 photo. The black fabric on the walls has 5 materials behind it as I said earlier on

sei046

I love the woodwork. I might go for a booth with traps

dav nagle

sei046 wrote: »

I love the woodwork. I might go for a booth with traps

I think traps will absorb the sound better, your getting me thinking now maybe the traps should go back in!

sei046

From what I have been hearing it sounds As if im just making a new room to sound crap!

But With a booth its probably easier to control the sound as there is not as big an area so i can just cover it in traps etc!

dav nagle

sei046 wrote: »

From what I have been hearing it sounds As if im just making a new room to sound crap!

But With a booth its probably easier to control the sound as there is not as big an area so i can just cover it in traps etc!

Yes I would agree, a nice snug tight booth and only good will come of it!

sei046

And plus I reckon singers like it. They feel all important and i suppose they might be able to relax as they are in their own space with their water, words and just themselves or whatever.

One thing I will say for my studio is that it may not be the best equipment, sound, or quality but its sure relaxed!!!!

fitz

On a somewhat related note, I recorded some vocals last night.
I'm using a TLM 103 and an SE Reflection Filter.
I decided to see how it would sound with some absorption behind me as I sang.
I set up in a 11 x 11 room, which has floor to ceiling wardrobes on one wall, the last two doors of which close in to meet each other if you get what I'm saying. I opened the two doors, so that they were perpendicular to their wall. So, standing between them, I had a door on either side, and open wardrobe full of clothes behind me. The door to my left was flush with the wall making a corner with the wardrobe wall. Got me? Hard to describe. Put the stand with the mic and filter in front of me, and off I went.
I was amazed at how dead the recording came out, even when I was really singing out.
Thrilled with the results.

Gonna be setting up another room in the house for recording next month, so gonna just try having plenty of absorption behind where I'll have the mic/filter, and see how it works out, but based on last nights results, I reckon it'll work a treat.

frobisher

A futon and an up-ended mattress make a huge difference in my room. It's very unscientific but it sounds better than otherwise. When I record vocals or acoustic guitar, the heart of a lot of my music, I build a temporary booth with duvets, a clothes rail and long extension poles, does the job alright!

jtsuited

frobisher wrote: »

A futon and an up-ended mattress make a huge difference in my room. It's very unscientific but it sounds better than otherwise. When I record vocals or acoustic guitar, the heart of a lot of my music, I build a temporary booth with duvets, a clothes rail and long extension poles, does the job alright!

I calibrated my room with a load of old thick cloth, carpet, duvets, and anything else i could find (a surfboard in a big thick case is acting as one of my bass traps at the moment!!).
Oh and some test cd's.

I've had a few people in who have spent a good bit on auralex stuff and were pretty amazed at how balanced the room was.

Then again I think it was mostly a fluke. Never ever underestimate luck when it comes to acoustics!!!

PaulBrewer

frobisher wrote: »

A futon and an up-ended mattress make a huge difference in my room. It's very unscientific but it sounds better than otherwise. When I record vocals or acoustic guitar, the heart of a lot of my music, I build a temporary booth with duvets, a clothes rail and long extension poles, does the job alright!

It's not that unscientific! It's easy enough to deaden a space, it's only when you need controlled 'liveness' it gets complex.