Room treatments

RichCanDo

I agree with building your own as is much cheaper and you can build specifically only for problem frequencies. At a library you can find books with info on building traps, etc. for specific frequencies.

concealer404

Alright... due to budget constraints, i'm going to do something else.


Still going to make room treatments, but i'm going to try something that was suggested to me by a home theater designer/builder that i picked some cables up from on Friday.

The project will take place this weekend, it'll be plenty apartment friendly, needing only panels, cloth, staples, and push pins.

If i hear a big difference like i did in his room, great! If not, i'm only out about $30 for the whole project.

I doubt it'll be to the level of what some of you have done, but i'm more than confident that i'll see an improvement. Wish me luck!

ShinAce

You will hear a difference. Sound absorption is no joke.

Placement of the panels is almost as important as placing the speakers, so take your time and experiment once you have the finished panels.

concealer404

Yep! I'm going to be making 8-10 panels, and moving them around until i like what i hear.

The tip i got was just to try Lowe's insulation panels, and cover them with a fairly low-thread count fabric of my choice. They aren't as thick as would be ideal, but i figure they should be well worth the money. This guy's room was dead as a doornail, and i'd be happy with only a 50% reduction in echo/nastiness. The experiment will be worth the $30 even if it doesn't work.

mshan242700

http://www.gikacoustics.com/products.html

http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=327056

concealer404

^Thanks for links, i think i already had the anandtech one saved, but i saved the other, just in case i feel like these don't do enough down the road.

nikolas812

I'm pretty sure you want a fabric you see through when held up to the light. Or at least be able to blow threw... Pretty much something the same consistency of speaker grill fabric... At least thats what was needed for my panels...



Nik

concealer404

nikolas812 wrote: »

I'm pretty sure you want a fabric you see through when held up to the light. Or at least be able to blow threw... Pretty much something the same consistency of speaker grill fabric... At least thats what was needed for my panels...



Nik

Yeah, that's what he suggested as well. The girlfriend is having a ball right now going through JoAnn Fabric's website picking out "pretty patterns."

I figure if i'm going to hang squares everywhere, may as well keep her happy with it somehow.

On the flip side, if i let her dictate ALL my stereo purchases, i'd be running full Emotiva gear, because it's "pretty."

ShinAce

Polyester seems to be a good choice.

CoolJazz

ShinAce wrote: »

Polyester seems to be a good choice.

Especially if you listen to a lot of 70's music!!

polkanddie

DIY panels are in my future, I dont want to be evicted you know... Can someone post pics of placement of these, I want to have at least 4 in my room. I think I have some 703 in storage if I remember correctly...

fossy

I seem to remember a really good post about room treatments not to long ago....search, my fellow polkie, search can be a very good friend

http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?t=86154&highlight=room+treatments

Im sure there are more .. but that's the one I remember

Face

How recent are the pictures in your showcase?

Before adding any treatments, get those silly stacked subs out from between your speakers and pull your speakers away from the back wall.

concealer404

Face wrote: »

How recent are the pictures in your showcase?

Before adding any treatments, get those silly stacked subs out from between your speakers and pull your speakers away from the back wall.

I thought i updated that, my bad.

The subs are gone, speakers are farther out, but now there's a tv and tv stand between them, but it's behind the front line of the speakers.

I guess i need to update that further tonite, too.

I got the materials, but then the girlfriend got engrossed in Prince of Persia: The Two Thrones, so i couldn't do a whole lot last night. I'll hopefully finish and mount them tonite while she's at work.

polkanddie

Im so glad I saw this thread and read up on panel making, I found the pieces of OC in the barn. Very random cuts so I dont think my first panels are going to be the ideal 2x4, But I have a couple 18"x36" pieces. I also found a guy on CL selling some superthin polyester and china silk that matches the couch. I was going to just get some grill cloth but its 7.50 a sq yd at creative acoustics here in raleigh. Just for you guys making any speakers or panels out there I found some silver grill cloth on clearence at mcm electronics at $1.25 for a 36"x60" piece. Anyways I just leaned a couple peices up against the wall and it made a noticeable difference, I cant wait to put these together and mount them. I just want to thank concealer for posting this thread. Otherwise I would not have even thought about this until much later on.

nduitch

polkanddie wrote: »

DIY panels are in my future, I dont want to be evicted you know... Can someone post pics of placement of these, I want to have at least 4 in my room. I think I have some 703 in storage if I remember correctly...

Panels are will not going to stop you from being evicted. Just as much sound is still going to leak out of your apartment into your neighbors apartment. The only thing you can do to help that is to have concrete walls between you and your neighbor.

polkanddie

Uh-oh. I guess I better turn it down a bit then...Thanks for the heads up.

concealer404

Mine didn't do much... but i've also only got four 2'x4' panels up right now, and i think i need to try again with better materials. Oh well. Learning process.

Hawkeye

I've found that room treatments have been by far, the best use of audio dollars, bar none. Better than wires, isolation or coloring my CDs green.

I have six in my room right now and if the better half would agree, there would be six more at least.

Gordon

SCompRacer

concealer404 wrote: »

.....i think i need to try again with better materials.

What material did you use? The last get together we had at my place, I began to remove room treatments while the music was playing. Two attendees treated their rooms the following month. It will be well worth your effort.

concealer404

SCompRacer wrote: »

What material did you use? The last get together we had at my place, I began to remove room treatments while the music was playing. Two attendees treated their rooms the following month. It will be well worth your effort.

The guy that i bought the Scarlet Vipers from actually used foam insulation panels, and his room was ridiculously dead.

I tried the same thing, and it made a difference, just not real big yet. I'm sure part of it is because of the material i used, and also that i need more panels, and my room is annoying, to say the least.

I'll revisit this after the holidays and spend some more money on it and see where we stand. This was more of a test run to see if i could hear any difference at all, and to experiment with placement (which i still have to do some more.)

I still have an echo when doing the "clap test" but it does seem to have subdued some. Voices don't have an echo anymore, so i'll take that as an improvement.

LessisNevermore

What kind of foam was used? If you're talking about the pink foam sheathing board, it's more reflective than absorptive. Even acoustic foam is fairly narrow in bandwidth absorption. If you're looking for something equal to OC 703/705, look into Rockwool. ATS has it priced substantially lower than the fiberglass panels. It's fairly easy to work with, I thought it might be less itchy to work with, but boy, was I wrong. DO wear long sleeves!:D Buy an inexpensive bread knife to do any trimming. Don't use one out of the kitchen, you'll dull the piss out of it! (ask me how I know..) LOL

concealer404

Crap, you're talking greek to me again....

OC 703/705? What's that....

polkanddie

Owens corning, its a brand of insulation. 703 is what is most recommended, or so Ive read...pretty expensive imo. but also worth it in the end. The boards i had laying around in storage were 1.5" thick. I recommend 2" or more. Double layering if you need to. What Im experimenting with right now is 2"soft foam insulation backed with a type of dynamat material and so far it seems to work pretty well. Hopefully it will turn out well when combined with the fiberglass panels. Im debating doing some experiments with rockwool. Gotta look at the costs though... on a budget. lol

concealer404

Disregard that, i'm dumb. Forgot that the 703/705 was rigid.

So i could in theory just cover it and put it up on the wall without building a frame. Not ideal, i know, but building a frame is out of the question for the moment.

I think i'll give that a shot later this month. Bonus check wooo!!

LessisNevermore

concealer404 wrote: »

Crap, you're talking greek to me again....

OC 703/705? What's that....

Owens-Corning rigid fiberglass panels. 703 and 705, they have slightly different absorption frequency bandwidth. IIRC, 703 absorbs better in the lower bass regions. Rockwool/Roxul/mineral wool is a cheaper substitute, with the same acoustical properties.

SCompRacer

An Absorption Coefficients chart.

http://www.bobgolds.com/AbsorptionCoefficients.htm

Also many links to DIY sites.

SCompRacer

concealer404 wrote: »

So i could in theory just cover it and put it up on the wall without building a frame.

Yes. A frame makes it a bit more durable and easier to hang without tearing/sagging.

concealer404

Perfect! I really appreciate it. Down come my silly useless panels and i'll order a case of Roxul tomorrow and try again.

beardog03

I use the piles of dirty laundry in my office !!

works well until wash day !!



I am glad you posted this thread...
I will revisit it once i get my office / 2ch room back to where it is supposed to be

treatments make a huge difference......and you all have given me some useful ideas

Thanks !!