DIY bass trap idea

[Bigmoney]

Hey guys. I was surfing the web and came across a site with an interesting DIY bass trap. The site is http://remixmag.com/mag/remix_diy_acoustics/ it also has good DIY projects for diffusors and absorbers. Check out the bass trap idea, which is to zig zag mineral wool in a garbage can, capp the can and dress it up to to make it presentable. Seems like it would work and woulld be very cost-efficient. Please check it out and tell me what you think.

[E-Stat]

Seems like it would work and woulld be very cost-efficient. Please check it out and tell me what you think.
Cost efficient, yes. Effective? Hmmm. Most bass traps operate over their entire length rather than just the top. A variation of that is Jon Risch's Quick and Dirty version which simply uses stacked rolls of insulation. I tried that for a while, but they were only moderately effective. I later used a different DIY recipe found here for my forest: Another DIY bass trap (http://www.teresaudio.com/haven/traps/traps.html)

These did the job with measurable results in my current room.

rw

[Bigmoney]

Do you think its worth buying premade bass traps. I hear bass traps are a necessity in all systems, so I look forward to adding them. I guess I am asking can I build a DIY trap that will be ass efective as say the auralex LERND traps. If, not is the difference in performance between the DIY and the premade traps worth the extra money when on an especially tight budget for the moment?

[E-Stat]

Do you think its worth buying premade bass traps.
Not necessarily. I found the DIY flavor solved the problems in my room. But they did require some work on both my part and that of my wife (sewing the socks)


I hear bass traps are a necessity in all systems, so I look forward to adding them.
I think the first job is determining how big a problem you have with your room. Most rooms have frequency peaks and troughs. I invested $60 in a Radio Shack SPL meter and a Stereophile test CD. Also got compensation curves for the meter since they are inaccurate out of the box. I had peaks on the order of 8-12 db.


guess I am asking can I build a DIY trap that will be ass efective as say the auralex LERND traps. If, not is the difference in performance between the DIY and the premade traps worth the extra money when on an especially tight budget for the moment?
As effective? I simply don't know. Maybe not. It may well require more DIY traps to do the same job. I suspect that DIY is still the least expensive way to go if you don't mind building them.

I also found that the traditional "place them in all four corners" approach didn't work as well as simply stuffing most behind the speakers with two along the walls midway down the room. On the other hand, I have dipoles which radiate half their output to the rear. My message is to experiment.

rw