Room Treatments/echo Busters

[swgiust]

Does anybody know a source for reasonably priced room treatments? Ive looked at Echo Busters and ASC tube traps. They all are in the $600-800 range. This is way too much
for what this stuff is made of. Is there a book out that explains how to build room treatments?

My room is 18x18 with a vaulted ceiling. It definatley has some acoustic problems.
Thanks

[hmmmm]

Try Foambymail.com under acoustic treatments (if you can stand the looks)

[topspeed]

This place has been mentioned before here and I actually found the website as pretty cool. Here are links to both treatments as well as room acoustic basics.

Hope this helps.

http://www.auralex.com/
http://www.acoustics101.com/

[toenail]

For more than you ever wanted to know about all things room related, I highly suggest some of the white papers available at the Harman International site. See links at left margin.

http://harman.com/wp/index.jsp?articleId=default

[mariannes504]

I have acoustic problems too and was advised to make my own. Buy a piece of duct board from your local heat/ac dealer they come in sheets of 4x10 for around $40. This is a light weight fiberglass used for air ducts. Get some fabric that will look good in your room, cover the insulated side of the duct board with fabric, hang on wall and & trim around. Make sure you hang the silver side against the wall. Good Luck!



Does anybody know a source for reasonably priced room treatments? Ive looked at Echo Busters and ASC tube traps. They all are in the $600-800 range. This is way too much
for what this stuff is made of. Is there a book out that explains how to build room treatments?

My room is 18x18 with a vaulted ceiling. It definatley has some acoustic problems.
Thanks

[hmmmm]

I have acoustic problems too and was advised to make my own. Buy a piece of duct board from your local heat/ac dealer they come in sheets of 4x10 for around $40. This is a light weight fiberglass used for air ducts. Get some fabric that will look good in your room, cover the insulated side of the duct board with fabric, hang on wall and & trim around. Make sure you hang the silver side against the wall. Good Luck!

Is that the same thing as type 703 Fiberglass board? I was told to use that but no one seems to have a clue (including myself) what it is. Also, what about using homosote board wrapped in fabric? That's what a home depot guy said worked well.

[E-Stat]

Does anybody know a source for reasonably priced room treatments? Ive looked at Echo Busters and ASC tube traps. They all are in the $600-800 range. This is way too much
for what this stuff is made of. Is there a book out that explains how to build room treatments?
Do a Google search on "DIY bass traps" and you will find a number of DIY recipes. I built a dozen using this one:

http://teresaudio.com/haven/traps/traps.html

They really do improve bass smoothness and imaging.

rw

[Woochifer]

Is that the same thing as type 703 Fiberglass board? I was told to use that but no one seems to have a clue (including myself) what it is. Also, what about using homosote board wrapped in fabric? That's what a home depot guy said worked well.

Owens Corning's 700 series fiberglas boards seem to be the most frequently recommended option because they are relatively inexpensive and already cut into 2'x4' panels. Consumer oriented places like Lowe's and Home Depot don't typically carry this line, you need to go to a building materials store that sells more to professional installers. Here's the link if you want info. Unfortunately, the product sheets no longer include the sound absorption specs, so you may need to do a Google search once you find the product that you're looking for.

http://www.owenscorning.com/comminsul/products.asp?product=1&system=79

Also, there's some information about various sound absorbing materials that you can use to make your own DIY panels. Jon Risch has a lot of items linked to his page on DIY acoustic treatments.

http://www.geocities.com/jonrisch/a.htm

And lastly, I made my own panels out of acoustic ceiling panels. Compared to fiberglas panels, acoustic ceiling panels have lower absorption, but they are also more readily available at hardware stores and only cost $16 for a box of eight (the Owens Corning 703 boards I believe cost $80 for a box of panels). Here's a closeup of what they look like along with the molding suspension setup that my wife and I installed, and a link to what I did to create them. Altogether a very inexpensive and effective room treatment.

http://gallery.audioreview.com/showphoto.php?photo=16&password=&sort=1&cat=500&page=1
http://archive.audioreview.com/07/0EF98244.php
http://archive.audioreview.com/07/0EF8B7DD.php
http://archive.audioreview.com/07/0EF8BD0B.php

http://members.aol.com/sfwooch/images/rearview.jpg

[Sir Terrence the Terrible]

Is that the same thing as type 703 Fiberglass board? I was told to use that but no one seems to have a clue (including myself) what it is. Also, what about using homosote board wrapped in fabric? That's what a home depot guy said worked well.

There is a reason that acoustical products cost what they do. Much R & D money has gone into designing products with predictable results. That is something that is missing from Diy projects. Dealing with room acoustics is a science, and you must know exactly what you are doing, or you will make a bad problem worse.

Dealing with room acoustics requires that you know what frequencies are causing the problems, and choosing products that will fix it. That means you need to know exactly what frequencies a certain foam covers, how much absorption, reflection, abbiflection does it do to the reflective signals, and were to put it to be the most effective. None of this information is available when using untested fiberglass or foam.

If I were you, I would stick with reputable manufacturer of acoustical products. It may be more expensive to go this route, but a least you know exactly how these products will effect the sound in your room.

[mariannes504]

I'm not sure what 703 Fiberglass board is. I had my room professionally installed and the owner of the company made the suggestion to use duct board. He also suggested acoustical panels but also mentioned "if I like the look."

I went around and looked at ceiling panels etc... that you can buy at Lowes & Home Depot. The duct board can not be bought at home Depot or Lowesand has a high R factor. The duct board has an inner side that has no material that will bounce the sound and on the outside is the metallic side that you can hang against the wall. All you need is a nice quality fabric and a little creativity to make a great looking wall decoration in your theater room.

However, I must admit I am just creating my own as we speak. But after alot of research I'm pretty sure I'm going to have a great looking wall decor that will absorb the right amount of sound and still look great. Go to www.getdecorating.com to the home theater interiors section to get an idea of what I'm talking about. If you want a custom look without alot of cost.


Is that the same thing as type 703 Fiberglass board? I was told to use that but no one seems to have a clue (including myself) what it is. Also, what about using homosote board wrapped in fabric? That's what a home depot guy said worked well.

[Sir Terrence the Terrible]

I'm not sure what 703 Fiberglass board is. I had my room professionally installed and the owner of the company made the suggestion to use duct board. He also suggested acoustical panels but also mentioned "if I like the look."

I went around and looked at ceiling panels etc... that you can buy at Lowes & Home Depot. The duct board can not be bought at home Depot or Lowesand has a high R factor. The duct board has an inner side that has no material that will bounce the sound and on the outside is the metallic side that you can hang against the wall. All you need is a nice quality fabric and a little creativity to make a great looking wall decoration in your theater room.

However, I must admit I am just creating my own as we speak. But after alot of research I'm pretty sure I'm going to have a great looking wall decor that will absorb the right amount of sound and still look great. Go to www.getdecorating.com to the home theater interiors section to get an idea of what I'm talking about. If you want a custom look without alot of cost.


Some simple questions.

1. Do you know exactly the amount of absorbtion or reflection the fabric will introduce when connected to the duct board.

2. Do you know exactly what frequencies the fabric will absorb, and what it will reflect.
3. If you cannot answer either of these question with accuracy, then you are not really sure what results you DIY project will yield.

Some things you can do cheaply in hometheater and get away with it easily. Acoustical treatment is not one of them. I cannot tell you how many times in my installation history I have watched DIY'ers ruin the sound of their rooms just so it is pretty to the eye. When it comes to acoustics, DIY'ers often make things worse rather than better. Woochifer just happen to get it right, that is not always the case.

A custom look that does not control the acoustics is worthless. Attaching a piece of fabric to duct board may absorb frequencies above 8khz, but reflect everything else under that. That is detrimental to good imaging. What about the bass frequencies where most of the problems lie. How do you absorb(or control) the effects of standing waves without sucking the life out of the midrange?

Controlling acoustic is not just about absorb high or low frequencies. It is about providing the room with an even distribution of reflection, absorbtion, and abflection. You cannot even begin to tackle such a project until the room has been measured and the problem frequencies identified. What if you put up the fabric and duct board only to find that the room is dry and bass heavy? Or the high frequencies in room arent the problem at all?

The cheap and easy way doesn't always work, especially when dealing with acoustical matters. A bad job in the area can make your entire system sound worthless.

[mariannes504]

HI, I respect your comments,

I am on a very limited budget that does not include expensive acoustical panels. I spent all of my money on equipment.

I thought the post was about an inexpensive way of providing an echo chamber with sound absorbtion at a reasonable cost.

At any rate I am greatly interested in the specific decibal level of each frequency that is absorbed properly, in a room of 12 x 20 ,by an acoustical panel. Since I have two 10" subwoofers in this room I really do not want to lose too much bass.

I would also like to know which specific acoustical panels will work for my room, the price, and cost of installation for Western NC. Asheville Area.

Thank You



QUOTE=Sir Terrence the Terrible]Some simple questions.

1. Do you know exactly the amount of absorbtion or reflection the fabric will introduce when connected to the duct board.

2. Do you know exactly what frequencies the fabric will absorb, and what it will reflect.
3. If you cannot answer either of these question with accuracy, then you are not really sure what results you DIY project will yield.

Some things you can do cheaply in hometheater and get away with it easily. Acoustical treatment is not one of them. I cannot tell you how many times in my installation history I have watched DIY'ers ruin the sound of their rooms just so it is pretty to the eye. When it comes to acoustics, DIY'ers often make things worse rather than better. Woochifer just happen to get it right, that is not always the case.

A custom look that does not control the acoustics is worthless. Attaching a piece of fabric to duct board may absorb frequencies above 8khz, but reflect everything else under that. That is detrimental to good imaging. What about the bass frequencies where most of the problems lie. How do you absorb(or control) the effects of standing waves without sucking the life out of the midrange?

Controlling acoustic is not just about absorb high or low frequencies. It is about providing the room with an even distribution of reflection, absorbtion, and abflection. You cannot even begin to tackle such a project until the room has been measured and the problem frequencies identified. What if you put up the fabric and duct board only to find that the room is dry and bass heavy? Or the high frequencies in room arent the problem at all?

The cheap and easy way doesn't always work, especially when dealing with acoustical matters. A bad job in the area can make your entire system sound worthless.[/QUOTE]