University Project

Hello, I'm on a popular music course that has a little bit of music technology involved (including an acoustics module).I need to plan the layout for a studio and control room. Any research is permitted, even this; the real focus is to work in a group on different aspects and then bring it together properly. So, it'd be useful if things were explained to me, like why things need to be a certain way, or else I'm not really learning anything. The space is 15m x 10m x 5m. The live room needs to be pretty versatile in terms of musical styles. Here's my personal focus; "How the studio and control room will be designed and laid out, with particular reference to the surround sound monitoring system, control surfaces, communication, storage and computing equipment used", but any tips would be useful because I need to take into account what space the other people need (e.g. acoustic treatment, lighting/heating/cooling/ventilation, sound proofing and also audio/video connectivity with other performance spaces in the building). Thanks in advance for any help. JohnnyCosmo.

Please adhere to the posting rules and update you profile to include your location. You might find the recording manual below of interest. http://johnlsayers.com/Recmanual/index.htm

Alright, I feel a bit silly now; but thanks. I'll also include a bit more information.

Room size: 15m(L)x10m(w)x5m(h) for both the live room, control room, storage, vocal booth etc. Above will be a rehearsal room, and it will be beside a performance auditorium/lecture theatre that will likely have rock music levels of volume The studio needs to be flexible in terms of the music genres/styles The ground floor will be a of a block and beam construction, the first floor will be corrugated steel sheeting over a steel girder frame and concrete screed over it Outside walls will be aircrete block (480kg/m^3), painted on the inside, zinc coated steel on the outside

Although I don't need to consider the following personally, I will need space for others to work on the following Soundproofing Lighting, heating, ventilation, cooling Acoustic treatments of the live and control room Audio and video connectivity to other parts of the university

As for the budget... I really don't know. I guess I should just say mid-level pricing for everything, because there is no set cost but it has to be realistic for a university.

you will also need to consider all the building codes and regulations for the building for safety and accessibility. is this a student exercise for a class or are you intending on actually building this? if the latter, you should be seeking professional design services because a DIY approach for a full blown studio on a educational campus is not likely to cut it given the politics, trade unions, and insurance etc involved.

you will also need to consider all the building codes and regulations for the building for safety and accessibility. is this a student exercise for a class or are you intending on actually building this? if the latter, you should be seeking professional design services because a DIY approach for a full blown studio on a educational campus is not likely to cut it given the politics, trade unions, and insurance etc involved.

It's not being built, it's a project for an assessment. But yeah, I haven't thought about safety regulations yet so that's a good point.

Hi, Thank you for being honest as to this being a project. A couple of quick pieces of advice: Spend several days going through the forum and get a handle on the standard approaches being used. Decide on a design and sketch it up then ask for feedback. Remember all of the different elements have to work together so a more holistic approach may be in order. Don't try and reinvent the wheel. If you stay within a tried and trued design the outcome will be much easier to judge. I know this doesn't answer your question directly, but it is a better method for you to be able to defend your design decisions. Steve

"I guess I should just say mid-level pricing for everything, " That's about a buck 49 in the current global economic environment:)

Thanks for the responses, I appreciate it. I guess what I really was expecting was explanation as to why certain things are a certain way. I based the following design on something I saw around here somewhere... If anybody feels like giving a little feedback or tips based on this, that'd be cool. I guess it's a little awkward that I don't know the materials being used (since it's somebody else's area of focus, and they're taking ages to get back to me!).

not too bad for a starting point, now defend this as the best design for your allotted space. Some hints: Are the access routes optimal? Are the sight lines as good as they can be? Are the window locations going to impede treating first reflection points? Have you used the space as efficiently as possible? (do you need the hallway?) Would it be better for the performers if the vocal booth was right next to the live room? Will the live room comfortably hold the required number of people? Is the control room big enough? And you may wish to sketch with proper double walls. Steve

Are the dimensions of your control room a good ratio?

Hey, thanks for that. I'll go over things I've addressed already (for my own sake more than anything). 3. I've moved the window locations back, and they are smaller 4. Since it's an educational facility, my idea is that the live room will double up as a rehearsal room. The wide hallway makes this very easy to transport gear and it means the studio can remain locked if it is being used in this way. 5. As for the vocal booth, we actually have to consider audio and video connectivity to the rest of the building - so it might be a good idea to also connect the recording rooms in this way. 6. Yes, I think the live room will be big enough. It has to be quite flexible - but my current university studios rarely record 4 or 5 people at the same time. 7. I think it is, there's a big seat at the back (bigger than the one of the drawing) and it'll have optional chairs for other students (for small lectures and demonstrations). I made sure the control room dimensions are not multiples of each other, but I'm not sure how to do this in the best way. Another question - I'm using this to try and work out reverb time; http://www.csgnetwork.com/acousticreverbdelaycalc.html - what should I do considering the non-parallel length walls of the control room? Oh, and here's my second draft. It's not that different, but any thoughts? http://s1221.photobucket.com/albums/dd4 ... Draft2.png

using non-parallel walls means you cannot do a direct calculation on the effects but typically you average the dimensions to get a sense of the overall ratio and volume.

Yeah, that's pretty much what I ended up doing. My deadline was today anyway, thanks to anyone who helped.