Greeting form! This looks like a great site

Hello! :yahoo: This form looks amazing, and full of great useful help for building studio space, and I'll be doing just that, and needing help in the next few weeks/month or so. I'll attach a photo to get an idea of the space, and some other details shortly, but first, I hope this is a site where I can post progress ect, get acoustic advise when building walls, ceilings, positioning traps, doors windows, electric, and other building help. I'm thinking 2 or 3k in costs, and if it's less thats amazing, there's a few friends who are on board to help with construction. I plan on running some online fundraising, and have an event at the studio space to raise some money for building materials. The main concern for construction is acoustic treatment and no concern for isolation, its a quiet area, and an empty building after 5PM. Overall the space is just under 1500 sq feet, and the area Im going to build a room in has three cement walls, a cement floor (basement), I think it needs a ceiling, and will b approx. 16x16 (just over 16 length, and just under 16 width). There's a small space on one of the walls for a vocal booth (slash closet), there's no windows in that area, but I'd like to put a large window to view outside the room and that same wall will need a door to get in and out (thinking double door). Plans right now, wood frame around the space, dry wall all four walls, one wall will be an outside wall to the space, drywall ceiling also with wood frame, thinking laminate floor for cost over hardwood with area rugs (not a fan of carpet for dust reasons, would rather carpet the ceiling), and buy or build bass traps and other acoustic panels. Questions Im stuck on; should i make two walls angle instead of 90 degree corners, is it ok to use metal frame for walls, and or ceiling instead of wood, whats the best flooring to use on cement or leave cement with fresh paint, and I plan to spend weeks on end in the studio so bed and other living essentials need to fit will they cause acoustic issues and whats the best way to place everything. Hope this site rocks with help :D Matt-

" 16x16 (just over 16 length, and just under 16 width)." Any room that is square has two things in common. It has two pair of parallel walls that are matched at the same frequency due to the same wall length. That equals double your opportunity for flutter echo which is the result of sound bouncing off of hard parallel surfaces. A rectangular room has always been a better room. "would rather carpet the ceiling)" I would lose this idea as well. To carpet the ceiling only transfers the unknown and selective absorption known to be produced by carpet, from the floor to the ceiling. dismiss the idea completely, the idea of carpet on the...well, anywhere. "Questions Im stuck on; should i make two walls angle instead of 90 degree corners, " Depends. A complementing 6 degree angle of walls in the control room (both walls on either side of the listeners ears being canted at 6 degrees) can add diffusion and reduce flutter where as the tracking room wants to be non-parallel which is different. "is it ok to use metal frame for walls, and or ceiling instead of wood" Structural studs not a typical light gauge metal. Otherwise the walls and/or ceiling will fail/collapse due to gravity. "whats the best flooring to use on cement or leave cement with fresh paint" Personal preference, one or the other. Either one is a hard surface.

thanks for the quick help, I've not realized that a closely square room would cause issues, thats why I came looking for help. It was a thought to create a hallway to the closet, and the room would end up being 16x10', that sounds a bit more practical for production reasons now. I was also looking into genie clips to help with wall construction if anyone has input if they are worth it would be cool. I might not have worded the ceiling proper to be understood, yes I know I need to have frames, my question was wood over metal for the ceiling. If you look at the picture, there's already metal support systems, but cross beams need to be put in for a ceiling, I think drywall is better, some people are telling me drop ceiling tiles would be a good idea. so now I have more unanswered questions and decisions to make. I'm doing my best with internet research, but end up with more questions than I already had because its the internet and there's more than one way to do things. I like the help regarding floor, thank you, I dont want to use carpet anywhere because of dust allergies. so, 10x16' room is better than a 16x16' room? GENIE CLIPS are worth it? new question, *bed for those long hours in the studio producing is doable? / could double as a bass trap? lol

new question as searching around that 38$% rule means a 16foot room would be best at 6 feet wide? hmmm best??

new question as searching around that 38$% rule means a 16foot room would be best at 6 feet wide? hmmm best??

You seem to have misunderstood the so-called "38% rule". It has nothing at all to do with room width. All it tells you is the supposed best location for the mix position within the room. So if your room is 16 feet long, then the mix position should be at 6'1" from the front wall and 9'11" from the rear wall. Theoretically, that is the point in the room where the modes are least objectionable. But it is not related in any way to room width: the mix position must always be on the center-line of the room. In any case, 38% is not really a rule at all: just a guideline. A good place to start wen searching for the best mix position.

thanks for the quick help, I've not realized that a closely square room would cause issues

You should probably do some searching on the forum for "room ratio", and learn about why a square room is bad. Using a good ratio for your room is a basic key to success. With a bad ratio, your room will never sound good, no matter what you do to it. With a good ratio you have a much better chance of getting it to sound good.

I think drywall is better, some people are telling me drop ceiling tiles would be a good idea.

Yes, drywall would be better. In fact, it is your only real option if you hope to have a good studio with decent isolation. Stay away from those people who are telling you that ceiling tiles would be better: they obviously have no understanding at all of the principles of acoustics.

but end up with more questions than I already had because its the internet and there's more than one way to do things.

Yes, there may well be "more than one way" of doing things, but the problem is that most of those ways are wrong, and very few are right. That's the problem with the internet: any idiot can say anything they feel like, even if they don't have a clue and have never studied anything at all about acoustics. Such as the people who were trying to tell you that carpet is a great idea on the ceiling, or that drop-ceilings are a great way of isolating a room.

so, 10x16' room is better than a 16x16' room?

Yes it is better, but it still might not be good. For example, if the ceiling ended up at either 8 feet high or 10 feet high, then it would be bad.

GENIE CLIPS are worth it?

Depends on what your overall plans are. If yo are going to build proper decoupled walls then you don't need clips.

new question, *bed for those long hours in the studio producing is doable? / could double as a bass trap? lol

Probably a sofa that converts in to a be would be a better idea for a studio. And no, most likely a bed would not double as a bass trap: mattress foam is usually closed-cell, so it has very little in useful acoustic properties. - Stuart -

before i read the rest of your comments, the first thing yes I have a better understanding of that 38% thing now... for what ever reason the first thing I read seemed to make it seem like that was part of an answer i was looking for... wasn't the answer I was looking for. I like to keep equal distances between myself and the monitors and have the monitors the same distance, i think thats a standard near field thing, and try to keep the distance between the walls and the monitors on the sides ect. I learned about the mirror trick recently for acoustic treatment, all still very basic logic to me.. .....still reading..

but end up with more questions than I already had because its the internet and there's more than one way to do things. Yes, there may well be "more than one way" of doing things, but the problem is that most of those ways are wrong,and very few are right. That's the problem with the internet: any idiot can say anything they feel like, even if they don't have a clue and have never studied anything at all about acoustics. Such as the people who were trying to tell you that carpet is a great idea on the ceiling, or that drop-ceilings are a great way of isolating a room.

LOLOLOL!!!!!!!! made me lol I quickly correct people that I want drywall ceilings 100%, apparently metal studs are a faster solution for construction, but i think they could cause an issue with low frequencies.

Yes it is better, but it still might not be good. For example, if the ceiling ended up at either 8 feet high or 10 feet high, then it would be bad.

I think its more than 9, i have to measure the exact again, or atleast how much to the rafters ect, and that will give a good idea of how much room I have to play with. I think i was working with 9, and estimating to that from the rafters.

Depends on what your overall plans are. If yo are going to build proper decoupled walls then you don't need clips.

I was thinking clips to save a bit of space and materials, its a quiet area, and I dont have to worry about my levels. I'm unsure if its better, worse, theres no difference, its just preference thing, or its a never use type thing.

new question, *bed for those long hours in the studio producing is doable? / could double as a bass trap? lol- Probably a sofa that converts in to a be would be a better idea for a studio. And no, most likely a bed would not double as a bass trap: mattress foam is usually closed-cell, so it has very little in useful acoustic properties.

I've started floor plans for turning the approx. 16x16 area, into a 12x9 bedroom area & a 16x6 studio area, that gives 2 additional feet for walls, frames, and additional room to play with ect. Sizes will likely change, and theres more furniture, studio acoustic and equipment to include. The closet I was going to make a mic booth will end up being an actual closet. and its funny u said sofa bed because I have this really hollow ikea thing that I call "the most un-conferrable couch in the world" I included in the floor plan already. thanks Stuart! Matt-