Hey there everyone, first time poster. Lots of great advice and information here, and many of you have some awesome looking studios.
I've decided to finally set up a mixing room with proper arrangement and treatment. I'm currently in the planning/designing stage, and I'm still quite new to all this, so I was hoping to get some suggestions and advice?
I've attached a diagram of my room, and it is to scale.
The room is one of the bedrooms in my house, on the second floor. All walls are drywall, the floor is carpet. My intention is to transform this room so that it is more suitable to listen back to my mixes, as well as being treat so that I can also record vocals (all other instruments will be recorded direct).
From what I've researched so far, the conventional thing to do is to be listening utilizing the 38% rule (in this case, 38% of the distance from the window, and the window is covered with a long drape), and from there, have bass traps in the key reflection points (on the two sides of the speakers, one just above the listening area, and a few in the rear of the room), plus the corners.
I am aware that this may not be the most suitable room, but it's the only one I've got to work with. I don't plan to make any structural changes (tearing down walls, etc.), so my intention is to optimize the room for proper listening with speaker placement and bass traps.
For the bass traps, I'm not opposed to buying ready-made ones, but I will (reluctantly) go the DIY route if the cost savings are substantial. I do prefer to keep a low budget, around $300-500 if possible.
So a few questions....
1. Based on the dimensions of the closet, is it feasible to use as a vocal booth? From what I've seen with others', the ceiling may be too high. Would I be better off recording within the room with a gobo or other instant vocal-booth type solutions? (like the Voxguard or Reflexion)
2. For the corners, I've been told that one viable solution is to simply place bags of insulation in the corners. It works just as effective and is much cheaper than buying premade corner bass traps....the only downside being visual aesthetics. Is this true?
3. Based on the room dimensions and size, how many traps do you think I should have, minimum? I consulted Waveacoustic.com, and they suggested 12 panels, 6 corner traps for the 3 corners, and 1 ceiling cloud (total $1410). Obviously they want to make money, but I think the number of panels may not be necessary.
I hope this is all sufficient information. Hoping to hear back, thanks very much!
Designing a bedroom mixing room + recording vocals
Originally posted at johnlsayers.com, topic 18498.
Hi DJ, and welcome! :)
Ouch! Any chance of taking that up, or covering it with a nice solid reflective surface?the floor is carpet.
Well, "rule" is probably a bit too strong. "guideline for a possible starting point" would be better! :) Seriously, it's just a rough marker to get you in the right ball-park for a good listening position. The worst positions are 25% and 50%, and 38% is theoretically the best, but you won't get arrested by the Acoustic Police if you end up at 41%, or 35%, or whatever....From what I've researched so far, the conventional thing to do is to be listening utilizing the 38% rule
You seem to be confusing two concepts there. The reflection points are places where sound waves can bounce of the walls or ceiling and get directly to your ears. The place where bass traps go is NOT the reflection points! They go on the room corners.have bass traps in the key reflection points (on the two sides of the speakers, one just above the listening area, and a few in the rear of the room), plus the corners.
There are several examples here on the forum of inexpensive bass traps that people have built. Basically, you just build a simple rectangular frame from 1x4s, put a panel of OC-703 (or similar) insulation inside, and cover it with the fabric of your choice. Done! Very effective, and cheap.For the bass traps, I'm not opposed to buying ready-made ones, but I will (reluctantly) go the DIY route if the cost savings are substantial. I do prefer to keep a low budget, around $300-500 if possible.
Possible, but it won't give you very good sound: it is way too narrow, at just 25". I hope you only ever need to record skinny singers! :)1. Based on the dimensions of the closet, is it feasible to use as a vocal booth?
Unlikely: Height is a good thing, generally. I would be worried about the width...From what I've seen with others', the ceiling may be too high.
It works, yes. Although I'm not aware of any tests done in acoustic labs, so I can't say how effective it is in terms of decibels and frequencies, but I have done it myself, and it does work as a "quick and dirty" way of getting bass trapping in fast, when you need it in a hurry. But I'm not sure if I would leave it like that as a permanent solution....2. For the corners, I've been told that one viable solution is to simply place bags of insulation in the corners. It works just as effective and is much cheaper than buying premade corner bass traps....the only downside being visual aesthetics. Is this true?
It's a small room, so it needs a LOT of bass trapping. If that were my room, I would do superchunks in all of the vertical corners, thick isolation on the rear wall, then test with REW to see how it is doing before deciding on the next step. - Stuart -3. Based on the room dimensions and size, how many traps do you think I should have, minimum?