ACOUSTIC TREATMENT FABRICS

what kind of fabrics are used to cover the bass traps, wall absorbers etc.?? I've found several different preferences i guess from difference sites and have gone to look at fabric stores. I found this stuff that I think is called penote ? It reminds me of speaker fabric. Its light weight and breaths very well. I've also seen canvas used to cover bass traps. Like old paint cloths etc. What is the best cloth/fabric to use to cover acoustic treatments... Thanks, C

redstudio wrote:

What is the best cloth/fabric to use to cover acoustic treatments...

For panels meant to absorb mid and high frequencies, an open weave fabric is best. For bass traps almost anything will do, and there can even be a benefit from using a closed weave fabric. --Ethan

Ethan Winer wrote:

redstudio wrote:

What is the best cloth/fabric to use to cover acoustic treatments...

For panels meant to absorb mid and high frequencies, an open weave fabric is best. For bass traps almost anything will do, and there can even be a benefit from using a closed weave fabric. --Ethan

How so? What exactly type of material should I be looking for. Canvas? What would that be considered? Thanks, C

the most common studio cloth is Felt. It comes in a variety of sizes and colours. cheers john

John Sayers wrote:

the most common studio cloth is Felt. It comes in a variety of sizes and colours. cheers john

Felt, have any links where to buy? Or can I go to a local fabric store. Thanks, C

don't you have google search?

JoAnn Fabrics will give you a choice of felt, burlap, and muslin - all of which make good reasonably priced coverings with 3 very different looks and feels. Bryan

well I do have google search. But I thought the point of having a RECORDING STUDIO DESIGN FORUM was to imform others of different things on building recording studio's, acoustics, etc. I'm not an expert on these topics. Just looking for the right direction so i don't make a wrong choice and end up spending money where it was unneeded or not appropriate for the task. Thanks for the comments.

the answer was provided, now you want to know where to buy it. John suggested google to find sources close to you or via Internet you could purchase. felt is one option, other folks have used muslin, burlap, speaker cloth, etc depends on its use. as a general rule of thumb, you want to balance the effects of treatments to avoid having one trap from impacting another range of frequencies. this is a common issue where a bunch of soft things are in the space absorbing highs but leaving low and mids untreated, or vice versa where its too live (a better problem imho). for instance, a deep pile of insulation in a corner will do wonders for bass trapping but also suck in a bunch of high end - so covering it with a denser cloth like felt or high thread count muslin (or even a layer of plastic under the cloth, or widely space wood slats over top) of it can all keep the high frequencies alive. on reflection point abosrbers, you want mid-to high frequencies so a more open weave cloth like burlap on a 703 type insulation will impede mid-high frequency. for a slat resonator, you'd want cloth (if using one) which has little impact on air flow like speaker cloth. all of which you need to consider treating with fire retardents (which you can buy online). hth

Thank GAWD! I didn't know how long it would take but I KNEW you were going to spam us! Thank you for NOT letting me down ;)

Yeah, I was kind of waiting for that too! Spammers are soooo predictable, even when they try so hard to appear innocent... :(

John Sayers wrote:

don't you have google search?

Uh, yeah I do... http://www.lmgtfy.com/?q=felt :)

RO! that is so funny, my cheeks hurt