Looking to build two 2' x 4' cloud panels in the UK

[CJBrain]

Hi Guys,

I'm wanting to build two ceiling panels for my mixing room and i've heard this is the place to ask for any advice.

Here are a few questions i have,

What is the best type of insulation to use for this?

What is the best way to hang them from the ceiling?

Where is the best place to buy all of this?

I'm based in Thetford, Norfolk. We have a Wickes and B & Q here but not much more than that. Closest City is Norwich if that helps.

Thanks in advanced.

Colin.

[Soundman2020]

Hi Colin. Please read the forum rules for posting (click here). You seem to be missing a couple of things!

I'm wanting to build two ceiling panels for my mixing room and i've heard this is the place to ask for any advice.

Absolutely! That's what we are here for. You heard right, for sure!

What is the best type of insulation to use for this?
What is the best way to hang them from the ceiling?

Ummm... that's a difficult question to answer, because you didn't mention anything at all about what you need these panels for, how big your room is, what the problems are with the room, or anything else! We sure can help you with advice, but we'll need to know a lot more about your room, your problems, and your needs. Right now, what you have said is sort of similar to someone going to the doctor, and saying "I need pills to make me better", and nothing else. What's the very firs question the doc will ask? "OK, but first tell me what is WRONG with you! When I know that, then I can prescribe the right pills.".

We need to know what is wrong with your room. Then we can tell you how to fix it.

- Stuart -

[CJBrain]

Hey Stuart

Thanks very much for even replying to what i posted. After looking through the rules i'm surprised you even bothered haha.

My apologies for that. It was a case of a friend mentioned this forum to me and i was in a rush last night so i just quickly signed up and posted without even looking at anything else.

I'll gather much more information this morning and reply to this with a more worth while post later on.

Cheers.

[CJBrain]

So firstly, I have little to no knowledge on acoustics. I have just returned to the UK after running a studio in Penang, Malaysia. Now that i am back i plan to turn an old bedroom into a mixing space. I have attached a photo of the room dimensions.

My plan to begin with was to have a setup as portable as possible as i'm not sure how long i will be in this house for so i went ahead and bought an ASC Attack Wall http://www.asc-studio-acoustics.com/pro ... tack-wall/ to cover the majority of the acoustic issues. This will sit against the back wall (6'5"). Sound levels are not an issue as it's a detached house although i do tend to mix at lower levels.

The guys at ASC recommended that a ceiling cloud would be something else needed to clear up any additional problems so i had in mind to make two 2'x4' absorption panels to go above the attack wall and my seated position.

I have all necessary tools for such a build but i would like to keep these as cheap as possible. I had a budget in mind of £50 per panel? Not sure whether that's even possible so please tell me if that is an unrealistic idea. Max for me would be £100 per panel.

I would like some advice with,

Where to buy the insulation material from in the UK and what are the benefits/weaknesses of different densities?

What is the ideal way to hang them from the ceiling?

If anyone has any plans from previous builds that they think would fit what i'm after it would be great to get that information.

Cheers,

Colin.

[Soundman2020]

Thanks for correcting the problem!

This will sit against the back wall (6'5").

That would be the front wall. The one where the speakers are. The back wall is the one behind your head. The front wall is the one in front of you.

That's a pretty small room. When I plug those numbers into one of the popular room mode calculators, I get this outcome: "A worst case scenario". I kid you not!

With a low ceiling like that, it's going to pretty hard to hang a cloud. It will need to be hard backed, to help with your 0.0.1 axial modes and other related modes, and it will need fairly thick absorption to deal with the mid-range issues and first reflections, so it's going to come down pretty low over your desk and speakers.... I hope you are aware of that?

I'd suggest making a frame of 1x6 lumber, putting a 3/4" (19mm) MDF hard back on top of it, then filling the lower part with a 4" thick panel of OC-703 plus an inch and a half of ordinary "pink fluffy" insulation, putting some 2 mil plastic over the bottom, and wrapping in in breathable fabric of your choice, then hanging it from chains using eye-bolts that are screwed deeply into the ceiling joists above you. Use eight mounting points with 8 chains, to spread the load and also for safety, and make sure that each of the chains, bolts and screws can handle ten times the load that it will be supporting. Angle that entire unit by about 10° or more, lower over the speakers, higher over the desk.

But before doing all of that, do a an acoustic test of your room using REW and post the data file here so we can analyze it for you. You can do another test after the cloud is in place, so you can see what effect it had, and if you still need more treatment.

What type of bass trapping do you have in there, on the wall behind you?

- Stuart -

[CJBrain]

Thanks for all the information!

The room is currently empty with nothing in it so i'll have to wait until the attack wall turns up (expected this week) and i've collected and set up my monitors etc. before i do the room calculations. Just out of curiosity, have you ever had any experience with an Attack Wall?

In regards to the OC 703. Any idea where that can be purchased in the UK?

[Soundman2020]

If the room is empty, then now is the perfect time to do a full acoustic test, with REW!! It will clearly show up all of the problems and acoustic behavior of the room, which is a great indication on how to treat it. If you wait until you have some treatment installed then that might be masking some of the problems already. So I'd suggest doing that initial test while you can, before putting anything in there. That "baseline" test is very important.

According to Google, this is the UK offices of Owens Corning:

Address:
Chadwick House,
Warrington Road Birchwood,
Birchwood,
Warrington,
Cheshire WA3 6AE,
United Kingdom

Phone:+44 20 7339 3898


So give them a call and ask for the list of dealers in your area.

have you ever had any experience with an Attack Wall?

Not personally, no. I've looked into it a bit, and not entirely convinced of all the claims they make. The basic principles are good, but they do seem to be over-hyping the effects. They are basically poly-cylindrical devices combined with some other tricks, so they should have some decent effect on your room. They will make a difference. The question is if they will make as much difference as the advertising suggests...

That's another reason why it would be interesting to have a "before" and "after" test with REW, to see how they actually perform. You can download REW for free, and it is fairly easy to use.


- Stuart -

[CJBrain]

Thanks Stuart.

As soon as get these calculations done I'll post them up.

Cheers

Colin.