AudioGrotto Build Diary

[bassman]

The only tonal diff I can imagine is that with new hardwood over concrete you would have to use a thin foam layer as a base before the wood. We did this in another room and it was not good for TL as the pad and floor acted as a resonator in the midrange.

The concrete sounds great and you can always throw a rug down if you need it. Plus, when the drummer barfs, its an easy clean!!!!

-ashley

[Sixstringer]

Can you comment on the price for the concrete compared to hardwood by chance?



p.s.
Strange. It may just show my inexperience in studio design, but I always thought that the bass player was the one to barf more often.

[bassman]

Well, I am the bass player and I try to retain my dignity in these matters..... pass the buck to the drummer. They always need a shower....


Concrete finishing was around $4/sq ft. if I remember. Not cheap, but its a VERY durable floor. It will need a re-sealing at some point but never another grinding in my lifetime. I get a lot of compliments on the floors. They have really helped with the vibe in the place. Plus, my chair rolls effortlessly....

-Ashley

[lowemae]

I joined this site just to be able to comment on how awesome this studio looks. What a great design! Congrats

[bassman]

thanks, lowemae.

If you're ever down this way, shoot me a note and stop by. Ft. Wayne ain't that far....

This summer has been the busiest yet for me, getting the B room running with other engineers coming in. It finally feels like what I had imagined so many years ago when we bought the place. Again, my thanks to all here at John Sayers site for the help and support. It made a great deal of difference in the end.

Actually, I have an acoustic consultation tomorrow with a condo builder as a result of the studio..... go figure

-Ashley

[Luny Tune]

Hi Bassman,

I'm digging through the site here to find info on how best to setup my PMC AB1 monitors in my control room now that I'm rebuilding my (small) studio.
I've worked on flush mounted systems before and I love it, so I would love to have mine flush mounted as well. But I haven't been able to find anyone else who has exeprience with these particular monitors until now. And here you are! I'm sure you love the AB1's as much as I do.

I hope it's ok to ask you a few questions specifically about those monitors flush mounted like you have them. I would absolutely love to drop by for a quick listen (and see your beautiful rooms of course), but Kentucky's quite a long way away from Denmark.

I'm curious to hear if you have experienced any problems? ...a need to tilt/filter the low end or anything?

Your wall construction seems pretty simple. Aren't there any problems with vibrations transferred to the front wall? Have you done anything to prevent that specifically?

In return, I can offer a little tip for you. I have always thought that the AB1's are awesome...yet they do have a little high mid/low treble sting that I would rather do without. So I tested a few different tweeters and I found one that is absolutely spot on for them. It has the same level of detail (I wouldn't compromise that) and character, but with that "sting" eliminated. Same price range as the original Vifa D27TG35 tweeter.

It's a ScanSpeak R2604/832000 tweeter. Here's a photo for reference. It's large so I'm not attaching it here in the thread.

Note that it's 4Ω instead of the originals 6Ω. If you're bi-amping then just drop it in, but if not, then you'll need a resistor in series with the tweeter.
Also you'll need to "adjust" the hole behind the tweeter a bit + mount it with 5 (new) screws instead of the 4.
All this is well worth the effort in my opinion. My ears are more relaxed now that the slightly fatiguing sting is gone. Also, I think that when bi-amping, the woofers and tweeters are way more easily balanced to perfection.

If you experience the same stingy thing with your AB1's, then you should just go ahead and get these replacements. You'll love it.

[bassman]

Hey Luny Tune,

I use DSP EQ on the speakers to compensate for the low end gain of the soffits and other anomalies. I had Wes Lachot help me design the soffit wall and we placed bags of sand underneath the boxes to help deaden them and minimize vibration of the soffit wall.

I know what you mean about the 'sting' and prefer those tweeters to be off-axis. With the soffits angled in, that can be an issue. I have built these soffits to accept the larger IB2S when the budget allows. Also, I will be adding absorption to the front wall later this year when I get a break from working so much! That will change a lot.

The speakers have been great for so many years. I am looking forward to fixing the front wall up a bit more and adding some more bass trapping to the room, plus rebuilding my console to accommodate the Nuage units I've had for a while.

Time for the upgrade...

-Ashley

[Luny Tune]

Alright. Thanks!
I'll have a little chat with myself about whether or not to make it a firm or soft front wall, then...