variable acoustics?

subatom · Post by **subatom** » Mon Jan 26, 2004 8:17 pm

does anybody here ever use any methods that involve rooms with variable acoustics? ...moveable/rotating panels that may be reflect on 1 side and absorb on the other...i personally see an advantage to variable spaces. or panels that just absorb certain frequencies. ...i think having a few different "tested" arrangements would be convenient to have.
what tests, meters, or instruments do any of you use after building studios?

sjoko2 · Post by **sjoko2** » Thu Feb 12, 2004 5:19 am

Yes is the answer.
Over here we have a "drum booth" , a floating platform enclosed on three sides. It has a huge low frequency trap in the rear top, broadband diffusion slot converters in the rear corners, straw panelling on the rear and 1/2 the sides, a roof / absorber which is hinged on one side, and two large hinged side panels with slot absorbers on the front.

Tight sound - drop the roof - move the hinged panels around the kit.
Fat big sound - move the roof up - move the hinged panels to the sides - and the main tracking room comes in to play.

Works like a dream

Also, I know John S. has designed / build some very cool variable acoustics in tracking rooms - I think I remember seeing some pictures of them somewhere. Perhaps he scan display those again?

AVare · Post by **AVare** » Thu Feb 12, 2004 8:10 am

John has numerous examples of various studios, their design and construction in the "Studios Under Construction" One that gives an excellent example of variable acoustics is the Left Bank Studio. Has details on variable acoustics.

http://www.johnlsayers.com/Studio/Mainp ... ftbank.htm

I hope whets your appetite till John can really fill you in.

sjoko2 · Post by **sjoko2** » Fri Feb 13, 2004 4:35 am

here's a pic of the drum booth

subatom · Post by **subatom** » Sun Feb 15, 2004 9:51 pm

Left Bank has a good organic feeling. I think the concave panel might be focusing the reflections to a short radius, maybe 3'? Wouldn't that be a good place for a mic? or two...one facing the reflection and one facing the source... you might get some delay? I thought about panels that could be rotated by motor(s) and controlled by switch(s) from the control room. You could have an interface with different pre-programmed scenes. Wouldn't that be fun!

knightfly · Post by **knightfly** » Mon Feb 16, 2004 3:56 am

"I thought about panels that could be rotated by motor(s) and controlled by switch(s) from the control room. You could have an interface with different pre-programmed scenes. Wouldn't that be fun!" -

Been reading any Philip Newell books lately? His book, Recording Studio Design, has a couple of diagrams of triangular acoustic units, each face different, mounted on axles and rotated by electric motors for the overhead ones - then vertical axles with 3-sided units that are just rotated by hand. He showed several combo's of absorption, diffusion, etc, sounded pretty cool if you had the time to build it, otherwise it could get pretty expensive... Steve

Post by **John Sayers** » Mon Feb 16, 2004 8:45 am

I seem to remember the Record Plant had a large film score tracking studio in LA that has variable wall units made up of panels that rotated 90 degrees openning up a larger trap behind and going from reflective to absorbent.

Maybe timber blinds over 703??

cheers
John