Beginner's questions on soffit/flush mounting speaker
Posted: Thu Jan 17, 2013 8:30 pm
Greetings to all, this is my first post here and I would really like to say thanks to all who constantly contributes to wealth of knowledge in studio design/construction. I have learnt quite a lot here in a short period of time.
Concerning soffit/flush mounting, I think I have acquired some basic ideas but I still have a lot of confusion on it. I believed that most of the questions I would be asking are just beginner's question! Let me first begin to speak of my concept of soffit mounting so you guys can correct me if somethings isn't right. (I would use non-technical terms because I’m not sure about the nuances of the meaning of those terms.)
Soffit mounting means you construct an artificial wall (or panel) and leave an opening for you to place your speaker in. The wall is a front panel which act as a big big baffle (as an extension of the original speaker baffle). Generally it give a better listening experience as in enhancing the bass, reducing unwanted effect of soundwave emitting from the rear of speaker..etc.
A box is constructed for the speaker to put in, the speaker should fit in tightly (here I have some question here, “tightly” means the height and width of the opening is same as the speaker?) and leave some airspace behind. Vent can be made on the box for ventilation. After considering the angles of the speaker to the listener, a wall is built according to this angle. Inside this wall, at certain height (so that the tweeter is at 1.2m above the ground), a horizontal surface is constructed for the speakers (in the box) to sit on. This surface also separate the upper half and the lower half. An opening is made on the wall where the speaker can be inserted to the flat surface. The unoccupied space at the upper half is filled with insulation material (e.g. rockwool), while the lower half is occupied by a hanger to act as bass trap. An opening is made at the bottom and top of the wall for ventilation.
I know there must be something wrong or incomplete in my understanding, please point that out. And here are some questions.
1) I notice that people talk about decoupling from the front panel (or from other things), so what exactly is it? Does it mean that I need to add some insulating material between the bottom of the speaker and the box so that it is “decouple” from the whole soffit structure?
2) should the speaker touch any side of the box? If it is touching the sides of the box, isn't it not decoupled?
3) Some people mentioned there is a stand (e.g. a brick stand extending up from the floor) for the speaker to sit on, what is it different from having a flat surface that is built onto the internal structure of the soffit. (like the design by John)
4) Does the "extended baffle" means the whole “wall” from ceiling to floor? Because when I look at John’s design, the upper half and lower half “wall” seems different? So which part actually act as the “extended baffle”?
5) Does the insulation in the soffit structure act as a normal “bass trap”/”superchunk”/”absorber” like those typical triangular absorber that is placed at the corner of the room?
I know some of my question might seem very silly or do not make any sense at all, but I would really appreciate if anyone can make my muddled mind clearer. Thanks in advance!
Hope to start my own studio project soon!
Concerning soffit/flush mounting, I think I have acquired some basic ideas but I still have a lot of confusion on it. I believed that most of the questions I would be asking are just beginner's question! Let me first begin to speak of my concept of soffit mounting so you guys can correct me if somethings isn't right. (I would use non-technical terms because I’m not sure about the nuances of the meaning of those terms.)
Soffit mounting means you construct an artificial wall (or panel) and leave an opening for you to place your speaker in. The wall is a front panel which act as a big big baffle (as an extension of the original speaker baffle). Generally it give a better listening experience as in enhancing the bass, reducing unwanted effect of soundwave emitting from the rear of speaker..etc.
A box is constructed for the speaker to put in, the speaker should fit in tightly (here I have some question here, “tightly” means the height and width of the opening is same as the speaker?) and leave some airspace behind. Vent can be made on the box for ventilation. After considering the angles of the speaker to the listener, a wall is built according to this angle. Inside this wall, at certain height (so that the tweeter is at 1.2m above the ground), a horizontal surface is constructed for the speakers (in the box) to sit on. This surface also separate the upper half and the lower half. An opening is made on the wall where the speaker can be inserted to the flat surface. The unoccupied space at the upper half is filled with insulation material (e.g. rockwool), while the lower half is occupied by a hanger to act as bass trap. An opening is made at the bottom and top of the wall for ventilation.
I know there must be something wrong or incomplete in my understanding, please point that out. And here are some questions.
1) I notice that people talk about decoupling from the front panel (or from other things), so what exactly is it? Does it mean that I need to add some insulating material between the bottom of the speaker and the box so that it is “decouple” from the whole soffit structure?
2) should the speaker touch any side of the box? If it is touching the sides of the box, isn't it not decoupled?
3) Some people mentioned there is a stand (e.g. a brick stand extending up from the floor) for the speaker to sit on, what is it different from having a flat surface that is built onto the internal structure of the soffit. (like the design by John)
4) Does the "extended baffle" means the whole “wall” from ceiling to floor? Because when I look at John’s design, the upper half and lower half “wall” seems different? So which part actually act as the “extended baffle”?
5) Does the insulation in the soffit structure act as a normal “bass trap”/”superchunk”/”absorber” like those typical triangular absorber that is placed at the corner of the room?
I know some of my question might seem very silly or do not make any sense at all, but I would really appreciate if anyone can make my muddled mind clearer. Thanks in advance!
Hope to start my own studio project soon!