John Sayers' Recording Studio Design Forum Archive

Hello Everyone I am new to the forum. I am seeking some help in terms of a design for a small training facility in NJ. I am looking to train young people in the art of recording and Music Production. I did a quick plan of the space which is not set in stone and is flexible. The issue i am running into is having a lack of an understanding on including non Parallel walls in the build. This is my first time doing this and would like to have a good result. The space is not too big. 46.4 x 17. There is a structural beam in the center of the room about 22.5 ft from the front of the room. Any advice and help will be appreciated.

Hi "Itecaudio",

Welcome to the forums!

Do you mind filling in your profile with location etc please, as this makes it easier for people to know what sort of advice to give even if they come in to the conversation further down the line.

Regarding non-parallel walls, are you referring to your control room or a live room?
In control rooms, non parallel walls are not usually preferred. They make construction more difficult and acoustic response modelling isn't possible (or incredibly difficult).
Angling surfaces in the room to create a RFZ around the mix position is very desirable, but you do this within the shell of the room, by building timber frames for these surfaces. The main room construction should be a simple rectangle.

Your control room could do with being longer; having 3m (10ft) at least behind your head in the mix position simplifies the rear wall design.

Will you be teaching/using the classroom at the same time as recording? If not you may want to combine your classroom and iso booth, and have a larger control room.

How deep is the beam you mention? Generally it wouldn't cause too many issues, especially if it's in the live room.

Dan

Thanks for your reply. to answer your question, I wanted to have the ability to use the spaces in separate times. So if one teacher is teacher a Pro Tools Class, we can also have a recording session going on at the same time in the other rooms. I was also thinking about switching and making the classroom space the Control Room and vice versa. So you are suggesting acoustical treatments to get the sound i desire within those rooms rather than angling the walls during the construction. The space is just a vanilla space right now no walls or ceilings, see the picture.

Waka wrote:Hi "Itecaudio",

Welcome to the forums!

Do you mind filling in your profile with location etc please, as this makes it easier for people to know what sort of advice to give even if they come in to the conversation further down the line.

Regarding non-parallel walls, are you referring to your control room or a live room?
In control rooms, non parallel walls are not usually preferred. They make construction more difficult and acoustic response modelling isn't possible (or incredibly difficult).
Angling surfaces in the room to create a RFZ around the mix position is very desirable, but you do this within the shell of the room, by building timber frames for these surfaces. The main room construction should be a simple rectangle.

Your control room could do with being longer; having 3m (10ft) at least behind your head in the mix position simplifies the rear wall design.

Will you be teaching/using the classroom at the same time as recording? If not you may want to combine your classroom and iso booth, and have a larger control room.

How deep is the beam you mention? Generally it wouldn't cause too many issues, especially if it's in the live room.

Dan

The classroom as a control room would be good yes. It's nearly the recommended minimum size for critical listening rooms according to ITU-R BS.1116-3.

This would be a good starting point.

You still need many acoustic treatments in your room regardless of whether you angle your walls. Angling your walls will just make it more difficult to theorise which acoustic treatments to use and their affect prior to installing them.

The treatments are used to prevent SBIR, comb filtering, and uneven decay rates, flutter echo etc. in the room. Angling the walls would maybe reduce flutter echo if its a large angle, but this is more easily achieved with cheap easy to install treatments.

Also have you got an idea of your isolation requirements yet?
How much sound transmission do you need to reduce between the rooms and also the outside would?

Is there anyone above/below your studio?

Dan