Budget bass traps.

[mwthompson]

So: I called my local insulation dealer to inquire about Owens Corning 703 insulation and found that they carry the four inch thickness stuff in cases of four for just $25 a case.

Can I just cover these pieces in porous fabric and hang them and still have fair results for my mixing and recording room?

Would they *have* to be mounted in a frame, or can I just wrap them in material and stick them to the walls? Does the wooden frame would have something to do with absorption or is it mainly for aesthetics? I'm not worried too much about appearance as I am acoustics.

My plan is to cover them, and then hang them:

1. In all the corners of the room, including the corners where the wall and ceiling meet
2. About 1.5 - 2' from each other down every lengh of wall
3. Two or three on the ceiling above where I'll be mixing

Anyway, at that price I figure I can make 20 for my 12' X 13' room for less than $200.

Is this a good idea for a one-man band with a day job? IE, this isn't my business but a hobby.

[NL5]

I may be wrong here, but I believe they are MORE efficient w/o the frames.....

[Nick98338]

If you're not worried about looks, then no. you don't need a frame. However, you should not just stick the panels to the walls. Bass traps are usually hung so that they are near the wall-ceiling joint, or the wall-wall joint, AND hung a few inches away from the wall. Creating a space between the panels and the walls. The bass frequencies congregate in the room corners. The bass traps KEEP those freqs in the corners. The panels "trap" the bass freqs in the corners. Thus the term bass "traps". The panels keep those freqs from bouncing back into the rest of the room. But, to keep the bass freqs "trapped" in the corners, there has to be an open space area between the panels and the walls. So, how do you mount the panels so that they are a few inches from the walls? Most people use frames. Not to make the panels pretty, but to have a way to mount the panels properly.

Is it a good idea? If you have a bass frequency problem in your recording space... yes. If you don't have a bass frequency problem, then you might be better off treating the problems you actually have. So, first question is... do you really have a bass frequency problem in your recording space?

[mwthompson]

Originally Posted by Nick98338

Is it a good idea? If you have a bass frequency problem in your recording space... yes. If you don't have a bass frequency problem, then you might be better off treating the problems you actually have. So, first question is... do you really have a bass frequency problem in your recording space?

Actually, the space isn't clear yet. I'm converting my spare bedroom from a storage area to my home studio. I will have all bare walls, and carpet. I was planning on doing some tests as soon as my new monitors show up, which should be tomorrow.

I'm kinda assuming that I will need bass traps because I read somewhere that every room needs treatment regardless. But, I'm pretty gullible in this area right now as I don't know a whole lot about building studios. Err, *cheap* studios. Short of covering every square inch of wall space, is it possible to overdo it? I'm guessing yes, so I've planned on using about two to three panels per open wall, one in each corner where the walls meet, and two in each corner where the ceiling and walls meet.

I was planning on mounting the 2x4 panels 3-4 inches from the wall on the flat spaces, and diagonal in the corners where the walls meet each other and the ceiling. I was using some of the hanging instructions on the Real Traps web site as my example.

Btw, is that price good? From what I've seen online it seems pretty reasonable.

[NL5]

If your room has parallel surfaces, then you will need bass trapping for 100% sure.

[mwthompson]

Originally Posted by NL5

If your room has parallel surfaces, then you will need bass trapping for 100% sure.

Yeah, the room is pretty much square. It rings when you clap or talk in there too, but I assume the bass traps will also reduce the mid/high echos too.

[NL5]

Originally Posted by mwthompson

Yeah, the room is pretty much square. It rings when you clap or talk in there too, but I assume the bass traps will also reduce the mid/high echos too.

Square is really bad - you will have some pretty hellacious nodes in there then.

[mwthompson]

Originally Posted by NL5

Square is really bad - you will have some pretty hellacious nodes in there then.

Unfortunately, it's either that or my living room, which is only separated from my kitchen by an island. But I may treat the living area as well for the home theater setup. Then, it could double as another place to record in. It has vaulted ceilings and is rectangular, but a few protruding walls to diffuse some of the reflection.

I think that room with treatments would be much better than the extra bedroom, but then I'd be turning my entire place into a studio...

Then again, I do live alone and there's no reason why I can't do that either.

[SRR]

Originally Posted by mwthompson

Unfortunately, it's either that or my living room, which is only separated from my kitchen by an island. But I may treat the living area as well for the home theater setup. Then, it could double as another place to record in. It has vaulted ceilings and is rectangular, but a few protruding walls to diffuse some of the reflection.

I think that room with treatments would be much better than the extra bedroom, but then I'd be turning my entire place into a studio...

Then again, I do live alone and there's no reason why I can't do that either.

Hay my home theater is my primary tracking room...but it is downstairs, and pretty well isolated.

[Nick98338]

You know you need to get rid of that ring when you clap your hands. Well, unless you actually like that sound. The bass traps might help with the higher freqs a little. Usually, though, high frequencies need to be treated differently than low frequencies. High frequencies can be absorbed, or deflected to lessen their affects. Absorbing is relatively easy. Cloth, carpet, or foam on the walls, floors, and ceilings usually does the trick. But, it does make the room rather dead sounding. But, maybe that is what you want. That's what I decided to do. I created two really dead rooms for tracking and mixing. Deflecting keeps the room more "live" sounding, but is more difficult and usually more expensive.

[mwthompson]

Originally Posted by Nick98338

You know you need to get rid of that ring when you clap your hands. Well, unless you actually like that sound. The bass traps might help with the higher freqs a little. Usually, though, high frequencies need to be treated differently than low frequencies. High frequencies can be absorbed, or deflected to lessen their affects. Absorbing is relatively easy. Cloth, carpet, or foam on the walls, floors, and ceilings usually does the trick. But, it does make the room rather dead sounding. But, maybe that is what you want. That's what I decided to do. I created two really dead rooms for tracking and mixing. Deflecting keeps the room more "live" sounding, but is more difficult and usually more expensive.

You have a good point. My room is probably too small to have a good live sound.

[gullfo]

start with the bass traps in the corners. this will add the needed bass control and start the absorption on the high end. since you have parallel walls, you'll get some slap echo. not a problem. thinner absorption (2'x4'x2" hung midway on the wall between floor and ceiling) staggered on the sides (do not completely cover) and this will break of the interactions of the walls and add some diffusion. don't over do it.

on the ceiling, a set of absorbers on the ceiling (say 2'x4'x2" staged about 2' apart) will control the floor-ceiling reflections. you want the room to be as live as possible and not echoing. you can always add additional absorption later if you need a deader space but getting a balanced live space is generally harder to achieve.

skip frames where possible. the edges of the absorbers can significantly improve their efficiency.

since the room is 12x13 its not perfectly square but you will have some modes that are close enough to make the bass trapping most important.