Here's my attic, John!

[Dr X]

As requested, a plan of my attic. Hope it makes sense. Currently my gear and speakers are at the bottom of the plan in between the stairs and the bottom wall pointing at the wall (about five or six feet). All advice on how to treat an attic for best recording and listening very welcome. Being a large space it also doubles as a guest bedroom so it'll have a sofa and a bed in it. Currently has a very nasty fluttery live sound if you try and record with a condensor mic without surrounding yourself with mattresses. The walls are all stud and plasterboard so I imagine most of the bass goes right through? the chimney is solid brick! Thanks in advance.

Simon

[Dr X]

So nobody has any suggestions for the key things to do with a tall sloping roof? Does this mean I have to carry on having bass free mixes when I take a track out of the room, with the vocals too loud? Does this mean I have to carry on with my mattress vocal booth because the flutters are outrageous in the untreated room? Looks like it. I've been to all the sites mentioned on the forum, read a couple of books and nobody talks about attics! Oh well.

[John Sayers]

Sorry DrX I've been busy - I need to know some more measurements.

1. The distance from the bottom wall to the stairs.
2. The length/widthof the stairs.
3. The distance from the stairs to the chimney
4. Distance from the top wall to the chimney
5. The dimensions of the chimney

OK??

cheers
John

[Dr X]

You are a gentleman and a scholar, John. I'll do some more detailed measurements and post them as soon as I can. Thanks ever so much.

[Dr X]

Here's a more accurate plan with the measurements you asked for. All help/suggestions most gratefully received!

[ola]

Oops, dead link.

[frederic]

In response to your slanted ceiling issue...

1. You can build cabinets and use them for storage of the 8 billion wires you will have.

2. You can build homemade racks for mounting your 19" gear. The gear fits, even though your head would hit the ceiling.

3. Shelves.

4. Put your studio listening sofa against the slant. One can sit down without hitting their head.

Here is a link to a picture of the right side of my console area. Further right, the ceiling slants from 7' high down to 40" high. The console fit near the slant, however behind it against the wall you can see the remains of my homemade racks. Seriously consider using this space for rack gear. Every square inch counts

http://homerecording.com/bbs/attachm...?postid=295750

[John Sayers]

do you want to try again - as Ola said - Dead Link

cheers
John

[ola]

Try removing the space in the filename.

[Dr X]

Sorry about the delay chaps!; good reason: wife had twins rather earlier than expected!

Here's the plan again, don't think it was name causing problem as Dr X's worked last time with a gap! Might be way I saved it as jpeg..it's a Mac thing. If you can't open it, dimensions requested are: top wall to chimney 10ft 8 in, chimney 1' 6" top to bottom, three feet wide, chimney to stairs 6', stairs 2'9" across, 9' 6" long, 8'6" deep, from stairs to bottom wall 7'4"

Thanks again for all your help and comments. Fingers crossed!

[Dr X]

I'm assuming this attachment now opens OK as it says 30 downloads or something? It worked for me..if you can't open it can someone let me know! Ta! All suggestions gratefully received.

[John Sayers]

Cool DrX - got it - will get back to you

cheers
John

[Dr X]

Thanks in advance!

[John Sayers]

OK - Try This

You are really hindered by the actual standing area (hatched in grey) and the chimney really limits your control room size.

anyway take a look and get back to me.

cheers
john

[John Sayers]

On further thought Try This

cheers
John

[Dr X]

John, what can I say? Fantastic suggestions..and two for the price of one to boot! I was still absorbing the first when the second popped up. Naturally I could fire a million questions at you, but just a couple to start with (maybe others could chip in with theirs so we all learn at once?):

1: Fascinated that you chose to position the monitors under the sloping ceiling rather than in front of, or parallel with, the flat walls. Do you not get a dangerous bass boost effect from the boundary between ceiling and short wall? (And proximity to the wall full stop?) (Here speaks man with virtually no knowledge!!!).

2: Fascinated that you didn't suggest any treatment to the pointed roof to control the boundary up there?

3: Giant bass trap at the back of control room if your drawing is to scale! What design would you suggest for this?

4: What's the pale blue triangle thing on the top of the second plan?

5: What do you do on your days off!

[Bushice]

Dr X,

Just curious,

why did you orient the Control room sideways? I would have thought lengthwise would be easier to manage, plus you could possibly have a visual of Room A from that perspective.

also, you might check on page two of this site for a thread called "cloud expertise" for a thought on how to handle the peak of the roof. Todzilla gives a good explanation of how he handled his.

Bushice

[John Sayers]

The pale blue thingy is a possible double window - I'm not sure if you have any windows up there but....

Why sideways? well if you look at the heights involved the only place you can put a door is either side of the chimney plus you can utilise more floor space cos you don't need to standing height over the console or over the lounge areas.

yes - you could use cloud treatment in the ceiling.

cheers
john

[Dr X]

re The big bass trap, should I be thinking of the typical designs you've suggested in the other threads on here ie slatted front, fabric, fibreglass etc?.. except wider and not so tall obviously?

And where you say it needs deadening on the roof and side walls at the back of the control room, I presume you'd recommend sheet fibreglass?

I have joists across the V of the roof. I could hang clouds from those. I assume we're talking small increments in performance here as you didn't include them on your priorities?

[John Sayers]

No I didn't include the clouds but I'm sure I would have got there eventually so you have braces across the rafters, what every third one or so??

I didn't specify the bass trap design, I'll think about it further, you can't use that low space for anything else and you don't want to bump your head standing up from the couch so I thought you could use that space from some kind of absorptiion using the depth you get.

Yes, I'd use some sheet fibreglass covered in cloth if you can afford it.

cheers
John

[Dr X]

Yeah, the braces form a kind of high A (if you get what I mean...not the 880hz type!) THere's only one in the control room area as specified but you could hang a baffle from this (or indeed support a trap although it would be a biggie if it filled the triangle!)

I'm still trying to track down the rigid fibreglass panels here in the UK, but I think I've got the DOw Corning name now, for the black stuff.

Some advice on the back bass trap would be great. That's probably the first thing I'll build. Everything I mix currently comes out really bass light when I take it out of the room. Which still surprises me because the walls aren't solid.

WOuld you put any absorbers behind the monitors?

[Dr X]

Actually there's two braces there now I went up and checked! I've got spotlights mounted on one.

[Dr X]

Fair enough and thanks for all the fish, but I would love some guidance on the bass trap construction and monitor placement!

[John Sayers]

I'll get onto it DrX

cheers
john

[Dr X]

Incidentally, hope that last mail didn't sound ungrateful! I'm amazed at the time and effort expended on my behalf by John and everyone else who's contributed to this thread!