Auralex Foam Kits

[twonky]

Hiya!

I need to improve the sound of my control room real bad. There are all kindsa weird frequency problems, to much bass, etc.

I have been lurking around this forum for a while and reading about building bass traps and diffusers and all that stuff. I have, however, come to the conclusion that building all of that stuff is not for me no matter how
cheap.

So I decided to look into one of those Auralex kits, specifically the $300-$500 Project studio jobs. Auralex will also give you a free consultation based on your room’s dimensions and stuff to help you install the Auralex foam in the right places.

My question is this: Have any of you guys/girls tried this route and how have you liked it? I realize that $300 worth of foam will not solve everything, but I am sure it will be better than what I have now which is nothing.

Thanks for your input!

Twonky

[Giganova]

if you are on a tight budget, try the Markertek "giant acoustical tiles". They look awesome in blue and might do the job in combination with bass traps. Just an idea.

[Michael Jones]

I just bought 400 sq. ft. of O.C. 703 for $325.

That ought to make you throw rocks at Auralex Foam!

[Giganova]

whats "O.C. 703"? OCoustic Foam?

[Michael Jones]

Originally posted by Giganova
whats "O.C. 703"? OCoustic Foam?

No.
Its NOT foam.
Its a 2" thick, rigid fiberglass insulation made by Owens Corning.
It looks like the material used for the ducting of air conditioning return air vents, but much thicker, and it has no "foil" on it.

This material is much better at sound absorption, across a wider range of frequencies, than any foam product, and is comparable in price. (If not cheaper).

[twonky]

Ok well heres the deal. My room is tragically shaped and small.

these are approximate dimesions but are pretty close:

8'x 12' and then there is a closet at the back of the room that adds about 2' but there is a 8-12" gap in between the top of the closet wall and the drop ceiling which is about 8 feet. So all together its about 8'x 14'

Two wall of the room are brown panneling over 2x4s, one wall is cinderblock w/ panneling. The closet (which will be torn down soon) is 2x4s w/ panneling ane the back wall behind closet is drywall.

I have been waffling back and forth about tearing down the 12" and expanding the room to about 12x12 or something...

I dont know what to do!!!!

[MemoGtr]

i heard very good comments on O.C. 703 before
is it actually cheap if you consider it

[Michael Jones]

Originally posted by twonky
"...I dont know what to do!!!!..."

Take a look at this link:
http://www.johnlsayers.com/HR/index1.htm
Scroll down to the bottom to see how the various treatments fit into the room.
You can do the "703" for just as much money as the auralex foam (more or less) and have a MUCH better sounding room.

I had a room set up with foam (before I found this board).
Had I known then, what I know now, I would have never gone the foam route.

[dean1964]

Michael Jones


Thanks for posting that link. Im about to build a 10 x 12 control room. Here is the thing. If i build those units for my room rather than go foam what about the block walls I have not decided what do with yet? SHould I leave the block or cover it with Dry wall? what do you think?

Cheers

[Michael Jones]

What's a block wall?

[knightfly]

Probably talking about concrete block walls?

[dean1964]

yes. Painted concrete block walls.

[knightfly]

If you put acoustic treatments, such as the ones on John's page, in front of your concrete block walls, it won't make any noticeable difference in the sound whether you put wallboard over the blocks or not, PROVIDED you mount the wallboard DIRECTLY to the block using construction adhesive - However, it WILL make a difference in ISOLATION - so, if you need more sound isolation between the rest of the world and your area, then it could be a good idea to add wallboard to the block wall.

If the block wall is FILLED, either with concrete or sand, then there is effectively no air space and the wall becomes a single leaf wall. If that's the case, you could improve both the sound IN the room and isolation, by building a new wall frame just inside the existing one and putting a single layer of wallboard on that frame.

Properly caulked with acoustic sealant, that new wall would act as a second leaf (good for isolation, with the included air space) AND as a wall of "panel absorbers", similar in effect to several of Ethan's large panel traps.

If you're not sure whether the blocks are filled, you might be able to tell by (gently) tapping in a horizontal line along the wall and listening for changes in the sound. If they're pretty noticeable as you move along (should change 2-3 times in 16") then your blocks are most likely NOT filled, and you should NOT build a new wall frame. Instead, then it would be better to just add 1-2 layers of wallboard (directly onto the blocks), using construction adhesive and sealing around the edges with acoustic sealant.

If you don't add the new wall/air space, you'll definitely need MORE bass trapping to get to the same sound in the room... Steve