Bass trap fabric

jimmys69 said:
I just recently had an email conversation directly with Ethan. A bass trap can have up to 50% performance increase in low frequencies, with a simple layer of 'craft' paper, or unwaxed butcher paper on the front side, between the cloth and the chosen filler. It will be included on my next build. :D
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Thanks for the tip. You guys rock!!!
 
Ethan is a cool guy...I've known him on these and other forums for almost 15 years now...long before he was manufacturing his Real Traps, when he use to build them out of large wood panels of different thickness for different low-end use.
I even had a face-to-face meeting with him back in 2003 at the NY AES, this was right after he started the Real Traps designs.

Anyway...in his Real Traps he uses plastic film, paper and even foil film, depending on which of his Real Traps it is.
There is no need to worry about the trap "breathing" AFA the cloth covering goes. :)

He keepssomne of it a bit of a secret, but the order of placement of the paper or foil or plastic layers in the trap "sandwich" makes a difference.
Sometimes in the front, sometimes in the back...etc...plus how you place the trap also makes a difference in the design of the trap. Like if you are going right up against the wall VS away from the wall....etc.
I'm sure if you talk to Ethan some more, he will give you all kinds suggestions on that stuff, plus, his website is full of info...just have to dig through it all...there's a LOT to read there. :D
 
As a broadband absorber, you may not want anything reflective. When building a 'bass trap', for a corner, it seems for me, that reflecting higher frequencies is not as important as dealing with the low end buildup there. This is what I will be using the membrane for. Corner traps were what I was questioning Ethan about. This was what he recommended doing for this.
 
I really think it comes down to room size for whether you use foil or not. In a small room, you want as much absorption across the spectrum as possible. Which is why lighter 'breathable' fabric gets suggested. Bass traps are great for controlling low freqs (..and I classify Jimmy as a low freak and he is well controlled. :D ) but bass traps are also good for controlling other room response problems, like flutter, decay, reverb, or whatever else.
 
Chili said:
Bass traps are great for controlling low freqs (..and I classify Jimmy as a low freak and he is well controlled. :D ) but bass traps are also good for controlling other room response problems, like flutter, decay, reverb, or whatever else.
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I'm gonna go ahead and take that as a compliment! LOL!
 
Given the size and layout of my room, I need my panels and traps to pull as much double duty as they can.

Incidentally, I've developed some kind of inverse standing wave issue since I turned my desk 90 degrees to face an adjacent wall. It's like a standing wave and phase cancellation all in one unless I leave the door open. I've checked all my connections for correct polarity. It's definitely a room problem. The first thing I'm gonna do when I build absorbers is cover most of the wall behind my monitors.
 
I didn't understand that Miroslav, you're right.

As a general question, if I have 4 (4' X 2') 100mm traps which configuration would be better in a small cube room:

2 (4' X 4') traps placed at the first reflection points either side of the monitoring position.

or

1 (4' X 2') traps placed vertically at the first reflection points with the other two (4' X 2') place horizontally either side at the roof / wall boundary?

I will probably try both ways but I'm wondering if there's any known wisdom on which way is best.
 
Forgot to mention, Ethan made it clear to adhere the Kraft paper to the rockwool with spray adhesive.
 
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ste20man said:
I will probably try both ways but I'm wondering if there's any known wisdom on which way is best.
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It may be a try-n-see answer.
I'm going to move your thread over to the Studio Building forum...you'll get more info there than here in the Newbie forum.
 
jimmys69 said:
Forgot to mention, Ethan made it clear to adhere the craft paper to the rockwool with spray adhesive.
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What do you mean by craft paper? Is that what we used to call construction paper in grade school? That's quite different from butcher's paper.
 
I made that new superchunk and forgot to put the paper on :p - I used the paper to cover the back corners tho! :laughings::laughings::laughings:

oh well it works great anyway...

I got a lot more to make so I will try and remember next time :eek:

I'm gonna redo one of my corner panel traps too... gonna add in corner bead to make it straight - might add another 3" sheet of Roxul too :eek:

Got a great design for wood-cb combo - I tried riviting some frames together - what a pain int he ass!
 
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