How to sound condition

I

ivanparas

New member
Are there any good sources on how to sound condition a room? I'm getting a really great deal on A LOT of 2" acoustic foam and I need to know how to condition my recording room.

The room is already soundproofed, I just need to make it sound less echoey.

The room is 8x8x8 feet, with a door in one corner and a window in the center of the adjacent wall. As it stands right now I could completely cover all the walls in foam, but I'd like to do it a little more strategically.

Anyone have any good resources or techniques for sound conditioning?
 
Hi,

Well the bad news is that rooms that are cubes, i.e walls and floor have the same measurements, are the hardest rooms to get sounding good.

If this room is all you have however that is what you need to fix. You have not said if this room is for recording in or mixing in, or both so I am thinking control / recording room.

Deaden the wall you are facing when sitting at the mixing desk, build a bass tap in the corners each end of that wall. Rolled up sound deadener with a cloth covering may do. Fix sound deadener above your head were you sit, experiment with how much so it's not too dead but you are removing the echo. Try about 1/3rd to start with.

If the floor has carpet put down one of those plastic office carpet protectors (the type that chairs roll on), a room with a low ceiling is better when the floor is live and the ceiling is treated. Defuse the wall behind you, a thin bookcase or shelves with books and junk (studio odds and ends) will do the job. Put a panel of foam at ear height each side of were you are sitting.

There is a start, there are more high tech answers and I am sure you will get more suggestions, but with a cube room that is only 8' x 8' x 8' there is only so much you can do.

Cheers

Alan.
 
The room is 8x8x8 feet, with a door in one corner and a window in the center of the adjacent wall
Click to expand...
The room is already soundproofed,
Click to expand...

I'd be interested in "how" you "soundproofed" the window.:)

Personally, if this is a tracking area, I'd submit the footprint is about the size of a vocal booth, and should be treated accordingly...ie...SUPERCHUNKS of 4" thick OC703 in ALL the corners ...wall/wall and wall/cieling. Then use the foam in a checkerboard patchwork on the walls. A square room this size has SERIOUS modal issues. Better to just make the room pretty dead, and add ambiance via FX units. I'd submit you will NEVER make this room sound good or flat across the spectrum if its a control room.

If it IS a control room, I'd also submit you will NEVER get a diffused sound field. So why waste the space. Again, use superchunks in the all 4 corners of the room. At the sidewalls and cieling, use the foam for early reflection panels. Use it in patchwork fashion on the rearwall, which will add a "modicum" of diffusion as well as broadband absorption.
fitZ
 
This will be the room that I'm doing the actual recording in. I'm going to inset two of the walls by bringing in the corner so it will no longer be a perfect square. I'm also going to vault the ceiling slightly.

I made a quick diagram of my setup here:
(you have to add the first H to the address because it won't let me post URLs yet)
ttp://i36.tinypic.com/9tzkad.jpg

This is 2 rooms within a room and I'm in a very quiet area so soundproofing turned out to be pretty simple. I'm still constructing parts of it but that is going to be the general layout.
 
Rick is right on the money. A cube like that (and small to boot) is going to have a TON of intense modal issues in the bass. You're going to need to kill it pretty hard with broadband absorbtion.

Bryan
 
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