Just getting started

[domvac]

Hey all.
I've just recently started to get into recording after over 30 years of playing and performing. I've had a tascam 144 cassette recorder for many years and used it for little stuff, but now have a tascam DP-02 and Behringer 1222 12 channel board. My gear is a mixture of new and old and a lot of home made stuff. Going from the 4 track tape to 8 track digital is interesting. I'm used to the tape. I worked in a couple of old-tech studios years ago and am trying to shed a little of the "dinosaur" that I learned from those days. I only record for myself and friends who try their hand at writing. It's just for fun and no one expects air play quality, but surprisingly, I can turn out a pretty good sounding product. As time goes and I get more experience and advice from all you guys, I expect to get better yet. I'm not too computer savvy, which is why I bought the DP-02 rather than a computer and program. I'm going to try to post a few pictures of my studio and gear, but I'm not sure how to do that here. So.....have patience with me as I learn what you already know.

 

[jhbrandt]

LOVE your mains speakers! Back in the early 80s I was trying out some options for alternate monitoring and ended up with a pair of JVCs that looked something like those...

Post dimensions of your room (H, W, D) and we'll suggest placement and treatment of your space. ok?

Cheers,
John

 

[domvac]

LOVE your mains speakers! Back in the early 80s I was trying out some options for alternate monitoring and ended up with a pair of JVCs that looked something like those...

Post dimensions of your room (H, W, D) and we'll suggest placement and treatment of your space. ok?

Cheers,
John

Thanks. I'll get on that. The speakers are Vision Acoustic and I picked them up at a Goodwill Thrift store for $40.00. I've actually replaced them with some Wharfdale S200 speakers with 8 inch speakers and placed the Vision's on the other wall for full room sound. I'm still playing with things. The big Visions are too large to mix with. I live in a town house and I need advice on soundproofing the concrete walls that separate me from my neighbours as well as lending acoustic properties for the space. My isolation room is small and I'm thinking of clearing out the shelves behind the curtain to expand it a little. Not sure yet.
Thanks for the interest.
I'll get back to you.

 

[M1Fanatic]

Nice Hagstrom!

 

[domvac]

Nice Hagstrom!

Thanks. It's a really nice guitar. I picked it up in a pawn shop about 20 years ago for $100.00. I did some research and found out it was made is 1982 and was one of the last 129 made in Sweden before they went overseas. I think this one was #87 in that line. Weighs a ton.

 

[jhbrandt]

Ray,

Try this setup... Is the drawing below correct? If not please mark it up and re-post.

Trap every corner you can, treat side wall and ceiling reflection points. Get my First Reflection Calculator here to help with panel placements.

Some great info on setting up your room at the Realtraps and GIK sites.

Cheers,
John

 

[jhbrandt]

It's 13 ft. X16 ft. X 7 1/2 ft (h). I have a vocal booth in one corner that is 8 ft. X 4 ft X 7 1/2. Two walls are concrete and the ceiling is acoustic tile. The ceiling tiles are stapled to the floor joists and there is no insulation or any kind of sound proofing up there. They are 2X10 wood joists and just empty space.

Ray,

I recommend that you pull down the tiles and fill between the joists with fluffy (standard attic blanket) insulation. Then cover the ceiling with fabric (staple) like burlap. Cover the fabric edges and staples with wood lath finished in your favorite way and you will have a nicely trapped ceiling. This will begin to tighten up your sound considerably.

Cheers,
John

 

[domvac]

Thanks John. I actually was considering doing that earlier but thought I'd wait to see what you had to say. I'm thinking of covering the concrete walls with 2" styrofoam to try and isolate the sound from my neighbours on either side. I've spoken to one and he can hear some of the music, bass especially (no surprise there) but he said it isn't so loud as to become a problem. I thought styrofoam because I can glue it to the wall without having to do any framing, cutting and nailing. The wall is supposed to be 12' thick and is solid concrete, not cinderblock. I think I'll move my gear and start pulling the ceiling down this weekend.

Thanks for your advice. I'll check your website.

Cheers.
Ray

 

[jhbrandt]

Styrofoam

Ray,

Don't waste your time with Styrofoam. It has no value acoustically. - Great for beer coolers, though!

Acoustically, no value whatsoever.

You are wanting to block sound from escaping the building and annoying the neighbors... No amount of acoustic treatment will help.

You need soundproofing. Sound proofing and acoustic treatment are TWO Different Animals. They sometimes cross purposes and this is why so many people mistakenly assume that placing rock wool on the walls will reduce transmission through the wall. This is not true.

You need to build a MSM or MAM system. M (mass) S (spring) and A (air). The air acts as a spring between two massive partitions to improve the noise blocking ability of the partition. The transmission loss is represented in decibels usually as STC (Sound Transmission Class) and is given a value based on established criteria for these types of measurements.

So, you need to add a decoupled mass layer to your existing walls. ie; new stud wall with insulation separated from the existing wall by a couple of inches and a couple layers of type X fire rated gypsum board... The devil is in the details and the details are not here... Do a search here and at gearslutz for MSM or MAM. and 'how to build a sound proof wall'. Good luck, my friend.

Cheers,
John

 

[Weasel9992]

I'm thinking of covering the concrete walls with 2" styrofoam to try and isolate the sound from my neighbours on either side...

I thought styrofoam because I can glue it to the wall without having to do any framing, cutting and nailing. The wall is supposed to be 12' thick and is solid concrete, not cinderblock. I think I'll move my gear and start pulling the ceiling down this weekend.

Like John said, don't do that. If those walls are solid concrete then you should be pretty good as far as isolation goes. I think the thing to do would be to look for flanking paths: doors, windows...that kind of thing. Upgrading them or just sealing them well will probably pay some pretty big dividends.