New Studio Build help needed please.

[basscabman]

Hi all

Just about to start building my studio, can anyone in the know regarding accoustics and monitoring position have a look at my room in the pic below and give me some guidance on where to start. I'm new to this and want to get it right the first time.

Thanks all
Geoff


https://img26.imageshack.us/img26/1701/studiou.png

 

[gehauser]

I think I would put your mix desk nearest the wall with the door, with your monitors firing down the 14 ft length. Put your monitors about 5 ft apart and 5 ft away from the listening position in an equilateral triangle. Put the listening position about 38% from the right wall for starters. Then start bass trapping the wall-wall corners and use broadband panels for the first reflection points on the side walls and ceiling over the mix area. See what that sounds like and add from there.

Due to location of the window at a possible first reflection point and the door at a bass trap location, you may want to put your panels on stands or casters, like in these pics.

 

[Weasel9992]

Gary...those stands are super cool. Nice job.

Frank

 

[jhbrandt]

+1 to what Gary posted.

Also check the acoustics articles at GIK and RealTraps.. and mine too!

Cheers,
John

 

[RICK FITZPATRICK]

ummm, is that door at the right side for midget engineers?

Great job. Exactly what I would do, except maybe a poly or two.....er, wait a minute. I'd rotate the mixing position 90 degrees though. Can't see the other end of the room but I would setup the monitoring geometry on the long axis....at least it looks longer on the roof ridge axis.

 

[gehauser]

Hey Rick - I just realized you were referring to my bottom pic, not the OP's posted image. In the room shown in my bottom pic, the monitors do indeed fire down the long axis toward the back wall you are looking at. I just have the computer screen on the side of the room so I can put the noisy CPU in the side-wall closet there, and also to avoid reflective surfaces between the listening position and the monitors.

BTW, this was not a pic of the OP's room - it was just offered to show some possibilites (stands, casters) for "movable" bass traps near doors and windows.

Yeah, those 4 ft high closet doors are for the, um, little people that visit me from time to time.

 

[RICK FITZPATRICK]

Ooops, thats what I get for not looking at everything at the getgo. Dumb me.

Yeah, those 4 ft high closet doors are for the, um, little people that visit me from time to time.

 

[frederic]

Actually, if you treat the back wall, ceiling slants can help (or significantly hurt) a control room's acoustics.

I have my console table wedged under a slated ceiling and it sounds pretty good, even though it seemed counter-intuitive to do it this way.

 

[RICK FITZPATRICK]

I have my console table wedged under a slated ceiling and it sounds pretty good, even though it seemed counter-intuitive to do it this way.

Doggone frederic, great to see you back here. This place needs ya! Your insights and experience has been missing. How ya doin on the studio? Ever finish all that wiring?

I'm STILL working on mine

And yea...rear wall treatments!! Heres what I have planned.

and a front shot just for drill.

Heres where its REALLY at the moment.. but its getting theretoo many irons in the fire). Working on building 2 computers right now though. Man, do I have questions for ya!! And a bathroom for the significan other. Gotta keep them happy too

Anyway, glad your back.

fitZ

 

[basscabman]

Hi all

Thanks for all the replys; Here's where I am so far.

Room sounds really nice and flat now but not totally dead. Am I heading in the right direction?

Bass traps are self made using 1200mm X 600 mm X 100mm Rockwool RW45A

Cheers
Geoff

 

[gehauser]

I am no expert, but I have read that for control rooms, an RT60 of 0.2-0.3 sec is reasonable; for live tracking rooms 0.4-0.6 sec is reasonable. You may want to check your RT60 with RoomEQWizard or something to see where you are.

 

[Weasel9992]

Room sounds really nice and flat now but not totally dead. Am I heading in the right direction?

Probably. How are mixes translating? That's the real test...it's the only test that matters.

Frank

 

[basscabman]

WOW!

I've set up all my gear last night after finishing treating the room with the bass traps... The difference is simply stunning. I did a lot of listening to my fav bands, mainly Steely Dan I might add and it's like I'm hearing this stuff for the first time!

The clarity of what's coming out of my monitors is unbelievable.

Today I stuck up some mixes of my own stuff that I did in my old untreated room and I nearly fell of the chair laughing! I thought those mixes were OK until I heard them in the new room, completely all over the place, most of it sounded like it was recorded under a blanket lol.

So I went back and took everything off each track and started again. Super clarity and very even mixes. Whats more I can actually hear what the bass is playing... (always a problem in the old room)

I'm gonna finish a couple of mixes over the next week then burn a CD to play in a few other systems to see how they sound compared to the old mixes.

So far, building those traps is the BEST thing I've ever done.

Cheers all

 

[frederic]

Doggone frederic, great to see you back here. This place needs ya! Your insights and experience has been missing. How ya doin on the studio? Ever finish all that wiring?

Yeah, all done, absolutely usable in every way, except I have a kid now and no free time.

The last time I pulled out a guitar to re-acquire callouses I found the strings were incredibly rusty and sounded like dog schite.

I compensated by turning the amp up louder, seemed to do the trick

What little free time I've had in the past four years or so has been spent trying to put the stroker together for my truck - I'm about 150,000 miles past where I thought the original engine was going to die, so it may be any day now.

In fact, I worked on it last week - I got to turn one valve in the lathe. Only 15 more to go. Not bad progress in a year lol.

 

[basscabman]

OK so I've done a couple of mixes and through my old Tannoy Reveal passive monitors the bass was non existant, So I compensated for what I couldn't hear and when played the mixes back on other hi fi's/CD players it was real bass heavy... Mids and Highs were spot on ...

So just a few questions..

Have I gone too mad with the bass traps?

Should I just get used to and trust the sound I hear from the monitors? (when playing fav albums etc) then try to emulate that sound into my tunes?

Buy better monitors ? (was thinking on getting the Yamaha HS80's)

As always any input would be welcome.

Cheers
Geoff

 

[gehauser]

OK so I've done a couple of mixes and through my old Tannoy Reveal passive monitors the bass was non existant, So I compensated for what I couldn't hear and when played the mixes back on other hi fi's/CD players it was real bass heavy... Mids and Highs were spot on ...

So just a few questions..

Have I gone too mad with the bass traps?

Should I just get used to and trust the sound I hear from the monitors? (when playing fav albums etc) then try to emulate that sound into my tunes?

Buy better monitors ? (was thinking on getting the Yamaha HS80's)

As always any input would be welcome.

Cheers
Geoff

Now that your room is treated, you might try a subwoofer to go with your Tannoys before upgrading monitors. A bass man might appreciate a subwoofer. Takes a bit of effort to balance the subwoofer with your monitors. Note that some experts say a subwoofer can add more problems than it solves. After balancing it with your mains, you could use Room EQ Wizard to find tune the subwoofer position.

 

[RICK FITZPATRICK]

Should I just get used to and trust the sound I hear from the monitors? (when playing fav albums etc) then try to emulate that sound into my tunes?

When you are satisfied with the TRANSLATION on a variety of other systems/rooms/cars/styles of music, then yes, you can trust your monitors/room. If not, then I suspect you need to measure your room/monitor response and treat accordingly/change monitors untill such time you are satisfied.

At least thats my .02

 

[RICK FITZPATRICK]

Probably. How are mixes translating? That's the real test...it's the only test that matters.

oops..Frank already beat me to the punch...nevermind...carry on.

 

[Weasel9992]

I did a lot of listening to my fav bands, mainly Steely Dan I might add and it's like I'm hearing this stuff for the first time!

I love Steely Dan.

Frank