Is it possible to temporarily mount foam?

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matthew_a

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Title says it all. I'm a poor college kid who just moved into a new apartment, and I'm trying to turn my tiny bedroom into a usable mini-studio...I need to find a way to temporarily mount my foam. Is there anyway to actually do this? I've read some horror stories about the Aralex temp tabs, so I'm going to stay away from that. My friend successfully used an industrial staple gun, but I'm not sure how temporary that would be. Leaving some holes in the walls might not be the end of the world though, as there are already alot of imperfections and scars on my walls (this is just from the standpoint of not pissing off my landlord). Thoughts?
 
matthew_a said:
Title says it all. I'm a poor college kid who just moved into a new apartment, and I'm trying to turn my tiny bedroom into a usable mini-studio...I need to find a way to temporarily mount my foam. Is there anyway to actually do this? I've read some horror stories about the Aralex temp tabs, so I'm going to stay away from that. My friend successfully used an industrial staple gun, but I'm not sure how temporary that would be. Leaving some holes in the walls might not be the end of the world though, as there are already alot of imperfections and scars on my walls (this is just from the standpoint of not pissing off my landlord). Thoughts?
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YUP ....a little spit after eating chocolate can go a long ways. :laughings:

all kidding aside there was a post not to long ago about this and one of the better solutions were long pins....the kind you would use for clothing while hemming.
Try the search button for the other examples.....I had one good solution but I can't seam to remember :confused: it's heck getting old.






:cool:
 
moresound said:
YUP ....a little spit after eating chocolate can go a long ways. :laughings:

all kidding aside there was a post not to long ago about this and one of the better solutions were long pins....the kind you would use for clothing while hemming.
Try the search button for the other examples.....I had one good solution but I can't seam to remember :confused: it's heck getting old.






:cool:
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Pun intended? :p

Matthew...What about using sealant? Sure, it'll rip the paint off the walls afterwards, but you can always repaint. I'm just throwing it out there. If this is bad advice I apologise.
 
legionserial said:
Pun intended? :p

Matthew...What about using sealant? Sure, it'll rip the paint off the walls afterwards, but you can always repaint. I'm just throwing it out there. If this is bad advice I apologise.
Click to expand...

Oh yes. :D






:cool:
 
matthew_a said:
Title says it all. I'm a poor college kid who just moved into a new apartment, and I'm trying to turn my tiny bedroom into a usable mini-studio...I need to find a way to temporarily mount my foam. Is there anyway to actually do this? I've read some horror stories about the Aralex temp tabs, so I'm going to stay away from that. My friend successfully used an industrial staple gun, but I'm not sure how temporary that would be. Leaving some holes in the walls might not be the end of the world though, as there are already alot of imperfections and scars on my walls (this is just from the standpoint of not pissing off my landlord). Thoughts?
Click to expand...

How much does your typical bass trap weigh, anyway? Is there any chance you could hang it like you would a picture frame?

wood_hanging_kit.jpg


Wire across the back, then a nail in the wall? I'm thinking of going this route... You'd almost certainly need some kind of frame backing for your bass traps though.
 
I've used these:
http://www.officedepot.com/a/products/344615/Office-Depot-T-Pins-Box-Of/
They punch through drywall pretty easy, they don't leave a huge hole (I just moved out of the place where I had them up and didn't get any complaints from the landlord about the holes - got my whole security deposit back), and they come out of the wall really easy and are reusable.

I'm in a more permanent place now, but I'm still using these.

Just make sure get ones long enough to punch through your foam.
 
Those are the ones that I was thinking of!
Best solution you will find. Unless you have glass or brick.








:cool:
 
T-pins (fix the holes with Crest before you leave).

THAT SAID -- I would hope DP's post resonates (pun intended), as foam is basically worthless against low end issues (which is 90% of your problem). I wouldn't even consider using foam until the low end is under control -- It'll actually make a bad room worse.
 
I misread and thought he WAS talking about bass traps. :lol:

Assuming I build mine with a wooden frame, is there any reason why I wouldn't want to do it this way? The real advantage would be that this would make them portable, as well.
 
I never even bothered securing them to the walls. Just stacked 'em in the corners.
 
Massive Master said:
foam is basically worthless against low end issues (which is 90% of your problem). I wouldn't even consider using foam until the low end is under control -- It'll actually make a bad room worse.
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I was wondering how long it was going to take for someone to finally say that. :eek::cool:
 
I wish someone would've let me in on that little gem the first time I was throwing foam all over a room... 3 rooms at the time, actually...

Before I knew how to listen.

Eh, hindsight is 20/20...
 
Massive Master said:
I never even bothered securing them to the walls. Just stacked 'em in the corners.
Click to expand...

I've been thinking of doing this myself.Just stacking them up in the corners when i need them to mix and then put them in the closet after mixdown is complete.

How many bass traps would you reccomend for 12x14x8(high) bedroom.It's in a mobile home & it has 14 inch shelf area that runs across the top of the ceiling.It's built in that way and not really removeable.I'm sure i got bass frequencies bouncing around in there pretty bad.
 
Velcro.

The strip you stick to the wall will come off afterwards with very little damage to the wall. No worse than the imperfections you said are already there.
 
mcmetal said:
I've been thinking of doing this myself.Just stacking them up in the corners when i need them to mix and then put them in the closet after mixdown is complete.

How many bass traps would you reccomend for 12x14x8(high) bedroom.It's in a mobile home & it has 14 inch shelf area that runs across the top of the ceiling.It's built in that way and not really removeable.I'm sure i got bass frequencies bouncing around in there pretty bad.
Click to expand...
I think a good starting point in almost any room is a dozen 4" 2'x4' traps (or thereabouts).

But John, that's what you recommended to the guy in the 6'x7' room also.

Yes - I did. The reason for that is that you're in a room with a pair of speakers that are operating at a typical level and putting out a typical SPL. There's a certain amount of energy that needs to be absorbed from that amount of energy being put out by those speakers. If the room is tiny or medium or large, the amount of energy that needs to be absorbed is still similar. In a smaller room, that energy is contained in a smaller space - That's why it's typically better to "over-treat" (if that's even really possible) the space.

In your case, you have 3 dimensions all divisible by 2 (so is my space) so the treatment is even more vital (my space has the equivalent of around 35 traps).

Lemee throw in a visual... Say you have 10,000 gallons of water (low end) and enough sponges (bass traps) to collect 2500 gallons. If you're in a room that will hold 20,000 gallons, the room will be half full of water and the sponges will capture half of that - heights being equal, figure you're going to be up to your thighs in water. The room is still going to be 1/4 full of water. If you're in a room that holds 60,000 gallons, after those same sponges are introduced, your ankles might be wet. Same amount of water, same amount of sponges - but in a larger area, there is less of a water problem.

A similar thing will apply with broadband trapping -- The smaller the space, the more danger of "drowning" in low end.
 
The problem, then, becomes one of actually storing a dozen bass traps when not mixing. :lol:

John - how crucial would you consider room treatment for close-micing a distorted guitar amp while tracking? I haven't bothered so far because I'm still tracking and I don't think room reflections are going to be a major source of concern with a loud amp less than an inch from the face of the mic, but this could be me just giving myself enough rope to hang because I don't know any better. :)
 
Massive Master said:
I think a good starting point in almost any room is a dozen 4" 2'x4' traps (or thereabouts).

But John, that's what you recommended to the guy in the 6'x7' room also.

Yes - I did. The reason for that is that you're in a room with a pair of speakers that are operating at a typical level and putting out a typical SPL. There's a certain amount of energy that needs to be absorbed from that amount of energy being put out by those speakers. If the room is tiny or medium or large, the amount of energy that needs to be absorbed is still similar. In a smaller room, that energy is contained in a smaller space - That's why it's typically better to "over-treat" (if that's even really possible) the space.

In your case, you have 3 dimensions all divisible by 2 (so is my space) so the treatment is even more vital (my space has the equivalent of around 35 traps).

Lemee throw in a visual... Say you have 10,000 gallons of water (low end) and enough sponges (bass traps) to collect 2500 gallons. If you're in a room that will hold 20,000 gallons, the room will be half full of water and the sponges will capture half of that - heights being equal, figure you're going to be up to your thighs in water. The room is still going to be 1/4 full of water. If you're in a room that holds 60,000 gallons, after those same sponges are introduced, your ankles might be wet. Same amount of water, same amount of sponges - but in a larger area, there is less of a water problem.

A similar thing will apply with broadband trapping -- The smaller the space, the more danger of "drowning" in low end.
Click to expand...

Sounds like a plan and a good analogy.thanks
 
Thanks for the replies guys. Those T-pins look promising, I'll probably try those out.

Massive, thanks for the wisdom about bass traps, you guessed rightly that I'm in dire need of them. I'm not too up on building them, so I'll probably search the forum and other spaces more to figure out how to deal with that. It doesn't help that I'm trying to stuff too much stuff into my room (half of a drum set, guitars, keyboard, desk w/monitors, interface...and my bed..). It's going to take a lot of tweaking to get it usable. But I'm used to making the best out of the usually crappy circumstances. thanks again..
 
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