Anyone used theater stuff like this?

Hard2Hear · Nov 14, 2008

http://www.4seating.com/accessories/Accessories-WallPanels.htm

I'm in process of building a multi purpose recording space/home theater room and wondering if any of you have experience with this kind of material. I like the idea of entire walls in some cases rather than hanging things on walls.

RICK FITZPATRICK · Nov 14, 2008

When you say "recording space", are you refering to an area that is also used as a control room? Just curious. The fact is, trying to use a space as "control room/home theater" is a lesson in compromise. If this space is used as your "live room/home theater, thats relatively easy. But correct control room geometry dictates a dedicated front wall to audio, whereby the engineering position would compromise home theater viewing. Of course, you could use mobile fixturing, but I beilive the task would be daunting to say the least. What are the dimensions of this space?

As to the wall panels....I looked at the site and there wasn't even a mention of lab tested performance of these units. :rolleyes:

In otherwords...their word is all you have to go by...and they don't say didly squat about "absorption coeffiecients". They DO say these panels have a layer of .... :rolleyes:

FOAM.
Which doesn't tell you anything, other than they DEADEN the room. They don't even tell you how thick the foam is.
At $70 for a 2'x2' panel...geezus...Unless you have a huge budget, and time for fixing what these panels WILL NOT DO,I'd suggest you do yourself a favor and do a search here on Owens Corning 703 rigid fiberglass and DIY panel building.
Or do some research here....
http://www.realtraps.com/
and here
http://forum.studiotips.com/viewforum.php?f=8&sid=3ef97bf4d6960a509dca53dad8374608
Many members at the studiotips site are Home Theater ACOUSTIC TREATMENT experts. However, recording and Home Theater have similar, but different treatment dynamics. Especially when it comes to control rooms.
fitZ

Ethan Winer · Nov 14, 2008

RICK FITZPATRICK said:
They don't even tell you how thick the foam is.

I noticed that too.

Hard2Hear · Nov 14, 2008

Yeah I'm very familiar with the standard Bass trap thing. But I'm looking at a different ideas here. As primarily a post production studio, wouldn't home theater acoustics make alot of sense? And things sound very good in theaters it seems. I highly dislike (what seems to be) the 2'X4' limitation of OC panels. Do they come in 4'X8'? There are more varieties of this, but what I'm talking about, generally, are the same walls that you see in movie theaters.

Ethan Winer · Nov 15, 2008

Hard2Hear said:
As primarily a post production studio, wouldn't home theater acoustics make alot of sense?

Well, there are good HT acoustics and there are terrible HT acoustics. Most HT treatment I see is based on too-thin rigid fiberglass. So you clap your hands and indeed the sound is dead. But at bass frequencies the sound is boomy with severe peaks and nulls.

And things sound very good in theaters it seems.

The treatment requirement for a 500 seat theater is very different from a domestic size room.

I highly dislike (what seems to be) the 2'X4' limitation of OC panels. Do they come in 4'X8'?

Yes, but anything that large has to be shipped by truck, which costs much more than UPS and FedEx. Unless you can get a local supplier to order it for you and then you go pick it up.

--Ethan

RICK FITZPATRICK · Nov 15, 2008

I highly dislike (what seems to be) the 2'X4' limitation of OC panels

Thats why I chose another manufacturer. Can't remember the name(Knauf?). Same stuff though. 4" and 3" thick, 4'x10' panels. Drove 400 miles round trip to get it in Portland Oregon.