Bare wood vs finished wood ?

bluesfordan

bluesfordan

Member
this may be a silly question, but is there any sonic difference between bare wood, like rough sawn pine that's unfinished versus the same wood with a poly finish on it? I'm trying to decide if I want to take the effort to finish the walls of my future music room / recording space.
 
There is a big difference really. Its a lot less work to leave it unfinished. When you get to that stage you will understand these words. (y)
 
I've read much about this as an amateur instrument builder. I am not inclined to easily dismiss the idea that finish in certain cases makes a difference. Start with the differences between nitrocellulose lacquer vs Poly finishes on guitars as an example.

I've a friend who just retired from 30+ years doing AV at an ivy league where one of his responsibilities was running one of the performance spaces. This is a venue long known for its acoustics. The university decided to renovate the wood finish and immediately he noticed that it had changed the acoustics for the worse. His observation was dismissed by management until Yo-Yo Ma complained about it and wouldn't record in the space. They spent 3 years painstakingly removing the finish.

My question is, when we make acoustic measurements, are we able to measure for tonality. In a performance space the room is part of the recording.
 
Now you mention it, I knew a classical guitarist who had a custom made guitar made - it was ready for the finishing and he played it and insisted it had to stay exactly like it was - no finish, colour or lacquer at all. Rough sawn timber does have a softish rough outer. It's not impossible that hard sealed surfaces reflect/scatter rather than absorb? I don't know? I'm not certain we should write it off. 'Barely' a difference suggests there is one, but perhaps small?
 
Here's some info. Maybe too much info.. :oops::D




Acoustic Effect of Polyurethane Stain on Wood

Has anyone experimented with the acoustic effect of staining hardwood walls of a listening room with polyurethane stain or sealant? Does polyurethane add sound reflectivity to the wood walls? Does polyurethane stain or sealant have any sonic effect at all versus not applying polyurethane to...
www.whatsbestforum.com www.whatsbestforum.com
 
spantini said:
Here's some info. Maybe too much info.. :oops::D




Acoustic Effect of Polyurethane Stain on Wood

Has anyone experimented with the acoustic effect of staining hardwood walls of a listening room with polyurethane stain or sealant? Does polyurethane add sound reflectivity to the wood walls? Does polyurethane stain or sealant have any sonic effect at all versus not applying polyurethane to...
www.whatsbestforum.com www.whatsbestforum.com
Click to expand...

erg ... argh ... brain . overloading o_O

need way more coffee :coffee:😄

seems like shellac works well, except I've never worked with it before and there's going to be a substantial amount of sf of wall space. Oh, sure, it's not a concert hall, thank goodness.

But, as it was suggested above by @Orson , once I get done with all the demolition and renovation, I'll be ready to say "Eff it" and just leave the walls unfinished.
 
bluesfordan said:
erg ... argh ... brain . overloading o_O

need way more coffee :coffee:😄

seems like shellac works well, except I've never worked with it before and there's going to be a substantial amount of sf of wall space. Oh, sure, it's not a concert hall, thank goodness.

But, as it was suggested above by @Orson , once I get done with all the demolition and renovation, I'll be ready to say "Eff it" and just leave the walls unfinished.
Click to expand...
Its about that time all the extra cost which you hadnt budgeted for sinks in as well.
 
bluesfordan said:
erg ... argh ... brain . overloading o_O

need way more coffee :coffee:😄

seems like shellac works well, except I've never worked with it before and there's going to be a substantial amount of sf of wall space. Oh, sure, it's not a concert hall, thank goodness.

But, as it was suggested above by @Orson , once I get done with all the demolition and renovation, I'll be ready to say "Eff it" and just leave the walls unfinished.
Click to expand...
My uneducated and uninformed opinion is.. anything that fills or plugs pores in the wood will make it less absorptive, and/or more reflective of sound energy. A hard, glossy, poly finish (if that's your choice) should be more reflective, I would think.

Leaving the walls unfinished would,IMO, be a good place to start. Utilize those sound qualities for a period, get accustomed to them. You can add additional reflective properties later in the form of mobile panels and partitions - possibly leading back to you sealing the interior surfaces after all.
 
spantini said:
My uneducated and uninformed opinion is.. anything that fills or plugs pores in the wood will make it less absorptive, and/or more reflective of sound energy. A hard, glossy, poly finish (if that's your choice) should be more reflective, I would think.

Leaving the walls unfinished would,IMO, be a good place to start. Utilize those sound qualities for a period, get accustomed to them. You can add additional reflective properties later in the form of mobile panels and partitions - possibly leading back to you sealing the interior surfaces after all.
Click to expand...

true, it would be a lot easier to add the poly later than try to remove it
 
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