concrete dungeon of doom

[McParadigm]

Essentially, my recording setup is just for personal stuff. And I'm a teacher with a family, so it's fairly low-budget. But the only space available to me is a pair of connected rooms with cheap tile floors and concrete walls. I built some bass traps using instructions most of you have probably seen online, and I'm looking at buying some GIK acoustic 2x4 panels. My question was, how am I going to be able to hang these on concrete walls? And would I be better off doing something less effective but larger, like curtains?

 

[tbone36109]

you can make stands out of plywood or you can use concrete screws but those will leave really big holes in the wall or if nothing else you can just lean the up in the corner you can also try putting hooks in the wood frames and hanging them from mic stands or other type of stands

 

[earworm]

i'm not a fan of drapes/curtains for accoustic treatment,
maybe the easiest solution to hang your panels is to build a cheap wooden frame, or atleast give your panels wooden "feet"

 

[bpape]

Stands are certainly an option. Otherwise, you can easily put an anchor in the concrete wall and hang them just like a picture frame.

Bryan

 

[McParadigm]

Thanks for the help. I'll probably get to work making stands as soon as it's warmer.

 

[daav]

Use liguid nails or some similiar contruction adhesive to glue 1 x 2 faring strips to the walls. Then you can attach any kind of wallboard material, panels etc.

If you want to actually go whole hog and finish the interior walls, it gets more complicated, but if you want to just have something to nail into that works.
What ever you put on the wall if a basment make sure that you have the moisture thing sorted out. Leave room for air to cirulate behind things. Mold loves to grow on cloth in areas against cellar walls if you have lots of moisture coming through.

Daav

 

[Seeker of Rock]

To the concrete (or block, maybe?) walls, Tapcon concrete screws would be perfect. Don't glue anything unless you plan on chiseling the glue off one day, and even then if you don't finish the walls with paint the glue will still remain in the pores (concrete and concrete block alike are porous, ya know). At your local hardware store, tell someone you need some 3/8" x 1-1/2" Tapcon screws (you may have seen them, they are blue screws). If you would want a drill, ideally, but they can be screwed in without drilling a hole first (in concrete block, anyway) if you have to. If you have a drill, get 1/4" masonry bit (again, just ask the salesman) and drill into the wall before you put in the screws. It is really easy, but sometimes when you are not familiar with these things they seem a little more complex. Once your Tapcon screws are in (two for each panel, just like Bryan said) it is just like hanging a picture. Think of how a typical picture frame (a big one) is set up on the back with a piece of wire stretching the width connected to either side, and that is what you want to do to your panels to make them ready for hanging.

 

[Victor Man]

My two cents

I know you can buy cheap Auralex or similar material on line, sometimes broken boxes or damage panels but in almost good shape. I know sometimes is hard to pay the bills especially if you have kids and family , but take your time buying few material every week and maybe you will want to perform some wood framing, insulation, drywall (blueboard) and plaster for better finish before installing acoustic board. Check this site http://www.voicesofpittsburgh.com/10steps.html I posted some pictures here from my own project.

Dou you tune your instruments in A=440 or 442 Hz