Moving Blankets as temporary bass traps

[12milluz]

Since you have insulation material behind it, my guess is that you'd be good down to around 250Hz or so, which is pretty good for a thrown-together, temporary setup. You're going to need to do a whole lot more work below 150Hz though, and that's going to take something thicker...4"-6" plus 4"-6" of airspace, superchunks or corner traps and so on.

Just to be very clear: standard moving blankets without any fortifying insulation will work well above 800Hz or so, and will do exactly NOTHING below that. Furthermore they will have absolutely no effect whatsoever in terms of isolating one space from an adjacent space. Then again, neither will a bass trap of any kind, no matter what the thickness or density. Unless it's a bass trap made out of a stud wall assembly, two 5/8" layers of Green Glue, iso clips and insulation...

Frank

So is it really worth me using the blankets at all?

 

[Dogbreath]

So is it really worth me using the blankets at all?

Your call dude.
Maybe for the upper mids and highs to dampen them down. Tame em a bit.

The best bang I got for my buck was bass traps. Been workin with just 4 of em in corners for awhile now but just ordered 2 premades from the good folks at GIK and enough material for 4 more.
Almost all of em are goin in some kind of corner, be it the wall/ceiling, weird assed ceiling peak I've got or the 5 corners in my room.
(yeah...I know...5 corners? )

Since you're talkin temporary, I'd maybe look at some diy ways to build em on stands you can move around or take with ya.
Do a search on DIY traps and you'll see what I mean.

Luck mang...

 

[mixsit]

So is it really worth me using the blankets at all?

What all this dancing around is about is- Square feet, and depth.

Depth deternins for the most part how far down this stuff goes.

A moving blanket against a wall get's you some high freq. absorption. Hang something a few inches off the wall gets you a second pass bounce off the wall (and playing it safe here- perhaps lowers the bandwidth a bit.
A double layer gets you some more attenuation (but not much lower I expect in bandwidth that that depth gives.

Pretty much the same general rules apply (another 'this is me seat-of-the-pants winging it here disclaimer etc etc ) for 'isolation (if you don't want to call it that call it something else, whatever..
One in a while I use two doubled-over layers, each hung on the opposite sides of the door frame and it provides a decent (usefull) amount of attenuation down to low mids.
Now if a band were to need, say something silly like oh -a harp amp in the kitchen ... I get a very real improvement in 'amp bleed on the drums.
I have two sets if these sized for each of the two doors off my treated tracking area'.

Other wise... Their rolled up in the corners!
woof..

 

[mixsit]

..I've got a some 703 resting on the blankets as well..

That actually seems like a fairly cool idea you've got going there.

 

[Dogbreath]

woof..

easy there big shooter....that there was the mating call.

 

[mixsit]

Well, for a while CathouseSound didn't have a cat (fairly sad story there..

But we're back now. Cats' and dog again.

oh, so the point of that was..
'fritzz 'rrwoww..

 

[Dogbreath]

"you must spread cat nip on Mixsit"

 

[Weasel9992]

Pretty much the same general rules apply (another 'this is me seat-of-the-pants winging it here disclaimer etc etc ) for 'isolation (if you don't want to call it that call it something else, whatever..

Actually, soundproofing and acoustic treatment are discreet disciplines with very different goals and different methods. What works for one often not only DOES NOT work for the other, but in fact makes it worse. Big case in point: the higher the STC rating of a room (soundproofing), the LOWER the NRC rating (acoustic suitability).

Frank

 

[recordman]

And the OP DID bring up temporary.

And I can see where your (recordman) set up with the blankets and 703 would help but I don't see much in the corners where the bass buildup is at it's worst.

I'd imagine the you could still learn the room, monitors IN that room and all its idiosyncrasies but it seems easier to just trap the corners.

Hi I did also mention in the post somewhere that "the bass response in the room is still crap". Although in the mix position (in the middle of the room) the bass response is clear and defined. The rest of the room is not ideal bass wise, especially the people that have the displeasure of sitting on the couch.

All this talk about how the bass response will still be lacking, yes yes if you're sitting in the corner of the room or near the walls it will be horrid but if you have your setup in the middle of the room the influence of the modes and standing waves are minimal

 

[recordman]

Since you have insulation material behind it, my guess is that you'd be good down to around 250Hz or so, which is pretty good for a thrown-together, temporary setup. You're going to need to do a whole lot more work below 150Hz though, and that's going to take something thicker...4"-6" plus 4"-6" of airspace, superchunks or corner traps and so on.

Just to be very clear: standard moving blankets without any fortifying insulation will work well above 800Hz or so, and will do exactly NOTHING below that. Furthermore they will have absolutely no effect whatsoever in terms of isolating one space from an adjacent space. Then again, neither will a bass trap of any kind, no matter what the thickness or density. Unless it's a bass trap made out of a stud wall assembly, two 5/8" layers of Green Glue, iso clips and insulation...

Frank

I'm not saying you're *wrong* because you are theoretically right but it comes down to the benefits I have gained with the blankets versus bass traps. You can look at it as if I had one choice would I gain more by broadband absorbtion for the whole room or just bass traps in the corners? Unanimously broadband absorption for the whole room. The mix position in the room (in the middle) is just fine bass response wise and thats what matters...now everywhere else in the room is very bad and I admittedly don't like my clients sitting on the couch hearing a bunch of standing waves but it's a fair trade off.

I know you're in the acoustic treatment business obviously (your signature) and I'm sorry to burst your bubble but if the bass in my room was as bad as you're theoretically saying it "should be" I would do something about it. What I would do is go to Home Depot and get a bunch of bags of cellulose blown in insulation and stack them in the corners. It comes packed tight in bags about 40lbs each 16"x16"x24" and those as is make one hell of a bass trap at about $7 a piece. Bad for your business I know...shhhhh

 

[mixsit]

Originally Posted by recordman
Pretty much the same general rules apply (another 'this is me seat-of-the-pants winging it here disclaimer etc etc ) for 'isolation (if you don't want to call it that call it something else, whatever..

Actually, soundproofing and acoustic treatment are discreet disciplines with very different goals and different methods. What works for one often not only DOES NOT work for the other, but in fact makes it worse. Big case in point: the higher the STC rating of a room (soundproofing), the LOWER the NRC rating (acoustic suitability).

Frank

That was me, but the context was fuzzy stuff', and isolation' as in attenuation (between mics, rooms, gobos' for example.

Just to be very clear: standard moving blankets without any fortifying insulation will work well above 800Hz or so, and will do exactly NOTHING below that. Furthermore they will have absolutely no effect whatsoever in terms of isolating one space from an adjacent space.

http://johnlsayers.com/Stuff/AbsorptionCoefficients.htm
Not much info below 125Hz here, but most all of this stuff shows even at an inch or two does some attenuation there, and quite a lot above that. Yes?

 

[Weasel9992]

Unanimously broadband absorption for the whole room. The mix position in the room (in the middle) is just fine bass response wise and thats what matters...

First, there's nothing "unanimous" about it. Low frequency energy collects most in corners as a function of simply physics. There's no magic to it. You always, always concentrate on the areas where you have the most energy to deal with; that's the only way to get results. I'm glad the room sounds good to you, but I'd be willing to bet that unfiltered measurements would tell a very different story than your ears are telling.

Secondly, the middle of the room is the worst place you could possibly be seated. You are absolutely, positively guaranteed to have a terrible response there. You can argue with me all you want...I don't take it a bit personally, but the things I'm asserting are not opinion. They're facts based on wave propagation theory 101.

I know you're in the acoustic treatment business obviously (your signature) and I'm sorry to burst your bubble but if the bass in my room was as bad as you're theoretically saying it "should be" I would do something about it. What I would do is go to Home Depot and get a bunch of bags of cellulose blown in insulation and stack them in the corners. It comes packed tight in bags about 40lbs each 16"x16"x24" and those as is make one hell of a bass trap at about $7 a piece. Bad for your business I know...shhhhh

You're right, that's a pretty effective way to go. I recommend it all the time.

One thing you need to learn about me and GIK Acoustics in general: we're not sales whores who bag on stuff to discredit the competition or other viable ways of doing things. I give DIY advice all day long. We're not jerks about that stuff.

Frank

 

[Dogbreath]

troof so spaketh by Sir Frank.

 

[Supercreep]

Agreed, and widely appreciated^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

 

[Yonce N Mild]

Werd. Frank is good people and really knows his stuff. I can remember several times when he has recommended rolls of insulation in the corners as a cheap way to provide some bass trapping.

 

[Opivy]

sorry to revive this thread - but can anyone vouch for recordmans DIY 7$ bass trap treatment?

I'm always looking to save money - but I don't want to go cheap on it (which for 7 dollars, I have to say that is really cheap)

 

[Dogbreath]

sorry to revive this thread - but can anyone vouch for recordmans DIY 7$ bass trap treatment?

I'm always looking to save money - but I don't want to go cheap on it (which for 7 dollars, I have to say that is really cheap)

I can't vouch one way or the other.

But the tried and true has been working for years and that's good nuff for me. I'd rather just do it once and be done with it.

Luck mang...

 

[Weasel9992]

How does that saying go? Go cheap, go twice...or something.

 

[Dogbreath]

How does that saying go? Go cheap, go twice...or something.

sounds about right.

 

[mixsit]

sorry to revive this thread - but can anyone vouch for recordmans DIY 7$ bass trap treatment?

I'm always looking to save money - but I don't want to go cheap on it (which for 7 dollars, I have to say that is really cheap)

bags of cellulose blown in insulation and stack them in the corners. It comes packed tight in bags about 40lbs each 16"x16"x24" and those as is make one hell of a bass trap at about $7 a piece. Bad for your business I know...shhhhh

I don't know either. Whether 'as is' they may be too tightly packed..(?) If you don't get some good final answers here I'd say search around forums for 'super chunks' corner traps, and pursue from there.