Purpose of bass traps?

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Bass...trap...

"Acoustic bass traps are low frequency sound absorbers used to reduce bass buildup and the effects of standing waves within a room."

It's all in the name :)
 
"Bass traps" - Traps bass. It's all there.

If you don't have them, you need them. Not like you "need" something, but that you MUST HAVE them. If you're in a "room" (an enclosure consisting of several walls, a ceiling and perhaps a door or other type of entry way) you have low end issues that need to be addressed.

Bass traps. Plenty of them, IMO. I have 21 (18 GIK panels and 3 larger custom units) in this room alone. Overkill? I would think so. But in theory, you really can't absorb "too much" low end - The best you can do is to make the walls "disappear" from the equation.
 
I'm not sure if the above answers really addressed your question.

For recording vocals in a room, which is what you asked about, Bass Traps are probably NOT necessary, since most human voices don't have a huge amount of energy in the frequency ranges that Bass Traps usually address.

The time when you really do need them is if you are mixing music in that same room. Then the sound and balance of instruments like electric bass, kick drum, or synth bass in the mix will definitely be affected by bass trapping. Depending on your listening position and the size and shape of the room, the perceived low frequencies can often be either doubled or disappear. This makes it hard to judge how much bass is really in your mixes.

By placing bass traps at the intersections of the walls, floor, and ceiling you can help to eliminate that phenomenon, and get a more even and accurate response throughout the room.

For someone doing mixing or mastering, like John (above) it is true that you can't really have too much bass trapping. But, again, if all you are doing is recording vocals in a particular room, I don't think bass traps are a high priority. For vocals in particular, you might be better off with mid to high frequency diffusors.
 
You set the bass trap out in the early evening, and if you're in a high volume bass area, by morning you should have one in the trap. I caught my warwick this way.
 
Fireal402 said:
You set the bass trap out in the early evening, and if you're in a high volume bass area, by morning you should have one in the trap. I caught my warwick this way.


I caught an upright bass in that manner
 
To who-ever anonymously neg'ed me with the following comment: 'Rude, inappropriate comments.'

DO A GOD DAMN SEARCH YOU STUPID FUCK. IT WON'T EVEN TAKE VERY FUCKING LONG. IS IT THAT HARD TO THINK, INSTEAD OF ASKING EVERYONE ELSE TO THINK FOR YOU?

There. Now you have something that actually is rude/inappropriate to complain about. Fuck off. :D !!
 
I've never neg'd Anomly or anyone else, but I think that the phrase: "Do a God Damn Search!" could certainly be interpreted as rude, especially by someone fairly new to discussion forums.

It is completely understandable that long-time members get worn out answering the same questions over and over again, but new members, by virtue of being new, obviously haven't seen these questions answered before.

Yes, it would be nice if they did a search first, but that doesn't always occur to them. I'm not holding myself up as some sort of shining example, because I've been guilty in the past of the same thing. As more senior members, I would suggest that if the thought of answering something one more time makes us want to smash our faces into a wall, that we just ignore the post and let someone else run with it. There are enough of us here that no one should feel obligated to answer every post.

And in defense of Anomaly, the links that he gave to Ethan Winer should answer almost every question you might now or ever want to know about bass traps. So, if you can get past his being only human and perhaps having a bad day, you should thank him.
 
I'm pretty knew here although I have just knocked my post count over 600

but it seems obvious as a newbie to the site to do a search

doesn't it

I've not looked but I wonder how many times questions about bass traps have been raised
 
John,

> in theory, you really can't absorb "too much" low end <

No kidding. The attached photos show all 39 traps in my living room. :D

--Ethan
 

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I know that the seach function on this BBS leaves much to be desired, but there are one hell of a lot of faster and better places to get basic background info like this. Anyone ever hear of Internet search engines? Here's a summary of the non-advertising results from just the first page (out of 137,000 pages) that were returned by a search for "bass traps" by a popular search engine. (Congrats on hitting #1, Ethan :) ):

Build a Better Bass Trap. Be sure to also see the Acoustics FAQ HERE which explains bass traps and ...

Acoustic bass traps are low frequency sound absorbers designed to ...

RealTraps - Home. Our bass traps and acoustic panels are...

Bass Traps: Tube Traps, Attack Wall, Studio Traps, Quick Sound ...

Bass Traps. If you ask most audiophiles to describe the main acoustic problem in their listening rooms, they'll probably tell you...

Bass Traps | Sweetwater.com. Bass traps substantial enough to control nodes have always been ...

VENUS Bass Traps - Low frequency sound control products from ...The Venus Bass Trap achieves a prodigious level of low frequency sound control at your room boundaries, where low frequency problems begin...

Ethan was kind enough to write this column on bass traps, the different types, ... But first allow me to debunk a common myth about bass traps. ...

Private Radio » Bass Traps. What are bass traps? Compressed fiberglass insulation panels ...

ASC's TubeTrap is a bass trap that has a built-in diffusion membrane to back ... "The original corner loaded bass traps are just as effective today as they ...


Enough quality info there on one page to keep one busy for five hours.

G.
 
Ethan Winer said:
John,

> in theory, you really can't absorb "too much" low end <

No kidding. The attached photos show all 39 traps in my living room. :D

--Ethan
And people bug me about having 21... :eek: :D
 
Anomaly Design said:
DO A GOD DAMN SEARCH YOU STUPID FUCK. IT WON'T EVEN TAKE VERY FUCKING LONG. IS IT THAT HARD TO THINK, INSTEAD OF ASKING EVERYONE ELSE TO THINK FOR YOU?

it takes the same amount of time to open up the thread and tell'em to do a god damn search as it would to just tell'em what they wanna know. and if the question annoys you....hit that button that says next thread
 
scorpio01169 said:
it takes the same amount of time to open up the thread and tell'em to do a god damn search as it would to just tell'em what they wanna know. and if the question annoys you....hit that button that says next thread


Oh my sweet jesus... I didn't know there was a next thread button until you said that, and I've been browsing this site since 2002 or so!
 
Thank u all for responding... even the morons who decided to clutter the thread with useless bullshit. I dont understand why u even have to click on the thread if u know its something you're not going to help me with. For the pricks who talk about "do a fucking search"... I've done searches on bass traps, but I COULD NOT FIND INFO ON WHETHER OR NOT THEY MADE ANY EFFECT ON VOCAL RECORDINGS. I'm a complete novice to the acoustic treatment department so I came looking for some insight.

littledog - thank you for addressing my main concern... unlike most of these dunces, you were able to understand what I was asking and answer me. Your help is greatly appreciated.

To the remainder of u dolts that are still griping over me asking this question.... go get laid.
 
They will have an effect on basically anything with fundamentals below a flute.

Well, that might be a little bit of a stretch, but you should certainly notice a difference below even as high as 500Hz.
 
It's not very sporting, if you ask me.

We fly fish for them.
 
John,

> And people bug me about having 21... :eek: :D <

Yeah, but you and I know better...

--Ethan
 
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