Which fabric to use for bass traps?

[Chris Lago]

Hey,

I went to the fabric store the other day to buy 5 meters of black satin to put on top of my roxul traps (currently wrapped in plastic only).

First of all, did I make a mistake? Should I go back and buy cotton fabric instead?

Second of all, do I need to remove the plastic once I put fabric on top?

Thanks everyone for your help!

[traumerei1838]

i still prefer burlap.
of course plastic is reflective. toss it
go to a craft store like Michaels in pasadena for burlap and get a staple gun
it comes in different colors if you;re concerned about appearance.

[SAC]

Generally speaking I would leave the plastic surface 'FSK' on as one would most likely want to have said mid and high frequency energy remain in the room, albeit it would most likely need to be adjusted by further treatment based upon treatment.

As as regards what energy you might want to preserve and redistribute advantageously, etc., etc., etc., we need to determine usage and an appropriate desired acoustical model we want to achieve. Many simply opt to go the 'let's dampen everything' route, but this may not be the optimal route.

If I might point out something that is all too common with such a question.

You are asking for specific recommendations, yet any such recommendation is necessarily tries to achieve the desired acoustic response model one desires. And any appropriate recommendation can only be made with respect to a desired room response.


Once an appropriate desired response is chosen, then one can 'pretty easily' make more appropriate and specific recommendations regarding the optimal use of a combination of absorption &/or diffusion necessary to achieve the said response.

Without defining that desired response, it is like asking 'what route should I choose to get there?" We 'need' to know what response one desires. Then the specific route planning options become much easier to define and validate.

I realize that this is not a thread about acoustic room models, but one should be aware that there are various models, and to the role that such models play, and to start thinking in terms of one's intended use of a space and then to begin investigating the various acoustic models. Once this is done, the what is necessary and sufficient to accomplish said result becomes much easier and specific.

[Chris Lago]

Originally Posted by traumerei1838

i still prefer burlap.
of course plastic is reflective. toss it
go to a craft store like Michaels in pasadena for burlap and get a staple gun
it comes in different colors if you;re concerned about appearance.

Ok thanks, I'll ask for burlap. I have my staple gun ready to go. To my ears, my room sounds great by the way (I work at other big budget studios from time to time, so I can assess the differences). I added roxul traps on each corner, and I added a 6inch trap behind me. The bass is really defined now and I can mix bass accordingly. I'm heading to Michaels right now!

[tonio]

Since you have the corners and rear mostly done, what purpose panels are you making?
Remove the plastic for RFZ panels. You want the fabric to be breathable, as in you can breath through it. If burlap is too ugly for ya, try muslin, its easier to work with, and most places have them various colors to meet your athestics.

Plastic on the panels (Under fabric) can be used for panels that are not in the RFZ. Just don't wrap it all the way around.

T

[Chris Lago]

Hey, I'm making some normal panels with them, so I'll remove the plastic on them to get a better spectrum for my room. I got some white muslin and black breathable cotton so it'll work great. I tested them by breathing on the fabric, see if it was passing through nicely and it did.

Thanks a lot for your help!

[Rocket Ronnie]

Originally Posted by Chris Lago

Hey, I'm making some normal panels with them, so I'll remove the plastic on them to get a better spectrum for my room. I got some white muslin and black breathable cotton so it'll work great. I tested them by breathing on the fabric, see if it was passing through nicely and it did.

Thanks a lot for your help!

This is for bass traps right? doesn't need to be breathable.

[Chris Lago]

Originally Posted by Rocket Ronnie

This is for bass traps right? doesn't need to be breathable.

4 of them are regular traps and 1 is for bass. They'll all absorb bass but the 6inch trap will only be focusing on the bass so I guess I'll leave the plastic on that one.

[SAC]

Originally Posted by Chris Lago

Hey, I'm making some normal panels with them, so I'll remove the plastic on them to get a better spectrum for my room. I got some white muslin and black breathable cotton so it'll work great. I tested them by breathing on the fabric, see if it was passing through nicely and it did.

You have this backwards.

You are better served by either leaving the 'scrim or FSK' on them (if already faced) or by adding thin plastic to the front surface in order to reflect some of the mid and high frequencies back into the room!

Otherwise they are very efficient at removing the low energy mids and highs and not very efficient removing the LF. And the result is a room with insufficient mids and highs - a dead room.

[Chris Lago]

Originally Posted by SAC

You have this backwards.

You are better served by either leaving the 'scrim or FSK' on them (if already faced) or by adding thin plastic to the front surface in order to reflect some of the mid and high frequencies back into the room!

Otherwise they are very efficient at removing the low energy mids and highs and not very efficient removing the LF. And the result is a room with insufficient mids and highs - a dead room.

Ok thanks for clearing that up.