Airshow Mastering New Studio Construction

[mikahanau]

Hi Sam and thanks for your comments

The Live room, which we expect to be the loudest space by far, has a 2" puck based floating isolation floor, with a built-up multilayer floor on top of the iso pucks. The multi layer floor includes a high mass panel and a honey-comb isolation panel.

Can you explain a littlebit about the idea behind these constuction?
Sorry my english is very bad, so maybee it`s mey fault that i don`t understand you posts until know compleatly.

I would be intressted about the way you handle the difference between deadload and liveload of these floating floor.
Is the elastomere a special one, which works also good with minimum (no) and maximum deflection?
How high is the wight / m² of the floor itself without load?

I hope these Info is not to personal to share.
Thomas Jouanjean alwas says that he has to kill me , when he tell me the answer


I like your work Sam
It`s a real nice Portofilo you have
cheers
Mika

[SIASam]

Mika,

I am not sure what you are asking, but let me explain a bit more about the floors and studio construction details we use in designing rooms:

1. we try and determine the amount of isolation required for each space, and how to most effectively achieve that goal.

2. We work with our clients to design a space that meets their needs (both short terms and reasonable guesses about what the future holds) - and balance costs, isolation needs, finish costs and accomodation of technical equipment.

3. we work with contractors to make sure the details are built as drawn!


I am extremely proud to say that this approach as earned us the support and loyalty of a great number of clients. I think the emails from teh Airshow staff speak to this!

With specific regard to floors - our floor designs address a number of issues:

1. deflection and isolation via non rigid connection between layers.
2. strength (live load issues)
3. Mass
4. durability
5. impact on sound.

The simple floor in Mastering A of the new airshow facility the resilent member is a hony-comb product that acts as the decoupling layer. This material has a strength rating (live load of ~ 1000 lbs per sq ft). Above this is a sandwich of 1/4" hardbacker board (which is a cememt board) between two layers of 3/4" plywood. This means that there is a solid, massive panel of 1-3/4" sitting on top of a 5/8" honey comb panel which decouples the 'sandwich' from the slab below.

The honycomb panel has been measured to increase the IIC rating of solid floor constructions by up to 38 IIC points. IIC ratings are a measure of the transmission of structure born sound energy.

The floors of the studio it directly on this floor construction. teh celings are supported by the walls, which means that there are NO rigid connections of the wall and celing structure to the surrounding sturcture - a complete box in box design.

For the tracking room a more robust construction was used, adding a 2" puck system to the 'sandwich' - The system of pucks (made of compressed fiberglass) surrounded by glass fibre to reduce cavity resonaces is very strong and acts as one of two decoupling layers, helping reduce transmission.

Let me be clear, these floors are very solid, very strong and decoupled from the slab below. Whats amazing is that we have found that these decoupled floors SOUND GOOD!

Lasting, putting more money into floors is not always the way to address isolation. The penetrations of the wall (for HVAC systems, electric, doors, windows and low voltage cables) present serious challanges to isolation that are more likely than the floor to be the 'waek link' in our isolation chain!

So there you have it! I hope this helps clarify our approach.

I am extremely proud of the work we have done with AIRSHOW and l am really looking forward to seeing AIRSHOW EAST up and running!


HAVE FUN!

Sam Berkow
SIA Acoustics

Originally Posted by mikahanau

Hi Sam and thanks for your comments

Can you explain a littlebit about the idea behind these constuction?
Sorry my english is very bad, so maybee it`s mey fault that i don`t understand you posts until know compleatly.

I would be intressted about the way you handle the difference between deadload and liveload of these floating floor.
Is the elastomere a special one, which works also good with minimum (no) and maximum deflection?
How high is the wight / m² of the floor itself without load?

I hope these Info is not to personal to share.
Thomas Jouanjean alwas says that he has to kill me , when he tell me the answer


I like your work Sam
It`s a real nice Portofilo you have
cheers
Mika

[Airshow Mike]

Hi everyone,
Now that the drywall is finished, the guys are installing the frames for the acoustic treatment on the walls. The frames you see in the pictures will hold fabric wrapped Owens Corning 705, which will sit 2 inches off the wall. Each room will also have RPG FlutterFree on the walls as well. The RPG diffusers will be installed a little later.

After the wall panels are installed, work will begin on the soffits.

-Mike

[Airshow Mike]

Hi everyone,
The soffits are going up in each room! The soffits will essentially run the entire perimeter of each room's ceiling. At the back of the soffit, attached to the drywall, is duct liner. Duct liner is a coated fiberglass material which we also used in the HVAC ducts in each room. A metal frame is then built out, and panels of Owens Corning 705 are set into the frame. Once everything is in place, the soffit will act as a large bass trap around the entire room. The final step in the construction will be to cover each soffit with fabric.
It is really exciting to see all of these elements coming together, and then to hear the effect they have on the rooms acoustics.

-Mike

[Airshow Mike]

Hi Everyone,
Well, except for the fabric, the soffits are basically done. As you can see from the photos, we are using a tremendous amount of OC 705.

Once the 705 wall panels and RPG Flutter Free are in place, we will have a nice mix of absorption and diffusion.

The rooms are already starting to sound good, and that is a great sign.

-Mike

[Airshow Mike]

Hi everyone,
Construction is moving along swiftly. The rooms are painted and much of the acoustical treatment is in place.

The RPG Flutter Free looks great and the fabric wrapped 705 panels look really sharp too. We decided to frame the panels with wood, which gives them a nice "finished" look.

-Mike

[Airshow Mike]

Here are a few more photos including Mary, one of our construction project managers, wrapping an Owens Corning 705 panel with acoustic fabric. You can also see part of the RPG Diffractal that will be mounted at the back of Frank's control room.

-Mike

[Airshow Mike]

Hi everyone,
The RPG flutter free is being installed in each room now. We decided on a light/medium oak and it looks great. The Flutter Free is mounted a couple inches off the wall and duct liner is inserted behind it.

-Mike

[Airshow Mike]

Here are a few more photos of the Flutter Free install, and some shots of the kitchen and lobby. You can also get a good look at the slate in the tracking room floor. Sam suggested we have slate in the middle surrounded by bamboo for a little variation in the acoustics. Plus, it looks cool!

-Mike

[Airshow Mike]

Hi Everyone,
Sam came for a visit to see how the rooms were shaping up, and to take some preliminary acoustical measurements. The rooms measured very well, and will sound better once the rear diffusers are up and the clouds are installed. The noise in each room is EXTREMELY LOW.

I should note that Sam was using Smaart, a program he originally designed for acoustic measurement.

The majority of the pictures below were taken in Frank's control room.


Sam also designed me a very nice undulating diffuser for my rear wall made out of RPG Flutter Free. Below you can see Sam holding up a piece of it. You can also see a photo of the middle section laying on the floor waiting to be installed, and then a shot of the diffuser almost completely finished.

-Mike

[Airshow Mike]

Hi everyone,
Well, the bamboo floors are finally going in. So far the installation has gone on without a hitch, and the floors look great. They actually match the RPG diffusers perfectly. The floor in the lobby, office, and part of the hallway, is cement. We decided to stain the cement in a red color, rather than installing bamboo. This is partly because those are heavy traffic areas, but it also adds to the industrial look Charlie has been going for.
The red cement actually looks very cool, and because it didn't stain consistently, it looks like we actually tried to make a pattern. The cement is mostly covered for the time being, but the photos will give you some idea of what I'm talking about.

Next, the soffit fabric will be installed. It is a big multi day job, and must be done just right. Once the fabric is in, the clouds can be installed. After that, most of the rooms are done except for a few finishing details.

-Mike

[Airshow Mike]

Hi everyone,
The soffit fabric has been installed. We chose a rather dark red fabric which actually makes the white ceiling look higher. In fact, the soffit fabric looks so good, at first glance it seems painted on.

The crew used an odd plastic strip to hold the fabric tightly in place. I tried to show a cross section in the photo. They also used what looked like a pizza cutter to push the fabric into the plastic strips.

-Mike

[HelloKatze]

awesome!

[Airshow Mike]

While the fabric was going up in the Tracking and Control Room, Sam, Charlie, Frank, and I were in my room with our construction managers taking a preliminary listen. Charlie brought his little Genelecs so Sam could run some pink noise. I brought my Sterling Modular desk in so I could get a feeling for where I will be sitting. If you look at the photos, you will notice the desk is not totally assembled. The sides are off and so is the granite arm rest.

Sam was using Smaart with an Earthworks mic to analyze the room. The pink noise and music were being fed to the Gen's through Charlie's Metric Halo ULN2.

Sam had me sit in the middle, approximately where my chair will be. It was incredible!
The sweet spot was huge. In fact you can walk from one side of the room to the other with essentially no drop off points. Everyone had a big smile on their face.

Later Sam had our construction manager James and me hold up the cloud to eyeball the positioning ( I'm on the right).

I am really looking forward to working in this room.

-Mike

[Airshow Mike]

Hi Everyone,
Now that the soffit fabric install is complete it seemed like a great time to start moving in gear and the perfect opportunity to take some slick photos to show folks at AES. Charlie and I worked together last week to get some nice shots for everyone here. We moved much of my gear in, and since Frank is on tour with Bob Mould, we moved in his D-Command and threw a pair of Charlie's Dunlavy IV's in the control room just for the heck of it. Frank will actually be monitoring on K&H 0410's and Meyer HD-1's as well as Dynaudio Bm5a's, Avantone mix cubes and NS10's.
Remember, nothing is in its final place, and much equipment still needs to be moved in.

Pictured below is mastering room B, along with Frank's control and tracking room. I am also including a shot of the production room.

On a side note, thank you to all who came and visited with Charlie, Dave, and Steven at AES.

I hope you enjoy the photos.

-Mike

[metrognome]

Wow, this place came out really nice. Great freakin job!

-Sammy

[american]

Originally Posted by Airshow Mike

Hi everyone,
The soffit fabric has been installed. We chose a rather dark red fabric which actually makes the white ceiling look higher. In fact, the soffit fabric looks so good, at first glance it seems painted on.

The crew used an odd plastic strip to hold the fabric tightly in place. I tried to show a cross section in the photo. They also used what looked like a pizza cutter to push the fabric into the plastic strips.

-Mike

Is that Fabritrack?

[Airshow Mike]

Originally Posted by metrognome

Wow, this place came out really nice. Great freakin job!

-Sammy

Thanks for the nice words Sammy!

I would love to hear more comments from everyone.

Remember, we are not done yet. If fact we are just getting started.

Some folks have been wondering about Studio A. Well, we had a few structural issues with the back wall of the building and it has been holing up the progression of Charlie's room for some time. Charlie's room will start moving forward very quickly in a few weeks. In the mean time, Frank Marchand and I will start to move in. We will be wiring the facility very soon.

Charlie's room is really going to be impressive. It will have a similar color scheme to mine, but will be much larger and set up for surround.

Most importantly, the rooms just sound fantastic. We have Sam Berkow and his staff at SIA Acoustics to thank for that.

It has been a long road to get to this point, but well worth the trip.

-Mike

[Airshow Mike]

Originally Posted by american

Is that Fabritrack?

american,
Thanks for continuing to follow the thread. I will find out for sure, but I believe it is Fabritrack.

[jayman]

Wow, that's gorgeous! I wasn't sure about the colors till it was all done, but it really looks great. Can you tell me what's behind the 705 in the upper bass traps that surround the entire room? Is there any sort of membrane behind the 705?

BTW, mastering with Dominick at your Boulder facility on Friday. Looking forward to it!

j

[Airshow Mike]

Originally Posted by jayman

Wow, that's gorgeous! I wasn't sure about the colors till it was all done, but it really looks great. Can you tell me what's behind the 705 in the upper bass traps that surround the entire room? Is there any sort of membrane behind the 705?

BTW, mastering with Dominick at your Boulder facility on Friday. Looking forward to it!

j

Hi jayman,
Thank you for the compliments.
Behind the 705 is airspace and then a layer of 2" duct liner. Duct liner is another fiberglass product. The combination of the two layers and airspace if Very effective.
The 705 just sort of sits in the metal soffit frames and the duct liner is attached to the drywall.

I hope you have great session with Dom. He is an excellent engineer and a really nice guy.

And thank you for working with Airshow.

-Mike

[Rappy]

Mike just gave me a tour of the facility. The place looks great and the rooms sound amazing! They really did it right. It will be a joy to make records there. Spread the word.

Cheers,

Rappy

[takman]

i love looking at great studios...especially the photos of the build.

it looks really really nice..i give it 3 thumbs up thumbsupthumbsupthumbsup

[Airshow Mike]

takman and Rappy,
Thank you so much for the kind words. There will be some big updates in the next few days as Frank Marchand begins to move into his room, and Sam Berkow comes to do another inspection and fine tune my room.

Also, work begins again on Charlie's room next week. It's gonna look great!

Stay tuned...

-Mike

[JLaPointe]

Originally Posted by Airshow Mike

Pictured below is mastering room B ...

Beautiful room. Hard to tell from the photo, but it looks like those side wall diffusors are at the first reflection position. What was the reasoning for using diffusion there versus absorption? Wider imaging given the room size?

Best,

- J.

[Airshow Mike]

Originally Posted by JLaPointe

Beautiful room. Hard to tell from the photo, but it looks like those side wall diffusors are at the first reflection position. What was the reasoning for using diffusion there versus absorption? Wider imaging given the room size?

Best,

- J.

J,
Thank you for the kind words.
I will ask Sam about the diffusors tomorrow when he visits my room, that way we can get the answer straight from the acoustician himself.

-Mike

[SIASam]

Originally Posted by JLaPointe

Beautiful room. Hard to tell from the photo, but it looks like those side wall diffusors are at the first reflection position. What was the reasoning for using diffusion there versus absorption? Wider imaging given the room size?

Best,

- J.

J. - Interesting point, and I think it shows a common problem with studio design issues - people think in plan (looking top down) and sound is a 3D reality!

For me the two post important reflections (that can serious degrade the sound at the mix position) are: the surfaces BEHIND the monitors, and the ceiling between the monitors and the mix position. In Mike's room (which I think you are asking about) - I used absorption which is thick and heavy enough to be effective in the 125 Octave band in both of these locations - note the extensive canopy over the console and thick absorption on the front wall.

The diffusion on the side walls (adjacent to the mix position) is a result of my listening and measurement experience - mix positions in small rooms feel better to me when they are diffusive (I also back up the diffusers with high density glas fiber behind the wood to achieve some lower - mid freq absorption). I find small rooms need lateral diffusion to help the sense of envelopment.

Lastly, Mike's room (and many of my control & mastering rooms) use soffit mounted absorption to address the modes & reflections associated with the 'corner' where the walls meet the ceiling. This soffit mounted absorption is very effective and reduces the amount of side wall that acts as a reflector.

Sooooo - What I am saying is that I am not sure which 'first' reflection surfaces you are talking about, but the first reflections that are critical to me (the off axis front wall reflection, and the froward ceiling reflection are both covered with extensive absorption - and diffusion is used where I can try and improve sound at the mix postion.

Hope this helps,

Sam Berkow
SIA Acoustics
SIA Acoustics

[Airshow Mike]

Hi everyone,
Today Charlie and I began moving out of our Springfield VA location. We are pulling all of the cabling, rack gear and small stuff, and the movers come tomorrow for the big items. It is hard to believe this is really happening. It has been a long process.

There is a sadness in leaving all of our friends and neighbors in Springfield, but we are pleased that we will be able to offer our clients many new and convenient services in the Takoma Park Maryland location. We will have a really comfortable lounge, a Digidelivery server, be within walking distance from the Metro, which you just can't beat. Plus, we can now offer recording and mixing services, and on top of that, we will have a beautiful Steinway B piano.

If any of you are in the DC area and would like to come take a tour, please don't hesitate to contact us.

We are also accepting bookings. Charlie's room will be completed shortly, and Frank is already beginning to move in and get settled. Studio B is essentially done and operational.

For bookings and tours you can write to:

studio at airshowmastering dot com

Also, we will be launching a new version of the web site very soon.

Stay tuned, there is still more to come.


Below you can see Charlie and I pulling stuff apart and moving our Studer A820. You will also see Frank getting acquainted with his new console.

[JLaPointe]

Thanks for taking the time to answer Sam!

Originally Posted by SIASam

The diffusion on the side walls (adjacent to the mix position) is a result of my listening and measurement experience - mix positions in small rooms feel better to me when they are diffusive. I find small rooms need lateral diffusion to help the sense of envelopment.

Indeed, I asked because my experience is similar - small rooms do benefit from lateral diffusion, but I don't see too many rooms that make use of it - often it's rear wall diffusion only.

Best,

- J.

[drew]

Mike,
Just finding this thread, been too busy in the studio!!!

Congratulations on the new place!! Looks great. I've known Frank for over 15 years, haven't seen him in a while. Let him know if he needs any D Command training I can help.

A business question if you will? Aren't you guys a little bit nervous putting hundreds of thousands of dollars into a building right now? Do you own it or lease? How was it to get the financing in this climate? Please don't tell me you guys put up your houses as collateral!! Sorry if it's prying but this is the first thing I think of when I see these threads.

Best of luck, I'm always looking for new places to track so I will be sure to check it out.