Digital mastering studio, Soest (Netherlands)

[PD Hogeterp]

In the same building as Sander van der Heide his mastering room (check: Rebuilding our mastering room in Soest, The Netherlands) and Guido Aalbers his mix / over dub studio (check: My own mix & overdub-studio) i started building on my own mastering studio.

On my dutch blog (Mastered by.. (Pier-Durk Hogeterp)) you can find some more info about the room and some pictures from the last couple weeks. In this topic i will post some news about the last steps before its finished.

At this moment the studio looks like this and u can see we are busy finishing the acoustic panels and experimenting with the placement.

[Wesley Manley]

Looks good!

[PD Hogeterp]

Originally Posted by Wesley Manley

Looks good!

Thanks Wesley!

Next week i will post some new pictures. The acoustic panels are now padded with black cloth and are hanging on the sidewalls (looks awesome btw)..

[inlinenl]

PD. why those chairs in front of your console ?? .. they're some massive blockers ... and when some tall guy/client is in them, the soundfield is blocked ... I would put the chairs behind my back ....

enjoy ... nice speakers ...

[PD Hogeterp]

Originally Posted by inlinenl

PD. why those chairs in front of your console ?? .. they're some massive blockers ... and when some tall guy/client is in them, the soundfield is blocked ... I would put the chairs behind my back ....

enjoy ... nice speakers ...

Hi Wim,

If i would place the chairs behind the desk my listening position becomes to close to the speakers.

The chairs are very soft so when u sit in it, it takes u down another 15 cm. The tweeter speakers are exactly on the same height as my ears and i don't hear the influence of clients in the sound field. The new desk is also higher then the one on the picture and most of the times i don't even see their heads while working. So its not a problem at all!

The Duntech speakers are lovely. They have an awesome balanced sound, tight low-end and sharp focus which makes mastering on them really 'easy'. The last 2 weeks i mastered 5 albums on them and received many enthusiastic comments about my work. Can't wait to drive them with my Crown Macro Reference amplifier!

[PD Hogeterp]

It's been a while since i posted some news about my studio but somethings has changed. The acoustic absorbers are finished and are hanging on the side walls. The Tubetraps now have the same cloth as these absorbers and placed behind the speakers they are more effective. The desk is replaced by a simple table as I'm working completely ITB so no need for a 19" rack desk.

The room isn't completely finished yet. It still needs some small paint jobs, a small couch instead of the two seats (although they are really comfortable). Dedicated speaker stands are made for the Duntech's.

Some (crappy) pics..

[Syncamorea]

Originally Posted by PD Hogeterp

Can't wait to drive them with my Crown Macro Reference amplifier!

I'd be interested in hearing what you heard with the Crown and what specifically you learned during the tuning of the acoustics.

Nice room!

[PD Hogeterp]

Originally Posted by Syncamorea

I'd be interested in hearing what you heard with the Crown and what specifically you learned during the tuning of the acoustics.

Nice room!

Hi Syncamorea,

Thanks, although it's not totally finished yet i'm really happy with it.

Haven't tried the Crown amp yet on the Duntech's. But i'm familiar with the quality of it and i think they will match perfectly. I like the Crown very much because it's clean sounding, has huge headroom and low-end control.

About the acoustics. We did a lot of measurements to determine what we should do, how much absorption was needed and on which places. The room had a small flutter echo which disappeared when we placed the four big absorbers (with rock-wool underneath the clothing) on the side walls which are 79" height, 24" width and 2" deep. To reduce the early reflection we used special foam which was supplied by David van Olst ( www.goedgeluid.nl ). Those panels measure 47" x 24" x 2". The diffusers on the back wall are the famous RPG Skylines. Around the 6 Skylines there's a frame which holds them against the wall. We first placed the Tubetraps in the corners of the back wall but placed behind the speakers the low-end range is more even and in general it give much more definition.

Experimenting with the type and amount of panels and the position of them was very interesting. I learned a lot from that because with every change we took the time to decide if it truly sounded better. In the end we found a nice way between a nice measurable result and a comfortable listening environment. The Duntech's sound awesome here!

[Toni-P]

Hi,

What amp are you using right now? ( in the pics )

and how do you like it?

[PD Hogeterp]

Originally Posted by Toni-P

Hi,

What amp are you using right now? ( in the pics )

and how do you like it?

Hi Toni,

It's the Perreaux 350P power amplifier with the same modification as the ones Darcy Proper uses at the Galaxy Studio's mastering suite. It has nice clarity and headroom but i think i can push the Duntech's a bit further with the Crown in the low-end so it becomes even tighter. Still have to try that combination. If it doesn't work out i will stick to the Perreaux, it's a great amplifier..

[PD Hogeterp]

Last week the special designed stands for the Duntech's came in. They lift the speakers about 23 cm (9") so the tweeters are on ear height when i'm sitting behind the desk. It's an MDF construction which is very solid and lifeless because of the construction and the fact that they are filled with foam and kit. Spikes will couple them with the floor.

Here's a small picture of them. As you can see they still need to be painted and placed.

[Marando]

Looks like a great room for mastering! Nice job!

[PD Hogeterp]

Originally Posted by Marando

Looks like a great room for mastering! Nice job!

Thanks man, didn't you visit the studio when we opened last month?

[Gie-Sound]

Originally Posted by PD Hogeterp

Thanks man, didn't you visit the studio when we opened last month?

Yes he was

[Marando]

Originally Posted by PD Hogeterp

Thanks man, didn't you visit the studio when we opened last month?

Yeah, I did!

You where talking to a guy and I didn't want to interupt you. Your mastering room looked great man! thumbsup

[PD Hogeterp]

Had my brother make some new pictures of my mastering room.