IK Multimedia ARC for fixing bad rooms?

[intellijel]

I am in the middle of an acoustics crisis. Like most bedroom producers I have a less than ideal room for monitoring and mixing. Unless I start making a lot of money and can move to a bigger place I simply have to make the best of a bad situation: small room, lot's of stuff in it, bad acoustics.

I bought a reference mic (Behringer ECM8000) and did room measurements using Room EQ Wizard. It was no suprise that I found major issues such as 12db boosts and cuts at several different frequencies.

The best solution would be to reposition my monitors, remove stuff like my bed, install bass traps and generally treat the room. Unfortunately there is not enough space or options to do this.

So the "survival" solution is to use a lot of reference tracks and check my mixes on lot's of other systems.

Recently I discovered IK Multimedia ARC and I was very intrigued (especially by the tons of positive reviews). I know this is not the ideal solution but I am thinking it might help make the best of a bad situation.

I am a little turned off by the price though!!! I think IK thinks they can get away with that high cost because the majority of people will be forced to actually buy the software instead of stealing it (since they get the reference mic). As a developer I can sympathize with this but I still feel like I am getting a little ripped off. AFAIK the mic is fairly cheap (probably equivalent to a $50 behringer ECM8000) and it does not look like it is individually calibrated to the software.

Since this is the case it would be way better if one had the option of using ones own calibrated mic (with reference curves) and using that with the software.

[psycho_monkey]

no software can "fix" a bad room.

Products like ARC can help a reasonably treated room, but if it's used in a room that's an acoustic disaster, it's not worth the money.

are you really not able to get a few basstraps for the corners of the room etc?

[mixer]

it actually works. if a room is really bad it can do a reasonable job if you are nearfield monitoring with no noised or rattles. you can get a decent soundstage out of it..

[intellijel]

I can probably squeeze some bass traps in (one corner will be difficult due to a door in the way). The opposing wall is pretty close and I am sure that is adding some major constructive interference. On the frequency sweep graphs I am getting major boosts at 135Hz and 280Hz needless to say this is severely affecting my ability to mix kick drums and bass lines.


In a recent SOS review the reviewer tried the ARC system on a pair of poorly placed, lopsided speakers in his office. He was amazed at the difference the ARC system was able to make via compensation. This is obviously not the solid gold answer but it seems like it could help put me in a better ballpark for mixes but I will still need to do regular A/B comparisons with other tracks and check out the mixes on tons of other systems.

[psycho_monkey]

the thing is, if your problem is due to modal problems, you can't EQ it out - you'll actually make the problem worse.

ditto with ringing problems - that's a time domain problem, not frequency domain.

I'm sure ARC does work in some situations - just not in all.

I still think it's better to invest in some - any - room treatment, than spend hundreds on a piece of software that may not work.

[intellijel]

So if I made up a detailed floor plan diagram, took some photos of my room and could post my room freq measurements, what is the best forum to get help on putting together a treatment strategy?

[Brandon Hook]

I'd say get the reverb time right for your peaks/dips and then look at using ARC. Treat sidewall reflections and trap your corners. That is the best you can hope for under $1000.

[manthe]

I've done this and I am in good shape now. I put together ~$1500 to 2k in absorption, corner bass traps and diffusers. I used Auralex (mostly because it was just easier and they look decent). But, Auralex will help you for free if you draw out your room. I drew my room, including all dimensions AND equipment with approximate distances between furniture and gear, approximate sizes of room elements, etc.

They sent back a marked up drawing with recommended treatments and placements for those treatments.

I've then deployed my JBL Room Correction and it really has all made a monumental difference. The JBL kit is roughly the same as the IK kit (mic + software, etc)

I had some 5, 7...even 9 db issues myself. My room is not big....maybe 500 sq ft, with a small ISO booth. But I have a pretty decent environment now that I've done my homework, made the time/money investment AND coupled it with room correction technology. I don't think any 1 of those things, on their own would be any good without the others....so my advice would be to do it all!

Good luck. It CAN be done!

[heisleyamor]

i don't know how people could think that EQ can be the secret to having a better sound when your room sucks. Get your room treated. Get everything sounding good before it gets to the DAW. "YOU CAN'T POLISH TURDS"