Treating the Control Room

[Produce_dept]

Hey -- got a room here that will be used as a control room, as well as for some tracking.
Its 11x12 with a 10 1/2 ft high ceiling.
The vocal booth is 5x7 and 10 ft tall.
I have done a search and come up with allot of great info... The vocal booth is sooo reverberant that I'm a bit nervous.

I'm planning on putting up 4 peices of compressed fiberglass - #703 and some #705 in 2 of the corners...

As far as the vocal booth - I'm at a bit of a loss because at times its good to have it a little brighter... other times I'll need it pretty dead if possible... so maybe I can accomplish that by adding and removing a rug from the floor? Other thoughts?

What about high frequencies?

Thanks! (the pics are small for quick download)

[Ethan Winer]

> Its 11x12 with a 10 1/2 ft high ceiling ... I'm planning on putting up 4 peices of compressed fiberglass - #703 and some #705 in 2 of the corners. <

For a room that size and shape you need a lot more than four 2 by 4 foot panels! I'd say 12 to 16 is more like it. And make them all 4 inches thick.

> The vocal booth is 5x7 and 10 ft tall ... I'm at a bit of a loss because at times its good to have it a little brighter... other times I'll need it pretty dead if possible... <

A small booth like that needs to be totally dead because small room ambience is never good ambience. Having one reflective surface might be okay, but no more than that.

--Ethan

[Produce_dept]

Thanks Ethan -- I was hoping you would reply...

Thats allot of traps =) So basically the entire room needs to be covered...

If I put the 4 inch boards up - I would still need some high frequency treatment correct? Or might the fabric covering the traps be enough?

Thanks for the reply!

Kurt

[matt_tricks]

Originally Posted by Produce_dept

Thanks Ethan -- I was hoping you would reply...

Thats allot of traps =) So basically the entire room needs to be covered...

If I put the 4 inch boards up - I would still need some high frequency treatment correct? Or might the fabric covering the traps be enough?

Thanks for the reply!

Kurt

Kurt,

I went through all that sort of thing. Do what Ethan says. Get 4" of #703 or #705 spaced 4" from as many of your walls as possible. Start with all of the corners.. wall-to-wall, wall-to-ceiling & wall-to-floor. I started with as little as possible and kept adding and found that the guys were right. You need 4" and you need it everywhere in a control room of that sort of shape.

My recording room is much bigger than yours so it might not be apples and apples but I'm putting the 4" spaced #703 in the corners and then building some of Ethan's pressure type plywood traps on a couple of the walls to keep a nice "live" mid range ambience but still absorb the low frequency boominess I get in that room otherwise. I've got floating floorboards and stuff so I want to get a good "room" sound.

http://www.ethanwiner.com/basstrap.html

//m

[TML]

Spend some cash ...forget another stereo pre...get 8 realtraps...no hastle...no building...done...room flat.....
Tim

[Ethan Winer]

Kurt,

> I would still need some high frequency treatment correct? <

It depends on a lot of factors, like if you have carpet and plush furnishings, etc. But one thing all mix rooms need besides bass traps is mid/high frequency absorption at the first reflection points. So get bass traps, and first reflection panels, then see what problems remain. If you have large areas of parallel bare surface, additional mid/high frequency absorption can be useful to avoid flutter echo.

--Ethan