Advice on building my first diffusors

[deejay2x]

Hey guys... First of all thanks for checking out my post. Im usually in the gear forums rather than room acoustics simply because Im a gearnut! I am intriqued and always read and research on room acoustics though and love my room to be sounding its best.

So here's the deal. A friend of mines was working and someone was throwing away a bunch of foam. it looks as in the same type of material and density as Auralex cornerfills but its probably like 2' x 4' x 6" pieces. I know for sure its not styrofoam like the link below it is kind of the same concept.

I was thinking of trying to turn some of them into some skyline diffusors and cutting them up into block and mounting them onto some lightweight 2' x 2' boards for hanging purposes.

What are your thoughts of using foam instead of wood? How will it effect the room in your opinion and do you think it will do some diffusion and absorption also?

http://www.bobgolds.com/DifuserKgveteran/home.htm

Thinks a lot for your input!

[Jens Eklund]

A diffuser is a made of reflective material, not foam or other absorbing material. A good diffuser absorbs as little as possible.

[deejay2x]

yes I understand that but do you think it would work as both or no? Thanks

[jhbrandt]

NO. The material for a diffusor must have enough mass and solid surface to reflect the frequencies of interest.

You will only end up with an interesting looking absorber.

Cheers,
John

[Torea]

Maybe sell the foam on craigslist and use the money to buy some materials for a wooden skyline or QRD? They're not very expensive to make, if you're not buying the nice looking wood. I bought some cheap MDF, and eventually I'll get around to painting it.

[jhbrandt]

You can also use O/C Formular 150 board. It is dense enough for a good diffusor & definitely lighter than wood!

Sent from my GT-P1000 using Gearslutz.com App

[deejay2x]

cool... thanks guys!

[IHateMyUsername]

Originally Posted by jhbrandt

NO. The material for a diffusor must have enough mass and solid surface to reflect the frequencies of interest.

You will only end up with an interesting looking absorber.

Cheers,
John

I saw something you wrote on your website, and out from that, it seemed like styrofoam was a good material for diffusors. Did I misunderstand something?

"Styrofoam is useless for anything acoustic except for reflecting upper midrange sound which makes it a candidate for diffusor parts."

[jhbrandt]

Originally Posted by IHateMyUsername

I saw something you wrote on your website, and out from that, it seemed like styrofoam was a good material for diffusors. Did I misunderstand something?

"Styrofoam is useless for anything acoustic except for reflecting upper midrange sound which makes it a candidate for diffusor parts."

That is correct. No misunderstanding... The key words are, 'upper midrange'.

Cheers,
John

[Jens Eklund]

http://www.gearslutz.com/board/6732069-post5.html