DIY absorbers and bass traps (help)

[TYPHY]

Ok, I plan on building my own absorbers and bass traps for my small studio room. But first let me show some pictures and explain the room a bit. The room is about 8ft wide, 10ft length, and 9ft high but the ceiling arches to a point like a roof so the highest peak is about 10ft.

This is the arch I'm talking about, that's the peak height of my ceiling.

When you enter the room, this is what you'll see (it's full of stuff right now but will be empty)

The door on the right is a closet and the curtains are covering a window. I plan to put 2 bass traps in the corners.. the right side will need to be moveable so I can access the closet. I will be putting my set up in the center about 2-3ft away from the wall. This is my set up:


glass desk for my macbook and tv. 2 shelves on each side for my speakers.

and a wooden table on the left for my keyboard.

Now a picture for the other side of the room (where you enter)

The bass trap on the left will also need to be moveable for accessing the door. However, as you can see on the left side.. there is a weird intersection block thing. Idk how to explain it.. you can see in the picture. How do I approach this? 2 bass traps?

edit:
ahh.. why don't my pictures work!

here are the pictures in order:
http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/254/img0383j.jpg/
http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/834/img0381mb.jpg/
http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/534/img0384ic.jpg/
http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/213/img0385x.jpg/
http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/580/img0382xq.jpg/

[TYPHY]

I came across this great thread.. Glenn had a thumbs up in it so it must be well done.

My new cheap bass traps (pics, prices, suppliers in London)

However, I have some questions about what this guy did.

1.) For bass traps, should I use this exact material (rock wool) or is there a better material I should use?

2.) I've read a post Glenn made about FRKs. This should be only on the face of the bass trap, NOT inside. I'm not sure what he means. Can someone explain?

3.) Since these traps are 2ft wide and 4ft tall.. how do I put them in the corners? Just stand them as is? Or should I mount them a little higher like maybe a few ft off the ground?

4.) For absorption panels, I would do the same thing right? Except it being 4'' thick, they should only be 2'' thick.

[Glenn Kuras]

1.) For bass traps, should I use this exact material (rock wool) or is there a better material I should use?

Rock wool is fine.

2.) I've read a post Glenn made about FRKs. This should be only on the face of the bass trap, NOT inside. I'm not sure what he means. Can someone explain?

The FRK should only be on the face of the material that faces the room. It will help reflect high frequencies and also help absorb a bit more low end.

3.) Since these traps are 2ft wide and 4ft tall.. how do I put them in the corners? Just stand them as is? Or should I mount them a little higher like maybe a few ft off the ground?

Either way is fine. The goal is to get them in the corners and cover as much corner area as possible.

4.) For absorption panels, I would do the same thing right? Except it being 4'' thick, they should only be 2'' thick

You can us 2" and space it off the wall a few inches, but if you have the budget I would make them 4" and space it bit. BTW I am talking about panels for early reflections and general decay. If you are trying to correct a low end null or peak then you have to make them THICK.

[TYPHY]

Originally Posted by Glenn Kuras

You can us 2" and space it off the wall a few inches, but if you have the budget I would make them 4" and space it bit. BTW I am talking about panels for early reflections and general decay. If you are trying to correct a low end null or peak then you have to make them THICK.

For the panels on the side, front, and back walls.. if I make em 4'' then they would be the exact same as my bass traps except without the FRK. These panels are meant to treat the reflection zones... is it still better to make them 4'' instead of 2''?

Also.. rockwool or OC703?

What about the corner of my room in this picture?
ImageShack® - Online Photo and Video Hosting

My room is really small (8x9ft) so I think controlling bass is very important. However, I'm using a pair of KRK RP5s right now and have the opportunity to upgrade to Yamahas HS80s for cheap.. would 8inch monitors be too big for a room of my size?

[kasmira]

I think you might actually have more problems with the fact that HS80M's have a rear firing bass port than you would the fact that they are 8" monitors. However, HS80Ms in comparison to RP5's will be likely to introduce even more bass problems since they have a lower frequency response. 4" panels will still benefit the first reflections - bass isn't the only thing that isn't fully absorbed by a trap.

For the question of rockwool vs oc703, there are immense amount of threads about that. If you want great opinions from professionals on the board, the search feature will help you out more than this thread will.

Both corners could benefit from bass trapping. You have the choice on whether to build "superchunks" which are triangular shaped bass traps that are usually completely filled with insulation, or building normal bass traps and just mounting them in the corner. Consider trying to put superchunks in any corner you can. Small rooms usually have immense modal problems in the lower frequency range, and corner traps / superchunks are very effective in considerably reducing those problems.

[Glenn Kuras]

For the panels on the side, front, and back walls.. if I make em 4'' then they would be the exact same as my bass traps except without the FRK. These panels are meant to treat the reflection zones... is it still better to make them 4'' instead of 2''?

If you can make them 4", but if you are on a budget and can only get a limited amount I would rather see you cover a 4'x4' area (with 2") at the early reflection points vs 4" only covering a 2'x4' area.

Also.. rockwool or OC703?

Either is fine.

What about the corner of my room in this picture?
ImageShack® - Online Photo and Video Hosting

Treat both corners.

[TYPHY]

Originally Posted by Glenn Kuras

If you can make them 4", but if you are on a budget and can only get a limited amount I would rather see you cover a 4'x4' area (with 2") at the early reflection points vs 4" only covering a 2'x4' area.

I think I'll make my side panels 4'' thick if it would be better. So on each of the 4 walls I will have 4'' thick panels covering an area of 4x4ft. These will the same as my bass traps except without the FRK. Should I be worrying about deadening my room too much, or does a room this small need as much treatment as possible? If it does need more treatment, I'll throw an extra panel on each wall so there will be 3 of them, if that would be even better.