Studio Journal 6-25-2015

Posted June 25th, 2015 in Acoustic Design, Recording, Studio Construction Journal

I have made quite a bit of progress!

One controversial decision is that I ended up putting the pucks down and floating the floor. The research shows I may have wasted money. But I don’t regret giving it a shot. I’m doing this completely by the books, Installed by acoustics professionals who have building permits and then inspected by the town.

Another controversial decision is I decided to build an A-Frame shape on either side of the I-beam. The angles are at about 10 degrees to take care of the flutter echo. I plan to put a lot of absorption in the front of the room on the ceiling. And build custom diffusors for the back of the room on the ceiling.

I was hoping to use the dreaded concave shape combined with skyline diffusors to get a “focused diffuse field” (I just made that term up) that might be good for recording classical instruments. I’ll have more information on this soon!

I plan to put diffusors on hinges all around the room, which can be open and closed, revealing absorption or diffusion. I plan to put diaphragmatic panels (1” 703, hardboard, 1” 703 hanging from wire) behind cloth for broadband absorption.

Then you can “open” the diffusors around the room, closing off absorption channels, creating an almost entirely reflective environment. I’ve been looking at plans onhttp://arqen.com/sound-diffusers/ for DIY “low profile” diffusor design.

I’m really proud of the ventilation system. Entirely inspired from this forum. Here we made muffler boxes, put them in the crawlspace above the south side of the room and vent out through the roof. I used a “Greentek PH 7.15 Heat Recovery Ventilator” which pulls fresh air in, warms it as it passes by the stale air, and pulls stale air out. This unit is completely separate from the AC unit which is exactly as you described. No fresh air! The only surprise here is when I saw the 4 foot smoke stacks coming out of the roof. OOPS! I think I’ll be painting those black and the historic district may have a thing or two to say to me….

I’m thinking about flooring now. Reading up on hardwood vs. other surfaces. I always loved hardwood, and I used to think it “sounded better” but if the laminate flooring is really no different looks and reflection wise, and it’s even easier to install and quieter than hardwood? Then I’m excited to check that out.

I setup a “Masterpiece Theatre” vibe session in the room, which worked great! The inner sheetrock wasn’t even up. I threw up insulation for the session and had to tear it back out for the framing inspection the next day. Uff Da!

The window has been installed, next step is insulation and inspection, and we are almost done! It’s diffusor designing time!

Cheers!

Phil