Professional Documents
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1. Soundproo ng
Studios 1/2/3/4/5/6
One of the biggest sticking points newbies have when rst getting started with
home recording is…
And assume that just because they have a nice condenser microphone and
expensive studio monitors…great sound comes automatically.
But the truth is…the acoustics of your room have more-to-do with sound quality…
So rather than face months of frustration trying to gure out what you’re doing
wrong…you might as well get this stu handled right now.
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3/28/2021 Acoustic Treatment 101: The Ultimate Guide for Home Studios
Now…
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3/28/2021 Acoustic Treatment 101: The Ultimate Guide for Home Studios
Since direct sound does not interact with the room, its frequency balance remains
pure, and its tone unaltered.
3. Acoustic Panels
This change could be either LARGE or SMALL…GOOD or BAD.
4. Re ection Filters
In most rooms it’s bad. And here’s why: 5. Monitor Isolation Pads
The problem is…rooms with great acoustics require a LOT of space and a LOT of
money to build.
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3/28/2021 Acoustic Treatment 101: The Ultimate Guide for Home Studios
This machine allowed engineers to simulate THE 6 STUDIO CHAPTERS THE INSTRUMENTS
Chapter 3: Acoustics
the reverb of a room OTHER than the one
where it was recorded. 1. Soundproo ng
2. Bass Traps
Over the years, the technology grew more
3. Acoustic Panels
sophisticated, and today…
4. Re ection Filters
But with acoustic absorption, all that remains is the direct sound from the
instrument to the microphone…which is exactly what we want.
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3/28/2021 Acoustic Treatment 101: The Ultimate Guide for Home Studios
Di usors work by scattering re ections so nothing gets trapped, and the natural
tone is preserved.
With the right combination of both absorption and di usion, you can transform the
acoustics of virtually any room…into something capable of a world-class recording.
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3/28/2021 Acoustic Treatment 101: The Ultimate Guide for Home Studios
But before we do that, let’s clear up a common misconception that newbies often
have…
The bene t here is…you can record whenever you wish, without worrying about
you and your neighbors disturbing each other.
So if you want to learn more about soundproo ng, check out this post instead:
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3/28/2021 Acoustic Treatment 101: The Ultimate Guide for Home Studios
Evaluating Your Bare Room
Too often, when novices rst hear of the supposed bene ts of acoustic treatment…
THE 6 STUDIO CHAPTERS THE INSTRUMENTS
Chapter 3: Acoustics
They immediately go out and buy stu , without rst diagnosing and evaluating the
extent of their problem. 1. Soundproo ng
2. Bass Traps
So…to nd out how bad the acoustics in your room really are, here’s what you do:
3. Acoustic Panels
4. Re ection Filters
Walk around the room, clap your hands as loud as you can from every spot, and
listen closely to the reverberations that follow. 5. Monitor Isolation Pads
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1. In the WORST case scenario – you’ll hear a harsh metallic ringing sound, which
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typically occurs in small cubical rooms.
2. In the BEST case scenario – you’ll hear a pleasant reverb, which typically occurs
in larger rooms with high ceilings and lots of complex di usive surfaces.
But most likely, the sound you hear will be somewhere in-between. Now…
The closer it is to #1, the more absorption you will need to make the room
sound as dry as possible.
The closer it is to #2, the less acoustic treatment you will need in general,
although virtually any room will still bene t from a little.
If you need some reference points to hear the di erence between good and bad
acoustics, perform the clap test in a wide variety of di erent rooms, and take notice
of which types tend to sound best.
Then later on, when you begin installing acoustic treatment in your room, use
the clap test constantly throughout the process to observe how the sound changes.
With each new addition, that nasty ringing should be becoming less prominent,
until it disappears completely.
Moving on…
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3/28/2021 Acoustic Treatment 101: The Ultimate Guide for Home Studios
Porous bass traps are actually broadband absorbers, meaning they’re good at
absorbing mid/high frequencies as well.
Which is why sometimes…bass traps alone can be enough to get the job done.
In small home studio rooms especially, where bass frequencies can be particularly
problematic, bass traps are a MUST-HAVE.
To nd out which ones I recommend, and get detailed instructions on how to set
them up, check out this post:
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3/28/2021 Acoustic Treatment 101: The Ultimate Guide for Home Studios
2. Acoustic Panels
THE 6 STUDIO CHAPTERS THE INSTRUMENTS
Chapter 3: Acoustics
While many people think of acoustic panels
as the primary “go-to” weapons to combat 1. Soundproo ng
problems with studio acoustics… 2. Bass Traps
3. Acoustic Panels
The truth is, they’re almost completely
4. Re ection Filters
ine ective at absorbing the lowest bass
frequencies… 5. Monitor Isolation Pads
Because they’re thinner, and o er more surface area with less material, acoustic
panels can provide greater wall coverage, for less money.
What that does is kill any standing waves that may exist between opposite parallel
walls. Which is the one thing that bass traps can’t really do, since they’re primarily
located in the corners of the room.
To nd out which ones I recommend, and how to set them up, check out this post:
3. Diffusers
Most folks today believe that for smaller rooms…
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3/28/2021 Acoustic Treatment 101: The Ultimate Guide for Home Studios
For project studios, that’s good news, because THE 6 STUDIO CHAPTERS THE INSTRUMENTS
Chapter 3: Acoustics
it eliminates the need for expensive di users.
1. Soundproo ng
Many people don’t use them at all. Yet others 2. Bass Traps
disagree completely, and use tons of them.
3. Acoustic Panels
4. Re ection Filters
So it’s totally up to you. Just remember to get the absorption part handled rst…
then if you want to add some di users later, here 5. are
Monitor Isolation
3 great optionsPads
I recommend:
Up next…
1. Primacoustic London 12
Known as one of the top brands in acoustic treatment…
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3/28/2021 Acoustic Treatment 101: The Ultimate Guide for Home Studios
Check it out:
Up next…
Is of course…Auralex.
And the standard full package option they recommend for project studios is…
1. Soundproo ng
Check it out:
2. Bass Traps
3. Acoustic Panels
Click to compare prices –
4. Re ection Filters
5. Monitor Isolation Pads
At the top of this series, is the Auralex SFS-184 System, which o ers the MOST
goodies of any package we’ve seen so far.
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3/28/2021 Acoustic Treatment 101: The Ultimate Guide for Home Studios
1. Soundproo ng
Check it out:
2. Bass Traps
3. Acoustic Panels
Click to compare prices – (Amazon)
4. Re ection Filters
Also check out the cheaper Auralex SFS-112 5. Monitor Isolation Pads
SonoFlat System which includes:
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1/2/3/4/5/6
Twenty-Four 2′ x 2′ x 2″ Sono at Panels
Four SonoCollars
Four 12″ x 6″ x 28″ SonoColumns
Tubetak Pro for Mounting
Check it out:
Up next…
First though, there are 3 key areas of the room which we must de ne.
They are:
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3/28/2021 Acoustic Treatment 101: The Ultimate Guide for Home Studios
For best results, it makes sense to place acoustic treatment in the areas which have
the greatest impact, right?
Well at the trihedral corners…all 3 sets of parallel walls converge, and any
absorption located here catches room modes from all 3 dimensions, essentially
working 3x as e ectively.
The dihedral corners get next priority, since they work on 2 dimensions. And
nally there’s the walls, which only work on one.
Now…
How to Set Everything Up
The typical setup process consists of 4 basic steps which I’ll show you now.
Step 1:
Since bass traps o er the widest range of broadband absorption…
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3/28/2021 Acoustic Treatment 101: The Ultimate Guide for Home Studios
Which is why the rst step in setting up your THE 6 STUDIO CHAPTERS THE INSTRUMENTS
Chapter 3: Acoustics
acoustic treatment is to mount a bass trap
at each of the tridhedral corners. 1. Soundproo ng
2. Bass Traps
For more information on what else you can
3. Acoustic Panels
do here, check out to the following post:
4. Re ection Filters
While I recommend using some of your acoustic panels for this purpose, don’t use
them all…
Because you still need most of them for the next task…
Step 3:
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3/28/2021 Acoustic Treatment 101: The Ultimate Guide for Home Studios
Sound waves have a tendency to re ect THE 6 STUDIO CHAPTERS THE INSTRUMENTS
Chapter 3: Acoustics
back and forth in the same spot…
1. Soundproo ng
Causing some frequencies to be ampli ed, 2. Bass Traps
and others to be cancelled-out.
3. Acoustic Panels
4. Re ection Filters
To avoid this problem, mount your acoustic
panels at on the walls, and be sure to 5. Monitor Isolation Pads
spread them evenly throughout the entire
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room.
1/2/3/4/5/6
And nally…
Step 4:
The commonly accepted theory when it
comes to di usion is…it’s far more e ective
in larger rooms compared to smaller
rooms.
the ceiling/the upper portion of the walls in rooms with high ceilings.
If your studio (like most home studios), is one that uses one room as both the
control room AND live room…
Up next…
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3/28/2021 Acoustic Treatment 101: The Ultimate Guide for Home Studios
The problem is…most of us don’t gure this out until after the money has already
been spent.
future
And while you can always save up more for the THE , there’s
6 STUDIO still the problem
CHAPTERS of
THE INSTRUMENTS
Chapter 3: Acoustics
what to do right now.
1. Soundproo ng
Typically, people try various DIY methods of acoustic treatment
2. Bass Traps including:
3. Acoustic Panels
1. Carpeting
4. Re ection Filters
2. Cup holders
3. Egg Crate Foam 5. Monitor Isolation Pads
1. Close-miking
In rooms with poor acoustics…
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acoustics on the recording.
To take this concept one step further, you can also try…
THE 6 STUDIO CHAPTERS THE INSTRUMENTS
Chapter 3: Acoustics
2. Using dynamic mics
1. Soundproo ng
You won’t get the sparkling highs of a condenser mic, but it will still sound much
better overall.
Up next…
3. Household Absorbers
While acoustic foam manufacturers would
prefer you believe that theirs is the only
material that works…
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3/28/2021 Acoustic Treatment 101: The Ultimate Guide for Home Studios
And since you already have plenty of that stu lying around your house, it won’t
cost a dime to simply store some of it in your studio.
1. You MUST use a heavy solid-core mattress, and NOT a light inner-spring
mattress.
2. The most sensitive side of the mic should face TOWARD the mattress, to shield
it from incoming re ections.
But you think mattress and blankets are a little bit too ghetto…
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3/28/2021 Acoustic Treatment 101: The Ultimate Guide for Home Studios
Rather than the absorbing re ections scatteredTHE 6 STUDIO CHAPTERS THE INSTRUMENTS
Chapter 3: Acoustics
about the room, re ection lters work by
absorbing them before they even enter the 1. Soundproo ng
room…
2. Bass Traps
3. Acoustic Panels
Using a semi-circle absorption panel
which mounts to your mic stand and wraps 4. Re ection Filters
neatly around the mic. 5. Monitor Isolation Pads
they still work decently.
there’s virtually no set up.
they’re about 1/10th the cost of a stand room package.
Even though they may not work as well as “proper acoustic treatment”…
And they’re a great temporary solution until you can a ord something better. To
see which ones I recommend, check out this post:
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3/28/2021 Acoustic Treatment 101: The Ultimate Guide for Home Studios
1. Soundproo ng
2. Bass Traps
3. Acoustic Panels
4. Re ection Filters
5. Monitor Isolation Pads
Careers Contact Disclaimers
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