Studio Overhauled!

[jeremyspk]

Studio overhaul done!
(with reference to previous thread @ http://soft.com.sg/forum/gear-sound/177296-home-studio-mini-overhaul-need-advice.html )

I practically revamped my whole room - cheap-soundproofed the room, bought new equipment and furniture and treated the room!
Thanks for all the advice as I've used most of them!

As J (SOFT) requested, I'm gonna upload some pix.

Equipment obtained:
1. guitar (Taylor 410CE)
2. audio interface (apogee duet)
3. studio monitors (KRK RP5)
4. LCD monitor (LG W2486L 24", very white. But still prefer Apple's balanced colors)
5. Mic Rode NT1-A and KSM 44 (koped from friend, he not using liao)
6. POD XT Live (dsp for my guitar... ah..need an electric guitar.. no $$ liao)

Soundproofing:
1. Semi Room-In-A-Room with double gypsum sandwiched with Green Glue standard strength on all walls and ceiling, carpeted floor to increase NRC, double windows (thin, cheap) and double doors (1 solid, 1 non). And of course, weatherstripping on openings to increase the STC.

Sound-treatment:
1. Sofa bed =D
2. All self-made with rockwool 100kg/m2 and wooden frame (quite ex in SG)
- 2 x broadband acoustic panels 4' by 6' front and back
- 2 x 2' by 6' ceiling-wall CORNER trap
- 2 x acoustic panels 4' by 4' and 2 x 4' by 6' around the room to treat general room sound
- 4 x triangular corner traps (to be installed this thurs)

 

[kongwee]

Wow, I will never have this kind of comfort room.

 

[blueprintstudios]

very nice, too bad your room isn't any bigger enough to have leg room for whoever's sitting at the sofa while you're at the DAW.

 

[jeremyspk]

@Kongwee, the table and sofa bed are from ikea. not expensive but very comfy. I sleep on the sofa bed one. One main bulk of the work is throwing away stuffs I don't need.

@blueprintstudios, hey dude! Yea. It's SMALLLL this kind of studio is more for me as in individual to record my own stuffs like midi, vocal and mic-ed guitar. I had 2 friends who joined me, but it felt a bit crowded liao. me + another musician is just nice :/

 

[locoy242]

Woo NICE
What did you use to get the ceiling trap up there?

 

[AlvBobo]

Yea.. how do you put those deflectors on the walls and ceiling ah?

 

[jeremyspk]

@locoy242 & alvbobo,
hey, I bought wooden frames from canvas uncle who does paint canvas stuffs and he helped me to install wan :/
I can help you guys ask.

But i think he mentioned about two hooks then use cable-ty or wire. I think install top portion then swing the hanging to the wall.

 

[soft]

jeremyspk, very nice room. How do you find the room sound after all the acoustic treatment?

 

[locoy242]

Hmm... icic.
Think i kinda get how to do it, but it won't be easy............ HAHA
How much r the wooden frames?

 

[jeremyspk]

@J, hey, 10q 10q! The room is now dry and tight, more than i expect it to be (which is good)! In front of my monitor, absolutely no slapback, bass sounds 20-30% tighter, other bands sound is very good clarity! My monitors not pristine, so yea that's my personal perspective hearing with a krk rp5.

But if I move near to the corner of the air-con unit, there's a slight slap back. But I don't track nor mix there, so it's fine for me. It's something which I overlooked.

Btw, I added 4 wall-wall-ceiling triangular small corner trap. No perceived improvement... But still I think it's necessary.

@locoy242, i bought all for $480. It's solid joint wood (two L join to form frame) so inside hollow, lighter to hang. But very strong. Just for a gauge, a 4' by 6' cost like $60? Smaller sizes cost cheaper.

Rockwool I stupidly bought from noisestop, thinking it was fibreglass (didn't ask at the first place), at about $10. I built the 4' by 6' with rockwool in front of panel then fabric-ed it. So inside the space within the frame got more bass trapping capability (that's what I read la). Others it's just built within the frame. It's alot of work and itchi-ness. Still, it's worth it! And yea, fabric about $40? bought from one of the Clementi ave 3 shops.

 

[jeremyspk]

Yea.. how do you put those deflectors on the walls and ceiling ah?

Hey AlvBobo, it's not a deflector. It's a wooden framed absorption panel with rockwool inside. Ethan (one of the youtube acoustic specialists) said that it's more cost-effective to use absorption than deflection, especially with a small room or living room. I know of a guy who does acoustics in SG, ittssss nOOOOTTT cheAPPPP to build/place deflectors.
I haven't tried deflectors, but yea, absorption works.

But really, it's how dry you want your workplace to be. For me, I need it BONE DRY, especially with my stupiak-ly small hdb room.

 

[kongwee]

The wall on the back of the speaker treated? Normally I will pull out the speaker at least one foot away. This will create behind the speaker soundstage. Anyway, this is just personal preference.

 

[logicdroid]

Nice one J. Nice composing environment.

Best.

 

[jeremyspk]

@Kongwee,
I read somewhere the back of the speakers don't really have much reflections, so I didn't specifically treat them. But as you can see, the wall is kinda generally bb-trapped. Oh I just added the corner triangular traps!
I'm not sure if this small is that effective, but yeaa....

@logicdroid,
10q.

 

[kongwee]

Since the is a small room the back wall reflection still contribution to the overall sound. You really did a lot of thing, and you can't move the speaker. In meantime, you take your time to listen to your and tweet little by little. Normally, I will attack the first reflection of the speaker. Your windows(with curtain down) and door area are not really much too treat. You can test the tweeter first reflective by temporary putting cloth or blanket on the blank wall above the sofa. Also you could spike or cone your speaker, that other tweet.

 

[jeremyspk]

@Kongwee,
The windows' a b*tch. But I really doubt it's much of a problem due to the way I positioned my speakers.
My back wall is treated too, symmetrical to the front wall (corner traps + bb trap).
Actually I'm not really good at this, but the idea is keep the reverb at minimal, reduce the comb filtering and try to eliminate standing waves at the corners. :/ Slapback sounds really really nasty.
Anyway, thanks for the advice although I am quite happy with the room sound at the moment. Maybe when my ears upgrade, and I start working liao, the room will also upgrade?

 

[antishred]

hi Jeremy,
you should invest in an electronic drumkit to complete your setup. i cant describe the joy of playing and recording drums.
i envy studio, i bet i can spend a day listening music coz of the nice room acoustics

 

[Kimmi]

hey jeremy!

really admire your diy acoustic treatment.Its pretty cool and tighttt!!looks cool!!

Just like to ask, when u meant stupidly bought from noisestop,was it a rash decision to buy or becos noisestop ripped you off?

 

[AlvBobo]

Yea, similar to Kimmi's question.

I want to treat my room too, but I doubt I have the time to do up my own bb & corner traps.

Any idea where's the cheapest place to buy foam traps? Or Any other materials that help?

Thanks a lot!

 

[jeremyspk]

@antishred,
10q Yea, super shiok compared to my old room.
Very nice to play starcraft 2 and watch movies too.
And yea, I would love to have a drumset in it, but that would mean removing my shelves and wardrobe :|
Hmm just curious, why electronics drum set and not an acoustic one?

@Kimmi,
10q
"Just like to ask, when u meant stupidly bought from noisestop,was it a rash decision to buy or becos noisestop ripped you off?"

I wanted to build frameless panels using owen corning's kind of fibreglass block. On noisestop site (@ that time) displayed yellow fibreglass blocks, which i tot is rigid enough for frameless construction. My intention is to wrap cloth and use a strong double sided adhesive tapes to hang them up (coz imagined they would be light enough). When the goods came, it was rockwool. I was like, "wth? rockwool $10 per piece? I could have bought it for less than $6 from my contractor." But of course, i didn't say any of that to them, and considered my own fault for not verifying before purchasing. So i paid the money, and attempted frameless. Needless to say, it failed. So thus the wooden frames construction. (+$480) :/

@AlvBobo,
The reason for diy is 99.99999% due to cost. 1 BB panel professional may be my entire DIY cost. No kidding!
Hmm... not very sure, but while I was doing my research, I got to know that Team 108 carries Wave Panels. I think they are the diffuser-absorbers type.
Should be better than my DIYs coz they got diffusing function, which supposedly "makes a room sound bigger".
Take this from a me who has no experience with diffusion.
But if cost isn't a problem, then check it out. Team 108 people should be ard here, pm me and I can pass you
the salesman email who sold me apogee, great experience with him.