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Cork floors?

Does anyone have a cork tile floor in their music room? I displace my wife from her art studio (believe me she negotiated and wound up getting the better deal). The room currently has really beat up, paint stained, bamboo floors (the floors have been refinished once already). Because of a wall of windows, skylights and a pitched ceiling, the room is very bright and sound reflective. It's a 320 sq. ft. rectangular room (the racks will go along the 16ft wall). I'm planning to replace the floor before moving in but I'm not sure whether a cork floor would dampen the sound too much.

The windows are huge, so forget curtains. I can use standing acoustic panels for them. Another idea would be to install hardwood floors, throw down a rug and if the back wall produces too much reflective sound I can install a some sound absorbing material...like cork(?). I'm leaning towards a cork floor (and it's a lot cheaper than wood), though I could easily be talked out of it.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
Dave
dpe
9 responses Add your response
tostadosunidos's avatar
tostadosunidos
1,197 posts
 
How much absorption do you want?  According to this, cork will absorb as much as carpet:

http://greenhomeguide.com/askapro/question/is-cork-as-good-for-sound-absorption-as-wall-to-wall-carp...

Personally, I like it a bit lively.
dpe OP
60 posts
 
Thanks tostadosunidos, interesting article. For me wall to wall carpet is not a consideration, I have dogs. When I clap my hands the room resonates. Too live a room is fatiguing and the music is difficult for me to discern. Possibly this has no meaning to you, but it's like the Stanford band playing at Maples Pavilion. Yes I blame some of my hearing loss on them, well there was all those concerts in the 70's as well. :-)
jafreeman's avatar
jafreeman
689 posts
 
dpe, I would keep a wood floor and put the cork, or something like it, on the walls.  Try a cheap rug in the center of the floor.  Not sure cork would stand up to dogs--or urine.  

mesch
3,506 posts
 
Purchase  a inexpensive rug and put carpet pad underneath. Use the standing acoustic panels at windows, make your own acoustic panels for behind speakers, and behind your listening position. use only upholstered furniture.  Can a acoustic panel be placed at the reflection point on the ceiling? How about in the corners of the room?

dpe OP
60 posts
 
Thanks all.

I forgot about this article:
http://www.enjoythemusic.com/canada_hifi/08_2013/improving_room_acoustics.htm

Malcolm Gomes addresses the "flutter echo" which is exactly what I was referring to. I think the answer is standing diffuser panels and some tube traps in the corners of the room. I'm still going to replace the ugly floor. I've been reading about filament or cork underlayment for a floating wood floor. Interesting...
agear
1,362 posts
 
I used cork in my basement sound room simply because it was an aesthetic choice that worked in our mid-century modern home.  It is beautiful, retains heat, and is green.  It is quasi-absorbtive but once that boat of polyurethane goes down, it is somewhat reflective and I still use a wool shag rug.  
dekay's avatar
dekay
5,595 posts
 
Cork fades with exposure to direct sunlight.
agear
1,362 posts
 
They used cork flooring in the library of congress.  It is durable and beautiful IMO and beats some crappy carpeting.  One of the keys is maintenance and periodic polyurethane coating.  I got mine through Icork....
schubert
7,386 posts
 
There is a guy in my Condo development who has the back wall in his unit
 entirely covered with 1" cork panels . He uses Klipsch's and listens to rock
 quite loud so I can't really judge the sound but the look is quite nice .
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