I got four GIK Tri-Traps with the optional Scatter Plates for the front corners and four Screen Panels. They are beautiful to look at in burgundy. More importantly they changed the sound of the whole system for the better. I would never have believed it but it is like getting completely new loudspeakers.
A big advantage of the Screen Panels is they are not fixed to the wall and can be placed where needed. If you change your system location you do not have to patch and paint the wall where the acoustic treatments were originally mounted. They also free up the wall for art work, etc. Two are placed at the first reflection points and two are on the back wall to either side of the listening chair. The Tri-Trap pairs are stacked in each front corner behind the loudspeakers.
I started out with a sonically compromised room: Highly reflective with slap echo, comb filtering and weak bass. You name it I had it. Congestion in the high frequencies, especially with massed voices and strings, was the most annoying and virtually unlistenable. Too many hard reflective surfaces in a confined space was further exaggerated by the wide dispersion of the ribbon tweeters. I tried so many placement options I ran out of ideas.
Then I installed the GIK Acoustics Treatments and they nailed it. The bass is deeper and layered, solid and tuneful. You can actually differentiate the frequency spectrum in the bass. It is very full but never boomy. The midrange and highs became clearer and cleaner, especially without the added bass muddiness that I previously had. The sizzle or edginess in the high frequencies is gone. There is no more congestion. Previously it was as if too many instruments were trying to squeeze through a narrow window all at the same time. The highs are much clearer and fuller, less constrained, cleaner.
The Screen Panels are six inches thick when fully closed, three inches thick and almost three feet wide when open. They function for both high and low frequency absorption, depending on how you set them up. They are very versatile since you can adapt them both to the room decor and your acoustic needs.
This has taken me months of trial and error and was very frustrating at times. The effort was well worth it. I would never have imagined such improvement by adding a few sound treatment devices. You must neutralize the contributions of the room as much as possible.
I did much research with products of at least four other manufacturers before I decided on GIK. Their prices are moderate and quite reasonable compared to ASC Tube Traps or Real Traps. GIK's help through e-mails and phone calls was exemplary. I could expect better customer service. GIK wants you to be happy with their products and will do what it takes to make it so.
I am not affiliated with GIK Acoustics in any way. I am just a satisfied audiophile.
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