Ideal design for a new music room

As I understand it, the golden ratio applies only to rectangular rooms. It’s also quite problematic to apply. I’m hoping to avoid the problems the ratios try to solve by starting out with an asymmetrical room. 

Here are some considerations, entirely without input (so far) from acoustic professionals:

• the walls, floor and ceiling should be rigid so they will not vibrate and contribute to the sound. This is important for the low notes.
• The floor perimeter dimensions should not be a perfect rectangle with parallel opposite walls in order to prevent standing waves - cancellations of some frequencies and boosting of others. Would rounded space like a band shell be best?
• Would a stable 3D sound stage be more likely in a room that has a physical stage facing a room that widens into the listening area?
• Then there are the livelyness and brightness issues which will require carpeting of some of the surfaces, the floor to start. How about the ceiling or the back wall?

Thanks for your input,

Peter

Thanks Michael Green for the very interesting and creative work you do. You are the right person to improve the sound in an existing room that doesn't sound quite right. Maybe all rooms need fine tuning and there is no such thing as a perfectly sounding room. But I'd still like to get as close as we can from the start.

Tom6897: A room as round as the inside of a ball is very interesting but may be going too far for what I have in mind. Has anyone heard music reproduced in such a round room?

Folkfreak: Wouldn't a pair of speakers placed in a room something like I describe below have matching reflection points?

• 18' wall behind the speakers with a pair of side walls at 100º that are 24' long and a slightly curving wall facing the speakers. Height could be 10' at the speakers and 12' at the opposite end. 
  

Thanks for everyone's comments. I've had experience with 7 different listening rooms. I agree with many of the suggestions. Each room came with dimensions that I could not change. Each one sounded different. For sure room characteristics are big contributors to the sound you experience. So I wondered what characteristics an ideal room would have. So far there are excellent ideas but no one has come forward to say they've built a listening room (not a recording room) that is close to perfect in being able to create a satisfying sound stage. Even better, no one has suggested that an inexpensive system, say under $5,000, in a great room will deliver a better audio experience than systems costing multiples more in a poor room. Is it possible that fortunes are being spent on equipment that is fighting rooms with poor acoustics?

Hi,

Yes indeed, Mike Lavigne has the ultimate stereo listening room. A wonderful article by Matej Isak - Publisher, Editor-in-Chief, Founder & Owner of Mono & Stereo, has a detailed description of all the considerations that went into its design and construction here: https://www.monoandstereo.com/2018/04/the-audio-system-and-high-end.html.

Thanks very much for the reference.

Interesting. 

Can you give more details about the design of:

• a "mini split"; and
  
• an "acoustic soffit"
  

Thanks

Robert Harley's current TAS article is a wonderful report about his design and construction of a DIY stereo reproduction room. Thanks very much for sharing so much practical detail.

This discussion thread has been very helpful for anyone with the luxury of being in a position to design for the construction of a new room. Thanks to all.

One subject I still wonder about: ventilation. What is the best way to keep the air fresh and comfortable through four seasons and not compromise the acoustics?

What a great case report, Audioquest4life. The best part is reading how much fun you seem to have had designing the room and then the satisfaction of enjoying the result. Inspirational!

What is a source for your transparent screen? Is it similar to the screens used in IMAX theaters? 

Are the speakers you've built into your rock wall within conventional enclosures?

I plan to use 1 foot thick rammed earth walls with concrete ceiling and floor. The dimensions will be symmetrical but with angles more than 90°. This will provide a rigid acoustic space of about 10,000 cu. ft. that will no doubt require sound treatment to achieve a balance between unwanted and wanted effects. This discussion has persuaded me I will need professional help to fine tune the room. I like what Audioquest4life set as objectives and the result.