2. misc-audio
  3. 167388-517

Need opinions on ceiling reflections

All,I have a soffit that is running length-wise on the LEFT side of the ceiling (picture in my system). The ceiling is 8' and the soffit part drops down about 1'. The speakers and sound panels are positioned with a precision of 1/8th of an inch and it sounds amazing - especially on the RIGHT side. The music appears to come from way back and way outside the RIGHT speaker and you can actually "look" that images of various instruments playing in those empty spaces. But I have a heard time "seeing" those images on the LEFT side speaker. I have a feeling that this issue happens because the reflection point on the left side ceiling is a foot lower than the one on the right side ceiling. I was planning of getting some acoustic foam and attach it to the ceiling using T-pins (since it is a textured ceiling and foam tapes will not work). I assumed that this will absorb the reflections and could work on restoring the proper timing/clarity on left side.

Could you guys weigh in and let me know your thoughts? Please feel free to let me know if I am off and the issue is completely different.
128x128milpai

Showing 5 responses by mijostyn

mijostyn's avatar
mijostyn
8,248 posts
 
All you have to do is treat the ceiling with foam acoustic tile in a symmetrical fashion. Very inexpensive. Go to thefoamfactory and check out prices. 
Another way to deal with the problem is get speakers that do not send sound up, horns and line source speakers. Speakers like Magnepans and ESL do not send sound up or down and require much less work with the room, just some deadening directly behind the speaker.
mijostyn's avatar
mijostyn
8,248 posts
 
hilde45, why would you avoid foam? It is inexpensive, you can order it with all kinds of profiles and depths. I use 4" acoustic foam tiles. It has a nice sparkle to it and you can alternate the direction of the grooves creating a nice pattern. It works as well or better than anything else I have tried. The only down side is that it is cheap and people think you have to spend a lot more money to get something that works. Anechoic chambers are made with acoustic foam. I have never seen audiophile acoustic anything used in an anechoic chamber. I can hear it coming, "that's not the same as treating a room." Heck, it sure is. You just would not use as much. Effective sound absorption is just that. You always have a choice as to how much you use. Another advantage for the OP is that it is very light so tacking it to the ceiling is easy. 
mijostyn's avatar
mijostyn
8,248 posts
 
Levinson, LevInson
mijostyn's avatar
mijostyn
8,248 posts
 
Fiberglass is a nuisance. It has to be covered correctly or glass fibers get into the air and some of us, like me, get itchy just looking at the stuff. Acoustic foam is every bit as effective down to 250 Hz  and eons easier to use and in the end cheaper. It is also easier to specify  for a certain situation in terms of thickness and profile. 
Now unless you are lucky and able to have a room in  your house that does not have parallel walls the single best way to deal with parallel walls floors and ceilings is to have speakers that do not send sound in their direction. Then if you are really clever you make your room without a rear wall and you don't have to worry about that either. You can leave your side walls and ceiling live for ambience and if you have speakers like mine or any other dipole just a little absorption behind the speaker using foam or fiberglass, if it does not make you itch completes the picture. 
mijostyn's avatar
mijostyn
8,248 posts
 
hilde45, I think that is pretty obvious. Who stuffed the pillow cases? I bet you made your wife do that also 😲  My wife would not risk breaking her fingernails. She even likes the look of the tiles (they are hidden behind the loudspeakers) 

It is why Howard Johnson's made 28 flavors.
More to discover