Room Treatment


We have all talked about the best amp, best pre-amp and the best audio components to buy at a certain price. I would like to find out what material is the best room treatment available. Is is a hard material like a styrofoam product or an absobtive product like rubber or sponge? What has worked for you and why? Do you use fabric to hide these treatments or have you found something better? Room treatment has very little discussion. I would like to find a DIY project that can improve the overall dynamics of a very difficult room. Let me hear your comments.....
hiflyer
I have made rectangular and triangular panels out of 2'x4' fiberglass ceiling tiles and covered them with muslin fabric and a hot glue gun.I also made tube traps out of 4' metal fencing like the type you would put around a garden.I filled the inside with fiberglass insulation,but didn't pack it tight.I left a hole down the middle and then also covered it with the muslin fabric.Not only are these effective but they are also cheap.Good Luck.
After pricing commercial products such as Sonex, I decided to make my own acoustic panels. I have four panels on the wall behind the sweet spot, and they work very well. I used convoluted grey packing foam glued to hardboard panels covered in acoustically transparent white fabric. I got the foam from work, and the perforated fabric from a local store. I can neither measure nor compare my panels' performance with products like Sonex, but for me they work fine. My only regret is that I didn't make more!
Herman,you can buy them at any Home Depot,Lowe's etc.Just remember to put bare fiberglass side out towards the room and cover them with some fabric so you don't have fiberglass particles floating in the air.Good Luck!!!
I bought 24" wide insulation at Home Depot, the type covered in a translucent pick plastic with a white fiberglass fill, some 1/4" luan, and some reasonably transparent fabric that matched my room. I cut the 4'x8' luan into 2'x4' sheets, stapled the insulation to the luan at the edges, and covered with fabric. These panels are both reflective and absorbtive. I've placed them at key reflection points and behind my listening position. The result has been quite dramatic, although I am still curious what a well done commercial solution would sound like.
this is not a simple question with simple answers. absorption alone is not as pleasing as a combination of absorption, deflection and diffusion. the best sound room i've ever experienced is at goodwin's highend in waltham, mass. you can view it on thier website: goodwinshighend.com. the site also has some useful information for diy'ers (tho its not intended for this purpose). i'd suggest you take a peak. BTW, i have absolutely no connection to goodwins. i simply visted the store on a trip to boston/providence last month, was treated exceedingly graciously, and learned some important lessons from mr. goodwin and his staff.
All of us have experienced corner loadind it's one of the area's that cause the most amount of pain. Try a solid brass pot on a brass chain with a nice bushy hanging plant, remember it has to be a brass pot to realy impress. Try it! See you after the holliday God Bless. doc