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Room treatment in phases...where to start

I am going to try and treat my small listening room. I want to do this in phases so I get a clear idea what each addition does to the sound. Given my room size and layout, I will getting bass traps and panels for the front corners and walls. Between the corner bass traps or acoustic panels behind the speakers, which one would give me the biggest impact?

Here are the details of my room and setup:
Dimensions:9x10x9
1/3 height wall behind listening position opening up to my large family room
Speakers positioned 3ft from front wall and 2ft from side walls
Listening position is 6ft from speakers
tboooe

Showing 2 responses by larryi

larryi
4,367 posts
 
I think your systematic approach should work well. I would start very modestly--"treatment" that is not really treatment. Some kind of floor covering for the hardwood is a must, whether it is carpeting or a fairly large area rug. For treatment of the front and side walls, try tapestries first before going for acoustic panels (most panels really do not look very good). Just to see how tapestries might work you can temporarily hang blankets up.

Since you will be doing most of your listening in the near field, the direct sound of your speakers will dominate the sound and heavy treatment may not be necessary. With the back open to a large space, bass boom and slap echo may not be that big an issue.

In short, go slow on real treatment. Sometimes all it takes is adding more upholstered furniture in the room and things like shelves on the wall to provide the right amount of absorption and diffusion.
larryi
4,367 posts
 
My dealer believes that the center of the front wall should be a hard reflective surface. This is consistent with a listening room a friend of my has which was designed by the acoustic firm Rives. The front of the room has a very large, curved, convex reflector made of wood. The corners of the room have bass traps built into them.

Another friend who does home theater design uses small absorption/diffusion panels on the side walls at the first reflection point in some setups. The panels are covered with fabric that matches the room decor and look decent. You could try some absorption on the side wall.

I think most rooms really do not need that much treatment to sound good. Careful speaker placement and use of room furnishings to provide diffusion (e.g., books and records on shelves) work fairly well. The biggest problem is usually incorrect placement of the speakers and the listener because of the requirements of room decor or practical considerations. One common problem is a big coffee table between the listener and the speakers. If you can avoid these kinds of problems, you are more than halfway home.
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