DIY Bass Traps

[gregwar]

k so I posted a pic of my DIY traps a few days ago and have since completed 8 of them and hung them around my lil studio. its something i've always meant to do.

the biggest hurdle for me was just really thinking through the whole process until I figured out a simple, cheap and effective way to do it. if that's where you're at with bass traps then hopefully chronicling the process will help.

[gregwar]

why make acoustic panels or bass traps?

one of the big reasons I haven't been recording vocals is I hate the way they sound in my little space. my room is like an L shape and I record where the walls are only about 6-7 feet apart. I get a lot of reflections and especially when I compress it really doesn't sound nice. so basically I have a $3000 mic in a $50 room.

what I've noticed after installing the first 8 in my little mic area its way deader and first reflections are much lower. the signal is clearer and, at least subjectively, much more pleasant. the bass traps also give the space a cozy vibe. I think for actual mixing i'll need more treatment, especially bass traps for the corners but for now my vocals are better.

I'll post my room measurements from January and do before, midway, and after. the problem with the room measurements though is that they seem totally anarchical and even slight mic movements caused huge fluctuations in frequency response. so they're handy and good to do but I think the subjective experience is also crucial.

[gregwar]

round 1 material costs

2x 8'x4' sheets of 1/8" hard board (cut into 8 2'x4' pieces): $10 x2 = $20
1 package of 24" steel-stud safe & sound rock wool, 8 batts: $46
1 roll of red micro suede fabric from kijiji: $20
2x rolls of indoor 2 sided carpet tape: $12.50 x2 = $25
1 roll red thread & sewing needles: $4

(I already had an electric staple gun, t50 staples, wire roll, and wall mounts)

materials total: $115

[ElectricPuppy]

Nice info, man, thanks for that!

[christianrock]

I'll be following with interest...

Also, what nice mic did you say you had? I remember when you were still thinking about buying one.

[ClavAnother]

k so I posted a pic of my DIY traps a few days ago

Can you post them here?

Do you have 'in process' pics too?

[gregwar]

instructions for a basic 2' x 4' panel

at the hardware store we cut the 8' x 4' hard board into 2' x 4' pieces:



once the materials where home I aired out the rock wool in the back yard for a few hours:



my fabric roll was 5' tall so I measured 6" in on each end. wide I measured 38" total with 7" in on each end. I used the 2' x 4' board to measure the exact size and draw the lines to make sure I was on point. measure twice cut once!



kept the material face down, put a rock wool batt on it then put a 2' x 4' hard board panel on top:



put 2 sided indoor carpet tape on the top and bottom first (annoying to peel!) pulled the material over and then did the same to the sides. the tape was one width in from the edges and went all the way top to bottom. one roll of tape only did 4 bats and the idea of using so much was it would help seal them and contain the dust:



gratuitous V-Synth GT photo:



they were roughly in the right shape. I then pulled the fabric a little tighter and tried to clean up the corners shifting the material and cleaning up excess with scissors. I stapled everything in place and made hangers from spare wire I had around the house:



from there I sewed up the corners to keep the dust inside. the first pass through would be triple knotted then I'd sew across and triple knot the end. for anyone considering this step buy extra thread and use lots of excess so you always have enough length to work with:



I measured out the room in advance and roughly had an idea where they were going to hang. I wanted to place them to cover my speakers (45" on centre from the ground) and my mouth/mic (64.5" from the ground). so I put the wall anchors 66.5" up and that seemed to cover both:

[gregwar]

thanks guys

@Clavwar
OP delivers !!

@CRWar
I have a peluso 2247le with a rare black steel tube made in Germany between 1940-60ish.

I started with a rode nt1-a condernser mic and that was harsh on the high end. then I got a Neumann tlm-103 from kijiji. it was like HD sound and I still think a great mic for the cost but very bright and modern sounding.

sold that and got the peluso and I really like the darker, more vintage tube tone. I still have the rode and might get Michael Joly rode modified at oktava mod. attached to the v-synth is an SM58 for the vocoder.

[Purity_Control]

Nice work, looking really good.

Can you still get out the back door?

[christianrock]

thanks guys

@Clavwar
OP delivers !!

@CRWar
I have a peluso 2247le with a rare black steel tube made in Germany between 1940-60ish.

I started with a rode nt1-a condernser mic and that was harsh on the high end. then I got a Neumann tlm-103 from kijiji. it was like HD sound and I still think a great mic for the cost but very bright and modern sounding.

sold that and got the peluso and I really like the darker, more vintage tube tone. I still have the rode and might get Michael Joly rode modified at oktava mod. attached to the v-synth is an SM58 for the vocoder.

Cool. It looks *exactly* like my 2 Carvin CTM150s, the case might be the same manufacturer. But internally, quite different. That steel tube is something I hadn't seen before And the main board is also different. But for my purposes, I love mine. Can't argue with the price I paid for them Then with an old Phillips tube, they sound quite sweet and bright, yet the top end is soft. I use that tube in everything I have, given the chance...

Considering mine sounds pretty good, yours must be a monster!

And thanks for documenting all the steps with pics. Much appreciated

[ElectricPuppy]

Niiice! Indeed, all posts are improved with pics. I love seeing folks make stuff.

[gregwar]

@PCwar

ya the two panels on the door can be moved on/off their hooks as needed

I don't smoke anymore so I tend to use that door less now lol

[Plink Floyd]

KOOL! I'll have questions later, but lately I've been busier than Trump's fact checking team.

[Purity_Control]

But are they load bearing?

[christianrock]

But are they load bearing?

Also, do cats love it?

And....

DUDE IS THAT A JUNO????????????????????QUESTIONMARK?????????

[gregwar]

o hai

welcome to my virtual studio



more rectangles makes it sound better i think?

how does it sound over there?

are these lines load bearing

[ElectricPuppy]

Neat! SketchUp?

Sounds really quiet from over here, brah. Needs more rectangles, tho

[gregwar]

the speakers are not lighting up in ketchup?



i haz confused

[christianrock]

You're putting a lot of thought into this

But the space looks kinda small. I speak as an American citizen with a typical American house though (not quite a McMansion but lots of space)

[gregwar]

ya our house is kinda small with 3bdrms & 1 bath (no basement) so I got the smallest bedroom.

it's the first time I've ever had a studio that's in its own room and not also my sleeping quarters or living room so I can't complain !

I think the room is bad acoustically because of its size so that's why sound treatment is so important in this case. ymmv