advice on 1" 703 rigid fiberglass for Apartment acoustics??

[fish22]

Hey guys, just moved into a new apartment. The living room room is very "live". its all concrete and linoleum floor and square. I hope to deaden it with a large rug and was thinking of getting some 24"x48"x1" 703 panels. as well as my 2 large couches.

im not trying to sound proof or make it a recording space, but rather simply improve the acoustics of the room. the way it is now drives me nuts because its awkward to have a normal conversation because its so echo-y and way way too "live". I just want to be able to watch TV and have a normal conversation.

I see lots of people using 2" but i was wondering if 1" will be okay? because of looks (lower profile) and cost (nearly half the price of 2").

[felken]

http://www.csgnetwork.com/acousticreverbdelaycalc.html

I used this and played around changing thickness of 703 and qty of panels and found that the 4" did not change the results much compared to the 2" for my application

I did not try using 1" thick.

You could plug the dimensions and materials in and then change the thicknesses and see how much difference it makes

[Scott Whigham]

The reason most people go with 2" is that it works better than 1" but not as well as 4", however it is not obstrusive/annoying/ugly like the 4". It also isn't much more expensive than 1".

If I had a super reverb-y room, I'd worry that 1" wouldn't make that much of a difference. Think of how this panel works: the sound wave enters, gets slowed down (absorbed), reaches the wall (or back of the sound panel if yours is closed back), and then bounces back into the sound material. With 1" thickness, you will be getting more of the sound wave coming back b/c it reaches the back faster, and then only has to go back through 1" of 703 before it gets back into the room and ####s up the sound. With 2", you obviously have that doubled.

Don't underestimate the effect that the rug + couches + drapes will have though.

[fish22]

Originally Posted by Scott Whigham

Don't underestimate the effect that the rug + couches + drapes will have though.

yeah, i know that carpet and couches are going to help in a big way, but we will see. im moving that stuff in tonight.
Thanks for the good info on 2"vs 1".

[chrisgraff]

1" 703 will work fine for knocking down reflections.

[vashuba]

i used mineral wool, cheaper. bought foam for some of the bass traps, cuz too lazy to make a bunch

[swampthing]

Mineral wool here too. As I understand...1" captures higher frequency..the thicker you go the lower in the frequency range it captures - and that info came from a sound designer (FWIW). That said, I think 1" panels will be fine for your purpose.

Mineral wool isn't quite as rigid. I framed mine out and it works great. If you just want to rap it and forget it then the 703 is totally the way to go.

[stvnscott]

Sound relections in the midrange can be effectively absorbed with 1" 703. Thicker materials absorb more sound and work better for bass management (<500Hz) than thinner materials, but it doesn't sound like that's what you are needing. I've used the house brand from this company several times in the past and saved a lot of money.

http://www.atsacoustics.com/page--Se...erial--ac.html

[fr8_trane]

I think 1" is only going to absorb upper mids and treble frequencies and you can do that for much cheaper using Foam and or moving blankets. I would use foam panels strategically placed to breakup and absorb obvious high frequency reflections. Then you can use the more expensive 2" (or more) roxul or 703/705 panels for (upper) bass trapping in the corners, behind the monitors and above the mix position.

Here are some of the best sites I've found for good acoustic panels on the cheap.

http://www.atsacoustics.com/cat--ATS...nels--100.html
http://www.atsacoustics.com/cat--DIY...ials--102.html
premade and DIY panels. Check out the roxul its alot cheaper than the OC and has similar ratings. Its also more fire resistant and easier to handle (less dangerous for your lungs and skin than fiberglass)

http://www.readyacoustics.com/index....&cPath=26_3_21
http://www.readyacoustics.com/index....&cPath=26_11_2
Materials for DIY panels. Check out the ready bags in particular.

[Scott Whigham]

I learned a good deal in this thread - love it

One thing, OP, is that wherever you buy your panels/OC703/whatever from, ask their advice on whether to use a closed-back or open-back frame. I went through acoustimac.com to get my DIY kits and they come open-back. I then needed "just one more" and ordered a pre-made frame/kit but it came closed-back. It never occurred to me (a) that it mattered, or (b) to ask. I then spoke with them and they schooled me on the differences and why it matters. I have a bad memory though and don't want to mistakenly lead you down the wrong path or else I would tell you what I remember him saying lol.

Best to ask - and if they don't ask you about the wall material that you will be hanging it on, hang up and call someone else.

[EastCoastRocker]

This thought just crossed my mind...

Have any of you guys with symmetrical rooms ever tried mounting batts of different densities to break up the standing waves? Think about it.
you'd be filtering the reflections at different amplitude and frequencies, (and times, if you make the back wall plane asymmetric by letting the thicker panels jut out the extra inch or two)
so it should have a diffusing effect. Just a thought... Probably a "been there done that" idea because it seems so logical.

[stvnscott]

^ The front and rear walls in my home studio have alternating 2" and 4" panels to do just that. According to the Room EQ Wizard software, it works well. It sounds good to me too, although sometimes I think the room is a little too dead.

I also have superchunks in 3 corners to break them up. The 4th corner is a door, so I can't put one there.

[EastCoastRocker]

Originally Posted by boogers

^ The front and rear walls in my home studio have alternating 2" and 4" panels to do just that. According to the Room EQ Wizard software, it works well. It sounds good to me too, although sometimes I think the room is a little too dead.

I also have superchunks in 3 corners to break them up. The 4th corner is a door, so I can't put one there.

Too dead is not good either ! Tell me about EQ Wizard software.
Is it for acoustic design or is it an RTA? I'm getting ready to rebuild my home studio,
and I need to to start getting serious about planninng it.

[Scott Whigham]

Although I haven't tried it, I've read lots about it:

http://www.gearslutz.com/board/studi...er-v2-1-a.html

http://www.hometheatershack.com/roomeq/

[Dickie Fredericks]

Learned everything I know about controlling a room from Ethan Winer. 1" will knock down some reflections as has been mentioned but 3" in the corners is what you need!

I use 2' x 8' panels I made using Owens Corning 800 and its 3" thick. Put it in a 1" x 4" frame and covered with Muslin from WalMart.

Excellent!