rroobbcc
Active Member
I have been busy constructing acoustic treatments for my home theater/listening room, which also got me thinking about the problems that my home office presents to accurate music reproduction. There are really two issues with this room. The lesser of the two has been the 13' x 13' dimensions. It is certainly less than ideal to have walls of equal length, but I have a large heavy bookshelf with glass doors on one wall, which effectively makes the dimensions 13' x 11.5' for most of that wall's surface area.
The primary problem this room suffers is that it is a bit too "alive". The speakers stand in front of the mentioned bookshelf, and my listening position is about 1.5'-2' in front of the bare opposite wall. The result was that the full spectrum of sound waves were reflected off the back wall directly back to my listening position, then back to the glass doors of the bookshelf, and back again, etc... These reflections conspired to confuse the balance and directionality of the music, resulting in a blurred and inaccurate soundstage.
To address this problem my strategy was to use absorbtion to reduce reflections from the rear. I constructed four 4' x 2' acoustically absorbtive panels. Absorbtion is achieved using 2" rigid fiberglass boards from ATS Acoustics, very similar to Owens Corning 703 but a little more absorbtive in the mid-bass. The fiberglass boards are within a wood frame contructed from 1/2" plywood. This frame is actually 2.75" deep, creating an air gap behind each panel which I understand to further aid absorbtion of lower frequencies. Finally each panel is covered with black burlap fabric. I have a few ideas to beautify the panels with a nicely finished outer frame, but they will work as-is for now.
I am happy to report that the effect of these panels on the room's acoustics is nothing short of incredible! I am well aware of the value of proper acoustic room treatments, but I honestly wasn't expecting the results to be this obvious. Even before listening to the first song, it was obvious that slap echo was greatly reduced. As I listened to the first song it was clear that the soundstage was now far more focused. The position of each musician was more easily localized and stable. As I listened to additional tracks I noticed more detail within the musical nuances that were previously being washed over by the reflections of louder tones.
The addition of these absorbtive panels did necessitate two adjustments be made to the system. First I found that I needed to reduce the output of my subwoofer, and quite a bit more than I would have expected. I think this shows just how effectively the panels were removing high and midrange energy from the room. I also very slightly increased the output level of the EMIT tweeters in my Modulus speakers. These changes provided a good tonal balance from top to bottom.
The supplies to build these four panels cost less than $100, but the result was worth so much more as my home office system will now provide me even more enjoyment than it already has. If any of you find yourself less than satisfied with the sound of your current gear, I encourage you to consider how you can improve the acoustic environment within your listening room. You may in fact find that it is the upgrade that delivers the most bang for the buck.
The primary problem this room suffers is that it is a bit too "alive". The speakers stand in front of the mentioned bookshelf, and my listening position is about 1.5'-2' in front of the bare opposite wall. The result was that the full spectrum of sound waves were reflected off the back wall directly back to my listening position, then back to the glass doors of the bookshelf, and back again, etc... These reflections conspired to confuse the balance and directionality of the music, resulting in a blurred and inaccurate soundstage.
To address this problem my strategy was to use absorbtion to reduce reflections from the rear. I constructed four 4' x 2' acoustically absorbtive panels. Absorbtion is achieved using 2" rigid fiberglass boards from ATS Acoustics, very similar to Owens Corning 703 but a little more absorbtive in the mid-bass. The fiberglass boards are within a wood frame contructed from 1/2" plywood. This frame is actually 2.75" deep, creating an air gap behind each panel which I understand to further aid absorbtion of lower frequencies. Finally each panel is covered with black burlap fabric. I have a few ideas to beautify the panels with a nicely finished outer frame, but they will work as-is for now.
I am happy to report that the effect of these panels on the room's acoustics is nothing short of incredible! I am well aware of the value of proper acoustic room treatments, but I honestly wasn't expecting the results to be this obvious. Even before listening to the first song, it was obvious that slap echo was greatly reduced. As I listened to the first song it was clear that the soundstage was now far more focused. The position of each musician was more easily localized and stable. As I listened to additional tracks I noticed more detail within the musical nuances that were previously being washed over by the reflections of louder tones.
The addition of these absorbtive panels did necessitate two adjustments be made to the system. First I found that I needed to reduce the output of my subwoofer, and quite a bit more than I would have expected. I think this shows just how effectively the panels were removing high and midrange energy from the room. I also very slightly increased the output level of the EMIT tweeters in my Modulus speakers. These changes provided a good tonal balance from top to bottom.
The supplies to build these four panels cost less than $100, but the result was worth so much more as my home office system will now provide me even more enjoyment than it already has. If any of you find yourself less than satisfied with the sound of your current gear, I encourage you to consider how you can improve the acoustic environment within your listening room. You may in fact find that it is the upgrade that delivers the most bang for the buck.
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