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Thinking about acoustic foam for back wall..

compaddict

compaddict

AK Member
My room has a bunch of echo and I think that treating the back wall would look good and solve most of my problem.
Thinking about 150 square feet of this or something like it.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/48sf-SoundT...-2-x-12-x-24-Studio-Sound-Proof-/390680827986
Or:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/48sf-2-x-12...-24-Panels-Studio-Soundproofing-/281504426153
My mains are Pi7 Cornerhorns so my thought is deaden the rear wall first and then if needed do the ceilings.
I am open to other products if better, but I do like the larger panels and the look of the stuff I picked on Ebay.
TIA,
Vince
 

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Look into either some DIY bass traps, or some commercial ones. GIK Acoustics, or Real Traps. Both quality companies. There are several examples of how to build your own bass trap on YouTube, for not a lot of money, and you can customize the look a lot, and will work better than most foam products.
 
I'm not a fan of acoustic foam for early reflection absorption, but I did have a flutter echo going on between a 25 sqft area of floor and ceiling that several (nine, I think) 12x12x4 pieces of wedge foam located on the ceiling took care of. I wouldn't bother with anything less than the thickest foam I could get if I were you. The 2" stuff you're looking at will probably take care of the slap echo, but something thicker would likely yield additional benefits beyond that.
 
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Dont wast your money on the foam. It does little acoustically and breaks down over time and looks like crap.
 
Any particular reason why you're not considering implementing a proper treatment scenario? Not only will it kill your slap echo, it is highly likely it will result in a significant improvement in the performance of your rig.
 
I'm having the same dude (John Nolte) that made my subs do my room. Something about diffusers and Skyline diffusers...
The dude is brilliant.
 
I am admittedly NOT an expert in this .. I am at least an engineer with rudimentary analytical and logical skills - although you could find dissenting opinions

WRT that ebay link, I am not sure you really get both a diffractive AND absorptive effect from thin textured foam. It sorta seems like worst of both worlds - not thick enough foam for good absorption, and too non-reflective for good diffraction. Seems all the diffusers I have seen are hard reflective materials with a specific rational dimensional design. And absorptive panels starting at about 4 inches thick.
 
^^^

In spite of your admitted lack of expertise regarding the topic at hand I'll have to say you're pretty much dead on with your assessment. Some of the foam products can offer reasonable absorption if of adequate thickness and structure (i.e, not all foam is the same....and that goes for foam that claims to be specifically for acoustics, as well), but the greater majority of acoustic foam products out there will not demonstrate the absorptive performance of something like compressed fiberglass or rockwool and certainly won't offer the sort of broadband absorption afforded by designs that use those materials as its absorptive medium.. Most foam marketed and sold as acoustic foam simply doesn't have the gas flow resistance that is the defining characteristic of a material that demonstrates highly effective acoustical absorption. And as far as using foam for diffusion...some diffusion devices (QRD designs) actually demonstrate absorptive properties as a byproduct of their diffusion characteristics, but no surface that is acoustically absorptive in the mid bass to high frequency regions can be diffuse as it has to be reflective (hard) to be diffuse in this spectral range.

If a room is highly, or even somewhat, reflective and you mount up a bunch of foam panels you will indeed hear a difference in the acoustic response of the room...and many times it will be a positive difference as the foam will absorb high frequency energy and the removal of this content from the in room reflections will certainly make the reproduction seem less shrill, fatiguing, strident, etc. But if you haven't heard the improvements afforded by broadband absorption you may never know what you're missing and think that foam is all you'll ever need. I see it stated as such quite frequently, actually.

And though 4" of proper absorption media (we'll use OC703 as an example) can offer excellent broadband performance, 2" of the same media spaced away from the wall can offer the same levels of absorption as 4" mounted on wall. Even mounted on the wall 2" compressed fiberglass or 3" rock wool can offer impressive broadband performance.
 
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compaddict said:
I'm having the same dude (John Nolte) that made my subs do my room. Something about diffusers and Skyline diffusers...
The dude is brilliant.
Click to expand...

Hopefully he's of sufficient brilliance he knows to not put diffusion at the early/first reflection locations (except behind dipoles). That job is for absorption. :thmbsp:

But once you've treated those locations with absorption, go hog wild with diffusion everywhere else. :yes:
 
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Yep.
That type of foam can be a piece of the puzzle...
I've used it in a bunch of studios, but it has to be in conjunction with bass traps, diffusers, Etc.
 
You're too far from me, or I'd offer up some of the 3 bulk packs of 4-inch OC703 in my garage I bought for exactly this purpose. Think it only cost about $10 per 2'x4'x4" sheet. Add some nice fabric from GoM (Guilford of Maine) or your local JoAnn Fabrics, and frame/suspension system of choice. And about a gallon of Febreze to kill the smell :)
 
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