How do I build a good sounding room?

J

Jack Arnott

Senior
Jan 29, 2011
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Hello All,
More about the house we are building. It is bemoaned in our circles that most places that musicians play are not designed for performances.

Kind of to that end, I want our house to have a good feel to it. I pay attention to things like this.
I am wondering how to go about constructing a house, with good sounding rooms.

1) I do not like the sound of drywall, but its use seems to be quite prevalent, indeed unavoidable.
2) We will not have any carpeting at all, so there is one place that usually helps with loose, ringy sound in a room that we will not have.
(It will be Marmolium on top of gypcrete, with radiant heat in it.)
3) Most of the main floor will have one brick wall, the interior wall. I like the sound of brick. But it will be fairly live.
4) If I can pull it off the ceiling will be barn wood. This, to me will be better than drywall. And it will have insulation behind it, which will be good.
5) We used some cork in our old house, and I liked it a lot. It reduced noise from outside, and inside as well. The main room that that was in was very comfortable.
But, it does not seem to stay to the wall very well. Even the places I have seen where it was installed by a professional, (read, not me), there have been tacks to keep it in place and from peeling. I do not like the look of this, and it would be expensive to do one whole wall, sunroom, kitchen, living room, dining room.

The wall will be 2x6, with OSB, and then probably about three or four inches of foam, and then a faux adobe.
Any suggestions for inside covering on this wall that does not involve drywall, is easy to color/paint, and will sound better than drywall?

Regards, Jack
 
Re: How do I build a good sounding room?

Shelves full of books. Oddly shaped bits of "sculpture" in the corners. Whatever you can do to break up the flat surfaces. Diffusion > absorption. And if you can get it, a nice 10-12 foot ceiling.
 
Re: How do I build a good sounding room?

Stuff your walls with Roxul. The difference vs fiberglass is huge and you'll hear a difference even with only one layer of drywall.
 
Re: How do I build a good sounding room?

Non parallel walls-but others will HATE you-both the construction guys and it will probably kill your resell value. But it would be unique.

If you could have a porous surface (such as unfinished concrete block) that would help-BUT DO NOT paint it. Any advantage it offered would be killed by sealing up the pores.
 
Re: How do I build a good sounding room?

Dick Rees said:
Shelves full of books. Oddly shaped bits of "sculpture" in the corners. Whatever you can do to break up the flat surfaces. Diffusion > absorption. And if you can get it, a nice 10-12 foot ceiling.
Click to expand...

+1

If you need/want absorption (even though diffusion almost always sounds better), you can achieve it in small ways through carpets on the floor and furniture. These carpets could be smaller things situated in a living room or perhaps in the form of a tapestry on the wall- make sure it's thicker. If your barn wood roof (which sound sound/look amazing in comparison to drywall) has joists exposed, use them to help by covering them with smaller boards or such, but remember that it is still a roof.
 
Two ways walls can be built to minimize transmission is to put 2 one sided 2x4 walls one inch apart or use a 2x6 floor and top plate with 2x4 studs alternating which side they are lined up with.
 
Re: How do I build a good sounding room?

Jay Barracato said:
Two ways walls can be built to minimize transmission is to put 2 one sided 2x4 walls one inch apart or use a 2x6 floor and top plate with 2x4 studs alternating which side they are lined up with.
Click to expand...
It is not the sound from outside that I am worried about. It is the interior sound. I should have made that more clear. I don't like the way drywall reflects, and maximizes noise inside.
For instance, in the house we have moved into in the interum, my pressure cooker is noticeably louder and shriller in the new house than the one we are tearing down to build the new one.

Max Warasila said:
If you need/want absorption (even though diffusion almost always sounds better), you can achieve it in small ways through carpets on the floor and furniture. These carpets could be smaller things situated in a living room or perhaps in the form of a tapestry on the wall- make sure it's thicker. If your barn wood roof (which sound sound/look amazing in comparison to drywall) has joists exposed, use them to help by covering them with smaller boards or such, but remember that it is still a roof.
Click to expand...

We will have a wool rug under the dining room table. And absorbent furniture in the living room.

Ivan Beaver said:
Non parallel walls-but others will HATE you-both the construction guys and it will probably kill your resell value. But it would be unique.
If you could have a porous surface (such as unfinished concrete block) that would help-BUT DO NOT paint it. Any advantage it offered would be killed by sealing up the pores.
Click to expand...

I do not like the sound of concrete block. I do like the idea of oddly shaped walls. I am doing a lot of things on this project that will have utility value vs. return on investment. This house is to live in, not flip.
The problem is that the main wall is very close to the property line, and that does not leave any room for oddly shaping it. Maybe inside I will have to think of this more. Unique is a key component to the design, and I like it.

Jon Ross said:
Stuff your walls with Roxul. The difference vs fiberglass is huge and you'll hear a difference even with only one layer of drywall.
Click to expand...

How much does Roxul cost compared to fibreglass, and how is it at thermal?
Plan now is to use blown in cotton with treatment.

Dick Rees said:
Shelves full of books. Oddly shaped bits of "sculpture" in the corners. Whatever you can do to break up the flat surfaces. Diffusion > absorption. And if you can get it, a nice 10-12 foot ceiling.
Click to expand...

Ceiling will be 9' in Living/Dining, and starting at 9' in kitchen and growing, to over 12' by the end of the sun room. I have learned a lot about books and sound as I move them from one house to the other. Does a cat pole count as "sculpture"?

Thanks for input so far, Jack
 
Re: How do I build a good sounding room?

You could build using the "golden ratios" for room dimensions.

Golden Ratio:
1/1.62/2.62

Louden Ratio:
1/1.4/1.9

Sepmeyer Ratio:
1/1.6/2.33

You can have acoustic panels made with printed canvas covers.
 
Re: How do I build a good sounding room?

Jason Raboin said:
You could build using the "golden ratios" for room dimensions.

Golden Ratio:
1/1.62/2.62

Louden Ratio:
1/1.4/1.9

Sepmeyer Ratio:
1/1.6/2.33

You can have acoustic panels made with printed canvas covers.
Click to expand...

I can dig this. I like photographs that have been printed on canvas and wrapped around the corners of the frame. Photographers don't like them because they are not as detailed.
My wife and I both have photographs that we want to print out and mount, sounds like the perfect solution.

I did know the golden ration, 1/1.621, and saw quite a bit of it at the recent Leonardo da Vinci exhibit here. I did not know about the three dimensional rules, and Louden/Sepmeyer ratios. Will look into those.

Dave Barnett said:
Area rugs everywhere. If there's a sliding glass door, put a theater velvet curtain over it.
Click to expand...

I do have some velvet curtain plans for some room divisions. I need to use it sparingly, my wife has concerns about the place looking like a bar.

Jay Barracato said:
Jack, that is still for interior walls as well.
Click to expand...

OK, now I am picking up what you are putting down.
 
Re: How do I build a good sounding room?

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Re: How do I build a good sounding room?

I am guessing the ratios are in relation to ceiling height?
What do you do when the height varies from one end to the other?
 
Re: How do I build a good sounding room?

The Audio Expert - Table of Contents
Chapter 18 - Room Shapes, Modes, and Isolation

Modal Distribution
Room Ratios
Modes, Nodes, and Standing Waves
ModeCalc Software
Room Anomalies
Odd Room Layouts
One Room Versus Two Rooms
Vocal Booths
Surface Reflectivity
Calculating Reflections
Isolation and Noise Control
Air Leaks
Room Within a Room
Summary
======

Book written from mostly a recording perspective but Ethan plays too...

JR
 
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