# Room Treatment Suggestions



## Otto (May 18, 2006)

Hi there,

I'm considering room treatments; never done anything in the past. I have a medium-large room, and for the most part, it sounds pretty good. As always, I'm looking for some type of improvement. I've heard over and over again that room treatments can improve things like a major component upgrade. Sounds good to me. 

The walls to the sides of the main speakers may be far enough away that there is no first reflection point (it's hard to tell from the picture, but on the outside of the left main is a small wall and an opening to the foyer). Also, to the outside of the right main is a large window. I'm also not sure how the vaulted ceiling affects things... Better or worse? I'm thinking corner traps first...

Open for any suggestions. Of course, I want to keep cost down. WAF is medium-low. I can DIY as well.

Thanks for any comments.


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## basementjack (Sep 18, 2006)

Otto, 

Usually, a room full of stuff, with openings and angles etc, tend to sound pretty good.

I would do a room measurement with REW to see where your bass response is, as it doesn't look like you need help with early reflections.


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

Corner traps would be a good option. You might also consider:

- Hanging some panels parallel with the floor to cover the peak of the ceiling.
- A couple panels directly behind the main speakers to deal with boundary proximity bass response issues (SBIR).
- A couple of panels up high on the front wall to help with the front to back slap that you likely won't be able to deal with in the rear of the room (WAF)

Bryan


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## Otto (May 18, 2006)

Thanks guys. My bass response is generally pretty good. I'm EQ'd to a house curve with BFD. I've looked at the waterfall plot briefly, and think that could be better. Can I handle long decay periods with treatments?

I've thought about putting a couple rather large treatments behind the mains as a type of art. I think my wife will go for it. Just a matter of making them...

Thanks again.


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## Ethan Winer (Jul 21, 2006)

Otto,

> Open for any suggestions. Of course, I want to keep cost down. WAF is medium-low. I can DIY as well. <

There are many threads here that explains the basics of acoustic treatment, though this FAQ puts much of it in a single place:

http://www.ethanwiner.com/acoustics.html

> I'm also not sure how the vaulted ceiling affects things... Better or worse? I'm thinking corner traps first... <

I agree that corner traps is an important first step. A vaulted ceiling can be a problem because sound tends to focus under the peak. The photo below shows how I treated under the peak in my home studio.

--Ethan


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## Otto (May 18, 2006)

Thanks guys. I'll read up some more, but wanted to get some comments initially. One thing that I think I kind of wrote backwards -- when I said WAF is medium-low, I mean that my wife is pretty cool about all this, not that she would put up a fight! Happy Valentine's Day!


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

Ah! Well that certainly makes it easier. 

Happy V day to you and your wife.

Bryan


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