Now that the lockdown is over, public spaces that are properly acoustically treated are in great demand for occasions and events. What most venue hall managers don’t realise is the acoustics in the room will almost instantly influence a client’s decision on whether or not to book a space.

Venues and spaces that are not acoustically treated sound bright and noisy and the thought of having guests in a venue that has excessive ring, echoes and reverberation will almost certainly turn away potential clients.

We are offering venues right across the UK the opportunity improve their chances of making the most of this demand by offering a free venue acoustical survey worth over £500. Our virtual survey  can be carried out at a time of convenience and involves visually inspecting the venue over  a video call , seeking out measurements, carrying advanced acoustical modelling to determine any particular issues and suggesting solutions to deal with these issues.

As a specialist acoustical treatment manufacturer we pride ourselves in offering solutions that are high performing, competitively priced and tested to the UK’s high fire standards for public buildings. Our class ‘0’ melamine foam panels are  a great way to instantly improve the reverberation times in any hall. They are fibreglass free, super light and can be installed using spray adhesive to walls or ceilings.  Our advanced CNC machinery can convert this foam into a  range of attractive shapes to suit your needs.

We would love to help you make the most of you space, if there is any particular aspect of acoustic treatment you would like to discuss please do not hesitate to speak to one of our friendly technical team members on 01442 899 294 or visit our website to see our range of acoustic treatment products.

Noisy neighbours driving you crazy? Motor traffic getting on your nerves? Many customers come to us seeking products that will reduce noise in their rooms and houses only to be disappointed when we try to explain that our acoustic foam products are not sound proofing products and will not stop sound entering or leaving a room. So much so that I thought it would be useful to have a simple article explaining how it is we provide acoustic treatment products that do not sound proof rooms.

Put simply soundproofing is the process of stopping or significantly reducing sound movement from one area to another this could be, stopping sound being created within the room leaving the room or preventing sound generated outside a room entering the room. In most cases soundproofing is required by customers trying to achieve the latter rather than the former. Our products are not soundproofing products.

Acoustic control or Sound treatment on the other hand is the process of controlling the residual sound in the room so that any unwanted sound interference within the room is either eliminated or attenuated so that its impact within the room is negligible. In sound treatment the emphasis is on the sound that is in the room and not sound that has left the room. Once the sound is in the room either from an internal or external source, sound treatment attempts to control it so that its effect on the sound or music a producer or mixing engineer is creating is minimal or non existent.

Sound-treatment

The simplest way to understand the distinction between these two is by considering a sound source in a room usually the speakers producing the music or beat a producer is working on. This sound comprises of a whole spectrum of frequencies from sub 100Hz to 10Khz and over.

Figure 1 attempts to illustrate this. As the sound created impacts the walls of the studio (Arrow A) three things happen.

i)- Some of the sound energy is absorbed by the wall. This will depend on the frequency of the sound as well as the absorption properties of the wall. Sound energy that is absorbed is converted in to heat (D) by the vibrating molecules of the wall as they “soak” up the sound energy. This portion of sound will have no impact on the sound in the studio as such is as good as non-existent.

ii)- A portion of the sound will pass through the wall and emerge as sound wave C after having undergone diffraction downward as it passes through the wall (Arrow B). Generally sound frequencies whose wavelength is greater than 4 times the thickness of the wall will penetrate the wall. This again depends on the thickness of the wall and structure e.g. if it has a filling or composite makeup. As the sound wave C has left the room it is of no use to us. Incidentally this portion of sound is what will create noise complaints from your neighbours

iii)- The final portion of the sound will get reflected back into the room (A1) . The amount of the sound reflected will depend on the frequency of the sound, the angle of incidence as well as the reflective properties of the surface onto which the sound is incident. This is the portion of sound that acoustic control and sound treatment attempts to deal with. This is because it is still in the room and will have an effect on our resultant mix.

Scenarios i & ii are what soundproofing deals with i.e. using construction to absorb as much sound as is incident on the walls of a room so that the energy of sound wave C is reduced significantly not to disturb those it is not intended for. Soundproofing will reduce sound leakage or entry into any room.

If you are reading this article and are looking for soundproofing materials and panels, the best advice I could give is to stop right here and head over to a sound proofing expert or building merchant to purchase soundproofing materials. If however you are interested in improving the quality of the sound in your room please read on.

Sound treatment

Scenario iii is what acoustic control or sound treatment deals with – Improving the quality of the sound left in any room. Figure 2 shows what happens to the same sound wave impacting a wall fitted with an acoustic panel. A portion of Sound wave A will still get absorbed and converted into heat (D) and will still emerge on the other side of the wall (C) pretty much unscathed. The big difference is what happens to the sound that would have otherwise been reflected back into the room (A₁).

The profile and composition of the acoustic panel will determine what happens to the reflected sound wave A₁. Using a convoluted profile or wedge profile will mean that rather than having one strong reflected sound wave A₁ you will end up with several weaker waves A₁ A₂ A₃ scattered in several directions. The process of absorption, diffraction and reflection is true for every layer of material placed on the wall facing the incident waves. Absorbent materials such as foam will absorb more reflected sound than rigid hard panels that will reflect more of the incident sound waves.

Considering that it is the lower frequencies that will penetrate walls due to their much longer wave lengths it is easy to see why a panel of foam 2 inches or so thick will have little impact on sound that is already “determined” to pass through your walls. If sound energy is powerful enough to pass through a 7 inch brick wall what difference will 2 inches of foam make? Diddly squat! Be wary of dealers who sell foam as sound proofing foam!

Sound treatment products

Acoustic treatment products focus on the sound that is reflected internally by the boundaries that create the room, i.e walls, ceilings and floors. The idea being that whilst you may not completely eliminate the sound bouncing around your room you should be able to tame it so that it doesn’t have a huge effect on the overall sound of your mix.

Applying acoustic foam or other absorbent material helps in doing just that, waves that would otherwise have been reflected by the surface of the wall hit the acoustic foam or panel and either get scattered in various directions (depending on the profile) or absorb some of the energy. Waves bouncing off the surface face the same fate again getting absorbed by the foam panel and getting diffracted in different directions as the different portions of the wave front emerge at different times due to the non planar profile of the panels.

Acoustic foam with a uniform open cell structure of density over 28Kg/m3 is the main type of foam used for this purpose. The open cell structure presents the wave front with several air filled pockets which contains air molecules which vibrate as sound penetrates them, this vibration helps reduce the power of the waves reducing the energy with which they are reflected at.

The more open cell the foam is the better the airflow resistance and the better it is at reducing sound energy incident on it. The three types of foam commonly found in acoustically treated spaces in descending order of performance and cost are Melamine foams, Polyurethane Polyester foams and Polyurethane Polyether foam.

Pro-coustix acoustic solutions

If you are looking to give your sound an added edge or improve the accuracy of the sound you are mixing check out our range of acoustic treatment products. Our eXtreme range of acoustic tiles and bass traps are made from Polyester foam to give you that added absorption you require and greater aesthetics whilst our flex range is made from a high density acoustic foam and is suitable for sound deadening large areas where cost is an issue.

If you are interested in the detailed physics behind absorption and diffusion I recommend reading Acoustic Absorbers and Diffusers by Trevor J. Cox , Peter D’Antoni F. Alton Everest A Master Handbook of Acoustics

One of the first obstacles many voice over artists come across when trying to set up their own personal vocal studio is the unsuitability of the environment in which they are recording vocals. The change in working arrangements since the pandemic has meant many voice over artists who would normally rely on fairly well equipped office studios and spaces are having to make do with what they have at home.

Producing vocal content in a space or room that is not effectively acoustically treated can result in poor quality audio being captured which in turn affects the professionalism of any audio content being created. In a world where first impressions matter it is important that your audio content hits the spot in terms of clarity and quality.

Many voice over artists will have a fairly good idea of the gear they require to start recording from home. Microphones, monitors and sound cards have come down in price that you can get a starter kit for a few hundred pounds which will have good response curves and should create good sound.

Investing in high quality gear

When audio equipment is designed, manufacturers spend a lot of time measuring the response across the frequency spectrum. Professional equipment is designed to accurately capture or replay sound that is being produced without distorting in any way or form. The closer the equipment is in reproducing the audio captured the higher the quality and hence price.

Audio equipment is tested in multi million dollar facilities with anechoic chambers and suspended floors. Speakers are placed on solid plinths to ensure that the surface they are resting on doesn’t colour the sound produced.

Unfortunately these test conditions are far from the typical listening or recording space. So a microphone with the flattest response rate in a test facility could sound mediocre in a room that is not sufficiently treated.

Using acoustic treatment to improve your sound quality

The best way to tackle sound quality in voice over recordings is by considering the influence your room has on the sound you capture. The sound that is recorded by your microphone consists of a combination of sound waves hitting the microphone directly as you speak and reflections, echoes and reverberations of sound waves that have bounced off walls and flat reflective surfaces of the room you are in. This resultant sound is what is captured and converted into a digital signal ready for processing in your  Digital Audio Workstation (DAW).

In order to reduce the influence of the space you are recording in on your content, every attempt has to be made to negate the effect of reflective surfaces around your recording space. Introducing acoustic treatment is the quickest and easiest way to do this.

Acoustic foam for Vocal Booths

There are a number of materials that are used for acoustic treatment however acoustic foam is by fat the most popular for a number of reasons.

• Acoustic foam can be easily machined into various shapes.
• Acoustic foam is  a light material and can be mounted without damaging walls using removable solutions like isotack removable strips
• Purpose designed acoustic foam is combustion modified and unlike the old “egg crates” will extinguish once a flame is removed making it safer to use.
• Unlike fibreglass, Acoustic foam doesn’t contain fibres and means the air in your enclosed working space is free from potentially harmful fibres found in poorly manufactured fibreglass panels.

Finally and most importantly,

• the vocal frequency range is  1500hz – 3000Hz, very seldom do you find commercial vocal recordings on the extreme low end of the audible frequency. These frequencies are effectively attenuated by acoustic foam of a suitable thickness and density.

Acoustic panels or bass traps or both

As mentioned above, the frequency range of vocals means that panels of suitable thickness and density should be sufficient in improving the quality of vocals being captured. There is absolutely no need to purchase bass traps, diffuser panels or fibre glass panels when recording vocals. The traps would only use up space that would be better used for panels at a cheaper cost.

The ideal vocal recording space

If you are recording vocals for voice overs, jingles and narration you almost certainly want to deaden your vocal recording space as much as possible. We would recommend 100% deadening for recording vocals. Digital effects such as phasing, echo and reverb can then be applied “in the box” once the audio has been captured.

Completely deadening your room will ensure you have a great audio recording to start with on which to carry out your post capture editing.

Care should be taken to take into account the deadness of the room if you decide to carry out your mixing in the room as the deadened surfaces will almost certainly result in a mix that is not portable and will be distorted when played on different players/speakers in the typical untreated room.

For vocal booths, the patterns on the tiles are mainly an aesthetic choice as is the arrangement of tiles when placed on the walls or ceilings. All the acoustic tiles in our voice over studios section will work well, with thicker tiles giving greater absorption.

Portable adjustable acoustic filters for voice over artists and podcasters

If you are stuck for a dedicated room to acoustically treat of are looking for a solution to  use when you have to travel to meet guests then a portable acoustical screen or set of screens will work well.

The flexisorb acoustical isolation filter and privacy screen is one such screen designed to sit on your table top and wrap around your recording equipment, be it a laptop, workstation or microphone. By adjusting the wrap around your device you can vary the acoustics in the area immediately surrounding the microphone, resulting in content that is comparable to that produced in sound deadened rooms.

The isolation wraps have another advantage over box type filters in that you don’t have to fiddle trying to get your head into a box and does away with the otherwise unwanted boxy effect that a box creates which colours the sound you are capturing.

That’s just about it on acoustic treatment for voice over artists. There is obviously a lot more to take into account but I hope by the end of this article you can tick off one thing that needs to be sorted to get that professional sound audio content.

It is a well known fact that using acoustic foam in your studio will improve the sound quality of your studio. However with so many companies available selling acoustic foam it is easy to see why many producers venturing into acoustic treatment make the wrong decisions when looking for the right material to treat their rooms. This confusion is brought about by the fact that there are so many companies out there selling furniture foam passed off as acoustic foam. This foam is normally cheaper and is no wonder why every other question on our twitter feed is. “Why is acoustic foam so expensive?”

Acoustic foam has become the treatment material of choice for many home music producers for a number of reasons however the top three reasons are;

• Acoustic foam offers great absorption for mid to high end frequencies.
• Acoustic foam is relatively more affordable compared to high end options
• Acoustic foam is easy to handle and shape into aesthetically pleasing and performance enhancing shapes

Broadly speaking, there are three types of open cell foam used for acoustic applications. These are, in order of increasing price.

• Polyurethane polyether foam
• Polyurethane polyester foam
• Melamine foam

Polyurethane polyether foam

Polyurethane polyether foam has a large range of applications and comes in a variety of densities and colours. Acoustic applications are best suited to densities that are 29kg/m3 and above. Furniture foam converters generally tend to use the 25Kg/m3 foam or less and pass this off as acoustic foam. Whilst this foam may look similar to acoustic grade foam the performance shows that this foam falls below that of higher densities. This is basically down to physics. Although the structure of lower density polyether foams is the same as higher density foams lower density foam doesn’t have enough air pockets to absorb the sound waves impacting on them which reduces the observed performance.

Lower density foam whilst appearing cheaper may cost more in the long run because trying to get equivalent absorption values in your studio will mean purchasing more foam which is probably not a good idea because excess absorption can leave your room sounding flat.

If you are on a tight budget look for polyether foams that have higher densities 29Kg/m3 or greater, are darker coloured as these foams will tend to discolour with time and darker colours age gracefully. Also consider the fire rating UL 94 HF1 is the most stringent acoustic foam fire test and means you are not taking chances in your studio.

Polyurethane polyester

Polyurethane polyester foams are the Rolls Royce of acoustic foams and come at a premium which reflects the performance you can expect from these foams. Professional acoustic foam brands use polyester foams because the performance is guaranteed. Polyester foam is manufactured to very high standards because the applications these foams are used for require only the best foam.

Polyester foam lends its great performance to the greater percentage of open cells meaning more air pockets exist which soak up the energy of sound waves. Polyester foam is manufactured in blocks and tested for air resistance at intervals to ensure that the performance is uniform which ever part of the block is used. This precision led manufacturing process means that polyester foams aren’t riddled with blow holes leaving a shiny aesthetic surface that delivers performance time after time.

Polyester foams provide controlled absorption across the entire spectrum with thicker foams offering effective absorption down to 125Hz right through to the top end of the frequency spectrum. This wide band of performance means polyester foam is the choice for professionals looking to introduce absorption into their studios. Polyester foams take longer to discolour when compared to their polyether counterparts.

Melamine Foam

Whilst not traditionally used in music studios melamine foams are fast gaining recognition as an acoustic treatment option for studio acoustic treatment. Priced higher than polyester and polyether foams melamine foam offers the perfect combination of absorption and light weight.

Melamine foams achieve this extraordinary feat by exhibiting a true 3D filament structure. This structure means that melamine foam doesn’t have any closed cells but rather millions of air chambers which significantly increase its performance in the mid to high frequencies. Although thicker panels will shift the absorption down to the lower end of the spectrum for domestic purposes the cost doesn’t justify the performance.

So where then does melamine foam come in handy? The answer is simple. Firstly the extremely light weight nature of this foam means that melamine foam panels can be stuck on to ceilings of large buildings without any concern of the impact on roof loading. This property means that melamine baffles and blocks are used in large building, factories, gymnasiums, churches and swimming pools.

Secondly melamine foam is available in brilliant white and is the only type of foam which holds its colour without getting discoloured when exposed to UV rays. This lends it well to use for indoor applications where darker coloured tiles would present an aesthetic challenge. Melamine panels are handy for home cinemas and used for treating walls and ceilings at reflection points as well as treating home studios that double up as work offices.

Melamine foam can be cut into a number of shapes although most popular are flat panels with bevelled edges. Melamine comes in standard White, grey and light grey however the white panels may be spray painted using specialist equipment to any colour.

Finally melamine foam is class 0 fire rated which is lends it well to applications where building regulations mean only materials with high fire ratings can be used without impacting on the aesthetic of the room it is applied to. Other foams can be treated to make them class 0 rated but this involves impregnating them with graphite and carbon which results in black sheets. Not exactly the best for indoor use.

Melamine foam however is quite brittle and can easily get damaged so needs to be handled with caution.

I hope this helps you understand what to look out for when you are next shopping around for acoustic foam for your studio. Just remember if it looks like furniture foam and is priced like furniture foam then it most likely is furniture foam.

The manufacturers of aerogels have hailed it as a space age material that is super light and yet posseses superior thermal and acoustic absorption properties compared to acoustic foam. When we first found out about aerogels we too were impressed by the said capabilities of this wonder material. We were intrigued and wondered if this was the future of studio acoustics and acoustic treatment.

A Cabot sales representative of one of the companies that makes the aerogels into wraps even boldly stated.
[blockquote class=”{classname}”]…. aerogel absorbs sounds very well and has good impedance match with sound waves so it reflects very little sound. The structure of the Aerogel also creates a torturous path for the sound to travel though it once inside, resulting in a slowing down of the speed of sound from roughly 350 meters per second to around 100 meters per second. This reduction in speed reduces the amplitude of the sound.
The porous structure of aerogel will reduce the transmission of airborne sound waves through either reflection or absorption. Acoustic insulating properties can be particularly notable at lower frequencies (< 500Hz).[/blockquote]

Indeed a wonder substance you would think, so did we! At 200 quid a meter we set about obtaining a sample of this material and had it acoustically tested to prove if this was really the next big thing in acoustic treatment.

We’ve had the results back in and surprise surprise. An 8mm thick blanket of this stuff is pretty much transparent to sound frequencies below 500Hz talk about them being “particularly notable at lower frequencies (<500Hz)” . Even above 500Hz one only starts to see a significant change in absorption coefficient at 5000Hz where the aerogel’s absorption coefficient comes in at a decent .74.

It appears the huge discrepancy between the claimed and actual results is due to the method of converting the substance into a practical useable format. Aerogels are mainly available for sale as granules and wraps. The wrap which is what we tested basically constists of a fine polyester material infused with aerogel granules. The fact that the granules are not tightly packed in the material would theoretically have an effect on the absorption properties observed. Perharps in future solid aerogel panels will be readily available and maybe then would we have an acoustic product that is a practical solution for interior acoustics.

Conclusion
We carried out this test to answer the thousands of questions out there about the performance of aerogels and their application in acoustic treatment products for studios. The results show that if you are looking for a material to absorb high frequencies >5000Hz and have enough money in the bank then this is for you. Otherwise stay clear of the “Hype” (No pun intended) and leave this stuff for thermal insulation which we understand it is even more effective at. If the acoustic properties are anything to go by then we know what this means.

Find out more about aerogels and the nanotechnology used to create them here.

Perhaps the most frequently encountered challenge faced by the home music producer is a studio which sounds “boomy”. Poor acoustics which cause boomy rooms also present problems to the audiophile and the home cinema user and if untreated can create an unpleasant listening environment for  the user.
To understand how to treat the  boomy rooms it is important to understand what the causes are first and foremost and then proceed to adopt a suitable strategy coupled with acoustic treatment using high quality acoustic foam to tackle this low end frequency phenomenon. Successfully tackling room boom will greatly improve the quality and portability of your audio material.

The boomy sound is created by amplification of waves of various low end frequencies as they reinforce themselves at different points in your room.When these waves fit squarely in your room a standing wave is observed. A collection of frequencies that create standing waves in a room are called modes. The dimensions of your room will have an impact on the nature and frequencies at which these modes occur.Room modes would primarily occur in any plane where there parallel opposing walls as such would occur along the length, width and height of the room. To complicate things a bit more there are tangential and oblique standing waves are created by sound waves bouncing off a combination of walls and ceilings. Standing waves are more an issue in low frequencies because of the higher reverberant energy and the ability of the energy to persist or take longer to decay. Higher frequencies will decay quicker and as such by the time the reflected wave travels back to reinforce the direct or original wave the residual energy of the wave is very low. Higher frequencies however cause echoes and flutter echoes which will be addressed in a seperate article.

Taming the boom

It is important to realise that  any amount of acoustic treatment will not eliminate the boom created but will definitely go a long way in reducing its impact. As such before venturing out to invest in acoustic treatment we recommend you  follow these three simple steps

Placement

Make the most of the dimensions of your room. Placement of speaker and mixing position within your room can significantly reduce the significance of unwanted modes in your room. Always aim to have your speakers along the shorter wall in your room such that the speakers are firing the length of your room. Also, space allowing, move your speakers away from any corners and walls. Finally try and maintain symmetry in your layout this will  help balance out the sound image you receive. Read our article on basic acoustics to help with your placement.

Isolation

Ensure your monitors are adequately isolated from the surface they are resting on, this includes monitor stands. Working monitors sitting on a desk will invariably force the desk to resonate at its own natural frequency, this would create unwanted colouration in your room muddying the sound and reducing the quality of the sound in your room.A decent set of Monitor isolation pads placed under each speaker. Good isolation pads should be made of a material that is both flexible enough to absorb energy without suffering compression set and resilient enough to prevent the speaker from  swaying when in use.

Bass Trapping

Addressing placement and isolation can in some cases reduce a significant portion of the issues present in your room. Once you have sorted  the placement and isolation you can now start to invest in bass traps to further refine your rooms response. Bass traps come in various shapes, sizes and makes. What ever bass traps you settle for ensure you are getting products that have been adequately tested for absorption. A good indicator is the Weighted absoprtion coefficient and sound absorption class. Aim for Class A as this will  guarantee you are getting  a product that is effective at sound absorption.

Acoustic Foam Bass traps.
Properly designed acoustic foam bass traps are a very cost effective choice and recommended where ease of flexibility and cost are important. The design and quality of foam play a very important role in the performance of the bass traps.
There are manufacturers out there who will try to make you believe that any type of foam will deliver effective bass frequency absorption. These same foam converters will pass off low density matteress grade foam cut in attractive shapes as bass traps.  This is simply not the case! Upholstery foam used by comfy mattress manufacturers and converters is simply not effective in dampening low end frequency sound. What may seem like a cheap deal could ruin the acoustics in your room by providing uneven and excessive absorption.

Genuine acoustic foam suppliers and manufacturers will provide full test data and reports to support the performance of their products. Look out for these and ensure standards followed are recognised standards by appropriately accredited test labs. Otherwise any comparison will only result in comparing apples and oranges.

Adopting these three easy steps will go along way in helping you improve the sound  quality in your room. Good luck and please don’t hesitate to share with us pictures of your studio/ listening room.

Polyester foam

Polyester foam is a high grade acoustic foam that consists of a uniform open cell structure which lends the foam well for use in sound absorption. The millions of air pockets formed by the fine structure of this foam effectively absorb the energy of incident waves reducing the impact of these waves on your sound mix. The speciality nature of this foam means it is not an attractive material for foam converters to stock. Our manufacturers test  the air flow resistance of the material used in our eXtreme range to ensure structure is uniform.
Our Hyperflex range  of bass traps and panels ismade from polyester foam providing solid performance in your studio, lounge or home cinema. Our unique profile is accurately designed to delivery Deep Bass Controls in the lower sound frequency spectrum.

Chances are you haven’t had much choice when it comes to deciding the structure of your studio. Like most urban artists you have probably ended up using a converted out building, garage or a room in your house as your studio.Nevertheless It is essential to understand how best to adapt the room, carefully position acoustic foam, and get your room sounding better.

With a bit of luck on your side you will have a room with one longer side. For purposes of this and other text we shall refer to this side as the length. The shorter wall of your room will be refered to as your width and the distance between the ceiling and the floor will be refered to as the height.

Step one  – Deciding where to place your mixing console

Determine which side of your room is the longest side. It is against the walls on one side of this axis that you will place your mixing console desk and chairs.

Step two – Choosing your sweet spot (The point where you will sit to evaluate your music mix)

Now that you have decided where to place your mixing desk we will get on with deciding where your sweet spot will be. This will be the point where you will sit when evaluating your mix during the mixing phase. You may wonder why we have decided to position the chair before accurately placing the mixing table and speakers, this will become clear later.

The sweet spot is an area where the interferance from reflected waves and standing waves in your room are theoretically least therefore allowing you get an accurate image of the sound being produced by your speakers.

The dimensions of your room will almost innevitably have an impact on the nature of standing waves generated in your room. Put simply, standing waves are waves whose frequency is such that half of it’s wavelength is the lenth of your studio and whole multiples there of.

Therefore a room of  10m in length will create a standing wave a frequency where by half the wave length of the frequency is equal to the length of the room i.e.  a frequency of about 17Khz.  The human ear is generally regarded as capable of hearing sound between 20Hz and 20KHz as such this first standing wave will not be heard and for our purposes can be ignored. Reducing the wave length by 1/2 sequenctially gets us to the first standing wave of significance which has a wave length of 5m or frequency of about 68Hz, most of the bass energy of music can be assumed to exist around this frequency. Simplistically put this standing wave, bouncing off the walls of your room will exhibit maximum sound pressure at the following points along the length of your room, 0m, 2.5m,5m, 7.5m 10m or 0L, 0.25L,0.5L,0.75L & 1L where L is the length of your room. Because the wave causes maximum compression and hence maximum sound pressure at these points you should avoid placing your sweet spot at any of these points.

Similarly this standing wave will exhibit minimum sound pressure at the following points 0.125L,0.375L,0.625L & 0.875L you are probably getting the idea by now. Any one of these points is theortically ideal to place your chair however, practically you will need enough space between the wall and your chair to place the mixing desk so that your speakers are at a position equidistant from the wall and your ears. This point is normally at 0.375L. It is highly recommended that, space allowing, this is where you chair is placed.

Step Three- Refining the position of mixing desk ad speakers

You probably figured this out in the previous paragraph, you will need to place your desk so that your speakers are equidistant from you and the wall when you are in your listening position or at your  sweet spot. Given that you have placed your chair at 0.375L then your speakers would be placed at  0.1875L along the length of your room.

Step Four – Dealing with early reflections

Early reflections also called primary reflections are reflections that would theoretically reach your ears second quickest after the original sound has hit your ears. These reflections are generally created by sound waves bouncing off the wall on the back of your mixing console, the side walls, the floor and the ceiling. Treating these first reflections adequately will significantly improve the acoustics in your studio and hence the accuracy of your mix.

Now that we know who the culprits are the question is where should you place your acoustic foam panels. It as this point that some keen producers will panic and plaster the entire studio with acoustic foam panels. Poorly planned acoustic treament will instantly deading the sound in your studios by shortening the reverberation time.

The ideal location for your acoustic foam panels would be half the distance between your ears and the  speakers. We already know that your speakers are placed at 0.1875L and your sweet spot is  at .375L therefore an acoustic foam panel placed at 0.2813L will be slap bang in the middle of your ears and the speakers. An alternative way of determining this position is called the mirror method, where by sitting in your sweet spot you get a friend to hold a mirror against the wall first on the right hand side of your mixing desk and as the mirror is moved towards the back of the room a spot is identified where you can just see the right speaker reflection. This process is repeated on the left hand side to obtain the position of your side panels. The size of the acoustic foam panels is really a matter of choice but we recommend a 3×2 vertical panel of our 12″ tiles arranged so that the centre line is on the line that is at the centre of the distance between your ears and the speakers. In chosing what studio foam to use for your treatment be sure to purchase foam that has be tested with accompanying reports.

To deal with early reflections from the ceiling you would need to place a cluster of acoustic foam panels in our case a 3×2 horizontal array along the line joining the centres of the panels on the left and right wall.

This then leaves the front wall. As a minimum a horizontal panel of 3×2 acoustic foam tiles across the back of the mixing console at ear height will suffice however some people may go further and completely deaden the whole back wall, it all depends on how much you have to spend. You can then proceed to place another 3×2 horizontal panel along the back wall. Our 30x studio pack gives you just enough tiles to deal with early reflections in your room.

If you have a bit of cash to spare you can repeat the process for the back of your room mirroring exactly the same positioning at the front with the back however  depending on the length of your room this in the first instance isn’t absolutely necessary.

Step Five – Dealing with modal points and low frequencies.

Low frequencies generally exist in the sub 500Hz region and a good idea of your room size will enable you better understand what frequencies are going to cause you problems. In our 10m length room we identified 68Hz being the first audible standing wave generated. Any mix created in such a room would almost certainly suffer from amplification at around this frequency and subsequent modes thereof. Unfortunately for us standing waves do not only exist in one plane but  in the horizontal, vertical , longitudinal, tangential and oblique planes but for simplicity in our studio setup we will ignore the oblique standing waves and focus on the other three.

Standing waves by their nature exhibit maximum sound pressure (Maximas) at the extreme ends of the room they are generated in, applying this to our room then you would have a high sound pressure level created where two walls meet (edges) and even more where three walls meet (Corners). It is for this reason that bass traps are introduced into corners of the room. The thickness of the bass traps helps absorb some of the modal energy generated by standing waves at the corners as well as distorting the dimensions of the room to affect the formation of standing waves.

Ideally you would want to place bass traps allong all edges top, bottom and sides as well as all corners, however the cost of doing this far outstrips the benefits in completely treating all corners. The minimum you will need is two corner traps for the top/bottom  left and top/bottom right and you can proceed to fill out other corners and edges as you get more money.

That’s it! Following these steps will go a long way in improving your studio acoustics and once done you should now be ready to mix.

With the lockdown finally coming to an end and social distancing restrictions being consigned to the bin of history, a lot of practice rooms and music academies are dusting off the cobwebs and giving their spaces a “summer clean” as they get ready to welcome back students for face-to-face lessons.

We know the last 16 or so months have been extremely difficult for venue owners and people like yourselves who run practice room facilities, which is why we are reaching out to offer you an exclusive trade discount on all our products. We hope this will go some way to helping your get back on your feet as you open up your venue to live users once more.

Pro-coustix is the UK’s most comprehensive range of acoustic treatment products with products ranging from acoustic treatment panels in various patterns, speaker isolation pads for improving monitor speaker response, through to mounting solutions and spray adhesive for mounting acoustic tiles on walls and ceilings. We pride ourselves in offering a one stop brand for quality products backed by unrivalled expertise in the acoustic treatment sector.

Our journey with you doesn’t end with you purchasing our great products, but ensuring you make the most of the products you purchase. Our friendly technical team is available to help you with treatment recommendations, product options and we will provide placement diagrams to ensure you get the best out of our products.

If you are looking for to refresh your acoustic treatment or looking for exciting, high performing acoustic treatment to make your space both better acoustically and enticing aesthetically, then you have come to the right place. Check out our store and browse through our exclusive pattern designs.

We are a manufacturer not a reseller or retailer, all our products are manufactured at our factory in Hemel Hempstead. We run a modern and very lean operation allowing us offer high quality uncompressed foam products at very competitive prices.

Why not speak to us today!

We were approached by The Music Practise to improve the acoustics in one of their piano rooms, as the sound was “bright”, “tinny” and reverberant. It was also affecting the quality of audio capture when, during lockdown, lessons were being held over zoom.

The client was keen to ensure that the solution we provided not only achieved the goal of improved acoustics but also was aesthetically pleasing. Whilst acoustic foam is a great acoustic absorber the grey colour can be a bit dull indoors especially in rooms where the intention is not to have an industrial audio feel.

We recommended our Diffuserflex acoustic diffuser panels and modelled the minimum quantity required for the room. The panels were delivered next day, along with our purpose built acoustic panel impalers, for secure removable mounting.

The results were amazing, the resulting acoustics in the room were greatly improved with improved absorption and broadening of the upper mids and high frequencies. This has resulted in a much more pleasant piano playing atmosphere reducing player fatigue and enhancing the overall learning experience. The real wood walnut veneered finish on the panels gives it a classy, high-end touch, resulting in a great music space. 

Are you struggling to get good sound out of your space? Talk to us today and let’s get you on your way to better sound!

We are very excited to become one of the first acoustic treatment manufacturers in the UK to produce acoustic foam in a factory that is run on 100% renewable energy.

We have always been keen to ensure that as we grow we keep our fingers on the pulse of sustainability because it is what we believe in. We scoured the market for renewable energy suppliers and were only too pleased to take on our supply ocntract with Opus.

You can now rest assured that the foam in your studio, music room or home cinema was produced sustainbly and you are helping to contribute towards a  greener world.

In addition to renewable energy all our handling equipment is electric and we’ve had our warehouse and office lighting  upgraded to  LED lights. This means we are not only using renewable energy but using it sparingly.

We are in the final stages of sourcing a recycling partner for our foam and have reduced our polythene bag usage by 98% in the last year!

If you are looking for acoustic treatment that doesn’t cost the earth you are in the right place.