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Old 05-03-2014, 04:42 PM
mc1 mc1 is offline
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Default ideal recording space/tips to improve one's low budget recording space

what is the ideal recording space for guitars? how much sound absorption and how much reflection? does isolating the microphone help a lot, or not so much? what questions should i be asking?

for amateurs on the cheap, what are some tips/recommendations to finding the best space or to improve their recording conditions? big room, little room, carpet, pillows, hard reflective surfaces, mic in the middle, mic near the wall, avoid corners, etc, etc? what are typical newbie mistakes or easy fixes? thanks.
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Old 05-03-2014, 05:04 PM
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A big room with the bigger the room the less percentage of room surfaces needing to be covered by acoustic panels. In my room about forty percent of the walls are covered by acoustic panels as is the ceiling. You can have a live side of the room and a more acoustically dead side of the room.

The best place in the room can be hard to predict though I avoid the center and having the mikes point too close to a wall.

You can go for a really acoustically dead space and depend on software for artificial reverb post recording or you can mix it up a little. A dead space will likely be more consistent but may not get you quite the sound you want.
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Old 05-03-2014, 05:25 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by rick-slo View Post
You can go for a really acoustically dead space and depend on software for artificial reverb post recording or you can mix it up a little. A dead space will likely be more consistent but may not get you quite the sound you want.
Thats where I'm at: my room acoustically stinks: a little 9ft by 12ft rectangle with a flat roof. My best results have come when I close mic my acoustic guitar or mandolin, and add some minimal reverb to mimic an actual space.
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Old 05-04-2014, 10:05 AM
MikeBmusic MikeBmusic is offline
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If you make 2'x4'x4" bass traps (broadband absorbent panels) with rockwool insulation, you can use them as moveable gobos to create better recording 'space' in a non-ideal room, and keep them on the wall/corners for mixing.
Using dynamic mics instead of condensors will take some of the 'room' out of the recording.
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Old 05-04-2014, 05:52 PM
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This should help...

http://www.homebrewedmusic.com/tag/acoustic-treatment/
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Old 05-04-2014, 06:14 PM
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thanks for the help rick, bagpipe, mike. good stuff.

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Originally Posted by Raggamuffin View Post
from our own fran guidry. i remember looking at that site years ago when evaluating inexpensive recorders but forgot about the acoustic treatment information.

i think i'll try and concoct up a couple of 2'x'4'x4" or so panels that i can move around.
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Old 05-04-2014, 08:35 PM
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I've recently created three of these and also changed my recording space to another room in the house with higher ceilings plus hard wood floor/carpet combination. I have them arranged in a "U" shape around me. I worked with this company http://www.acoustimac.com/owens-corning-703-6/
and had a good experience. I didn't go with the Corning 703, but opted for their Eco Core material. No issues with skin contact....recyclable ......but, I highly recommend covering them as they do "shed" little particles! I didn't put them in frames as they will stand on their own or with support with leaning into each other or up against something ( I use two dining room chairs to help with this) and they are light enough to cart around and arrange as I need them for a recording project. A sound engineer recommended them for my needs.
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Old 05-04-2014, 09:03 PM
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I will put in a plug for these guys (panels come with brackets for hanging panels on the walls).

http://www.atsacoustics.com/item--AT...EN01&kw=1008-D
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Old 05-05-2014, 09:58 AM
MikeBmusic MikeBmusic is offline
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I couldn't find anyone near me selling the OC703 or 705, so opted to mail order Roxul as the absorption frequency charts showed little difference, but much cheaper.
I ordered from ATS, 1x4 wood from Home Depot and burlap from Walmart. Total cost to build 6 panels: $240.00
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Last edited by MikeBmusic; 05-06-2014 at 08:19 AM.
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Old 05-05-2014, 03:34 PM
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thanks for the advice, islandguitar, rick, mike. i'll need something portable that i can put up and then take down. who knew that some foam or rigid insulation on a stand was so expensive? it's tough out in rural nova scotia, as ats is in the states, so shipping and brokerage fees make it pricey. the only canadian retailer for ats that i saw was more than double the price for the same panels. i haven't found someone who sells oc703 yet, although it may have a different name in canada. i'l keep at it, although slowly no doubt.
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Old 05-05-2014, 07:55 PM
sdelsolray sdelsolray is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mc1 View Post
thanks for the advice, islandguitar, rick, mike. i'll need something portable that i can put up and then take down. who knew that some foam or rigid insulation on a stand was so expensive? it's tough out in rural nova scotia, as ats is in the states, so shipping and brokerage fees make it pricey. the only canadian retailer for ats that i saw was more than double the price for the same panels. i haven't found someone who sells oc703 yet, although it may have a different name in canada. i'l keep at it, although slowly no doubt.
Keep looking. A half-dozen or more 4' x 2' by 4" bass traps can really help a room.
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Old 05-05-2014, 08:52 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by sdelsolray View Post
Keep looking. A half-dozen or more 4' x 2' by 4" bass traps can really help a room.
My link pointed to ATS Acoustic Panel - 24 x 48 x 4
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Old 05-06-2014, 01:18 AM
Fran Guidry Fran Guidry is offline
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Quote:
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... i haven't found someone who sells oc703 yet, although it may have a different name in canada. i'l keep at it, although slowly no doubt.
These products are sold by commercial insulation suppliers, not by hardware outlets or consumer outlets. These folks can be hard to find but they're out there. I don't know if any of these are near you and I can't be certain they have OC703 or equivalent, but they came up in a quick Google search.

Beacon Roofing Supply | Dartmouth, NS
Last Updated by BECNRoofingSupply on May 17, 2013
45 John Savage Ave.
Dartmouth, Nova Scotia B3B 2C9
PH: (902) 468-7043
FX: (902) 468-2442

General Insulation
Craig Bowes, General Manager
120 Troop Ave
Halifax, NS B3B1Z1
P: 902-468-5232
F: 902-468-6915
E: [email protected]


National Foam Supply Limited
8 Walker Ave Unit 4, Lower Sackville, Canada
Roofing, Siding, and Insulation Material Merchant Wholesalers

Scotia Insulations Limited
20 Borden Ave, Dartmouth, Canada
Roofing, Siding, and Insulation Material Merchant Wholesalers

Fran
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Old 05-06-2014, 04:09 AM
Ty Ford Ty Ford is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bagpipe View Post
Thats where I'm at: my room acoustically stinks: a little 9ft by 12ft rectangle with a flat roof. My best results have come when I close mic my acoustic guitar or mandolin, and add some minimal reverb to mimic an actual space.
try using 2 reverbs, one set to short and one longer, then mix the two.

set their delays to somewhere between 12msec and 25 msec.

set the decay for about 2.5 sec to start with.

It makes for a more complex reverb field. Stay away from spring reverbs for the main reverbs. They sound springy on the decay trails.

Regards,

Ty Ford
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Old 05-06-2014, 08:58 AM
mc1 mc1 is offline
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thanks, everyone. thanks for the extra information, fran.
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