Archive for category Music Rehearsal Spaces

DIY: StratiQuilt™ Room Treatment

There are some situations where people are looking for a more temporary (yet still durable and effective) room treatment.  Maybe you have a garage, or a practice space, or a place where you are looking for a usable solution that isn’t a permanent installation.  Here is a great (not to mention tax deductible) treatment that can address many of the isolation and absorption issues of a space, while remaining durable (Washable), and easy to remove and reuse.

qfm-wallpanel

Stuff you need:

  • Enough StratiQuilt™ Double-Faced Barrier Blanket to cover all of the wall and ceiling surfaces of the room you need to treat.
  • 2”x4” lumber for the edges (Used to attach the barrier to the walls and maintaining an air gap.)
  • Short Lag bolts and Washers
  • Misc. hardware to attach 2”x4” lumber to walls.

Here’s what you do.

Attach the 2”x4” lumber to the walls with enough spacing to line up the grommets on two overlapped edges of the StratiQuilt™ blankets – if you have purchased the roll, the finished edges are 4 feet wide.  Leave enough room to overlap the edges and bolt the quilts to the 2”x4” lumber as shown in the diagram above.  Continue around the room, overlapping the edges of the StratiQuilt™ blankets to seal off the room.  The blankets can be left loose over doors to allow for entry and egress while maintaining a good acoustic seal.

stratiquilt room treatment

If desired, continue the process across the ceiling to “lock in” the room acoustics.  This treatment may be considered by some to be a little on the “dead” side (High Absorption); however, The benefits of the treatment far outweigh this issue, which can be compensated for by adding a few acoustically reflective surfaces to the room (Drum Kit, Amplifiers, Racks, Diffusers, etc.)

Why use this system?

Other than it being very simple to install, take down and move with minor modifications to the structure, it performs a few vital acoustic tasks – all with one product.  The StratiQuilt™ design is two layers of quilted acoustic fiberglass with a layer of BlockAid® barrier in the middle.  The BlockAid® help the soundproofing of the room by it’s STC of 29, which will add significant isolation to the room.  Mounting on the 2”x4” lumber is not just done for ease – adding the air gap behind the barrier increases both its STC and NRC allowing it to work as a limp mass barrier/absorber.  The material absorbs on both sides (being double-faced), forcing in-room reflections to be attenuated immensely through the many layers of material it must pass through.

And on a final note, this economical start-up solution has the benefit of not being a “Building Material” for tax purposes, allowing for its immediate deduction as an expense.

Record your garage band without sounding like you’re in a garage, Try StratiQuilt™.

This simple DIY project is provided as a way for our customers to learn better ways to use our products and get more value out of the products they buy.  If you are looking for more ways to use the products you have, look to Acoustics First for Ideas.  http://www.acousticsfirst.com

————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————

Acoustics First Corporation supplies acoustical panels and soundproofing materials to control sound and eliminate noise in commercial, residential, government, and institutional applications worldwide.  Products include the patented Art Diffusor®, sound absorbers, noise barriers, acoustical fabrics and accessories. Acoustics First® products are sold for O.E.M applications, direct, and through dealers.  For more information on acoustical materials and their application, please visit www.AcousticsFirst.com or call Toll Free 1-888-765-2900 (US & Canada).

, , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Leave a comment

DIY: How to quiet down that noisy equipment rack

rackDIY Project – Rack issues

 

Take a few seconds and DIY fix some of the common problems with using equipment racks!

Not too many people think about their equipment racks, but many of us use them.  Usually it’s something like what you see to the right – the great, sturdy, utilitarian box.  Unfortunately, there are a couple inherent problems with these:

  • Ringing – The metal resonates causing a ringing effect – may be masked by program material.
  • Reflections – many times your rack is near sound sources causing reflections off the hard surfaces.
  • Noise – Fans and other devices in the rack can make noises that are disruptive to recording.

Here are a few DIY fixes for these common problems.

  • Composite foam with adhesive backing is perfect for stopping the ringing of filler panels.
  • Use some Composite Foam to line your trays, drawers and shelves to keep items from rattling around inside the case.
  • Make a temporary cover for the front and back with BlockAid® sound barrier with minimal ventilation cut-outs to use during takes if rack-borne noise is problematic.

This simple DIY project is provided as a way for our customers to learn better ways to use our products and get more value out of the products they buy.  If you are looking for more ways to use the products you have, look to Acoustics First for Ideas.  http://www.acousticsfirst.com

————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————

Acoustics First Corporation supplies acoustical panels and soundproofing materials to control sound and eliminate noise in commercial, residential, government, and institutional applications worldwide.  Products include the patented Art Diffusor®, sound absorbers, noise barriers, acoustical fabrics and accessories. Acoustics First® products are sold for O.E.M applications, direct, and through dealers.  For more information on acoustical materials and their application, please visit www.AcousticsFirst.com or call Toll Free 1-888-765-2900 (US & Canada).

, , , , , ,

Leave a comment

DIY: Fix Music Stand Ringing and Reflection

DIY Project – Music/Copy Stand Cover

Take a few seconds and DIY fix some of the common problems with using metal music stands!

DIY-covered music standNot too many people think about their music stands, but we all have them somewhere.  Usually it’s one of those you see to the right – the great, sturdy, utilitarian devices that they are.  Unfortunately, there are a couple inherent problems with these:

  • Ringing – The metal resonates causing a ringing effect.
  • Reflections – many times you are using a stand close to a microphone and getting early reflections off the stand.

Here’s a few DIY fixes for these common problems.

  • a few feet of composite foam will give you both reflection and ringing fixes

The ultimate suggestion would be the Composite Foam/Barrier adhered directly to the stand, then covered with Sound Channels® fabric – This would turn your stand into a mini absorber.

Do the front and back! Make a slip cover for a temporary/removable solution.

This simple DIY project is provided as a way for our customers to learn better ways to use our products and get more value out of the products they buy.  If you are looking for more ways to use the products you have, look to Acoustics First for Ideas.  http://www.acousticsfirst.com

————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————

Acoustics First Corporation supplies acoustical panels and soundproofing materials to control sound and eliminate noise in commercial, residential, government, and institutional applications worldwide.  Products include the patented Art Diffusor®, sound absorbers, noise barriers, acoustical fabrics and accessories. Acoustics First® products are sold for O.E.M applications, direct, and through dealers.  For more information on acoustical materials and their application, please visit www.AcousticsFirst.com or call Toll Free 1-888-765-2900 (US & Canada).

, , , , , , , , , ,

Leave a comment

DIY: Isolation Stand for Speakers and Instrument Amplifiers

DIY Project – Float your Loudspeakers and Monitors

Keep your Amps and Monitors from shaking the house down!

Instrument amplifiers, loudspeakers, and studio monitors all have the potential to cause structural vibrations. These vibrations can have an adverse effect on the listening environments, and can bleed into other microphones and instruments.  Here’s an easy DIY project for floating those noisy guitar and bass cabinets (this project can be scaled up or down – from studio monitors to subwoofers).DIY-platfloat - decon explode

Stuff you will need:

  • 2 – 2’x2’x3/4” Plywood (whatever size you want)
  • 2’x2’ Carpet Underlayment (Same size as Plywood)
  • 2”x4”x8’ Lumber for frame (More if scaling larger)
  • About 1 cu.ft. Clean Dry Sand (Sandbox Sand)
  • 3’x3’ Industrial Carpet (Enough to cover platform)
  • Vib-X Pad to cut at least 4 – 2” Squares for feet
  • Construction Adhesive

Simple assembly

  1. Create Frame and attach to bottom Plywood
  2. Attach Vib-X feet to bottom
  3. Fill with Sand
  4. Attach Plywood top
  5. Adhere Carpet Underlayment to top
  6. Carpet Box

DIY-platfloat - decon assembledThis plan is for a 2’x2’ platform. You can scale these or use more than one. Scale with caution – the sand makes these extremely heavy. What you are building is a floating platform. Keeping the sound from being transmitted into the floor below effectively decouples the speaker, making it “float”. In essence, the vibrations are being absorbed before getting to a solid surface, allowing for a more transparent listening experience and keeping the vibrations from interfering with other instruments in the area.

DIY-platfloat -covered final

This simple DIY project is provided as a way for our customers to learn better ways to use our products and get more value out of the products they buy.  If you are looking for more ways to use the products you have, look to Acoustics First for Ideas.  http://www.acousticsfirst.com

————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————

Acoustics First Corporation supplies acoustical panels and soundproofing materials to control sound and eliminate noise in commercial, residential, government, and institutional applications worldwide.  Products include the patented Art Diffusor®, sound absorbers, noise barriers, acoustical fabrics and accessories. Acoustics First® products are sold for O.E.M applications, direct, and through dealers.  For more information on acoustical materials and their application, please visit www.AcousticsFirst.com or call Toll Free 1-888-765-2900 (US & Canada).

, , , , , , , , ,

Leave a comment

Acoustics First’s acoustical wall fabric saves $Green$ while being Green!

For Immediate Release

Acoustical wall fabric saves $Green$ while being Green!

Sound Channels® acoustical wall fabric is manufactured from 100% Post-Consumer Recycled material, making this a quick ship, easy, no thought acoustic solution.

Sound Channels® is applied directly to vertical surfaces, is easy to cut and installs like wall carpet. This absorptive wall fabric is a great choice to moderate speech frequencies in any application. Great to soften sound in conference rooms, distance learning, offices, and day care facilities, this material can also be used as a base layer in home theaters, recording studios and broadcast facilities.

Not only is this economical acoustical treatment available in countless colors, it is manufactured from recycled materials, reducing environmental impact!

Sound Channels in manufactured using Eco-fi fibers. Eco-fi is a high-quality polyester fiber made from 100% certified recycled plastic bottles. It can go into any textile product such as clothing, blankets, carpets, wall coverings, auto interiors, home furnishings, and craft felt. Eco-fi can also be blended with other fibers, such as cotton or wool, for enhanced qualities.

AN EASY GUIDE: 15 bottles = 1 yard of wall covering

Why buy Eco‐fi products?
We have the capacity to keep billions of plastic bottles out of the world’s landfills each year by using post-consumer plastic bottles instead of virgin materials in the fiber manufacturing process. By doing this, we can lower harmful air emissions and save millions of barrels of oil from being used which, in turn, reduces the harmful effects of acid rain, global warming, and smog. Fabrics made from Eco-fi fiber are chemically and functionally nearly identical to those made from non-recycled fiber. The difference is that Eco-fi fiber is made without depleting the Earth’s natural resources. With properties such as strength, softness, shrinkage-resistance, and colorfastness, market applications for Eco-fi products are expanding every day.

Click here for more information on the Sound Channels acoustical wall fabric.
http://www.acousticsfirst.com/sound-channels-wall-covering.htm

——————————————————————————————————————————————-

Acoustics First Corporation supplies acoustical panels and soundproofing materials to control sound and eliminate noise in commercial, residential, government, and institutional applications worldwide. Products include the patented Art Diffusor®, sound absorbers, noise barriers, acoustical fabrics and accessories. Acoustics First® products are sold for O.E.M applications, direct, and through dealers. For more information on acoustical materials and their application, please visit www.AcousticsFirst.com or call Toll Free 1-888-765-2900 (US & Canada).

www.AcousticsFirst.com
Acoustics First Corporation
PH: (804) 342-2900
Sign up for Future Press Releases
http://eepurl.com/hxZCs

, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Leave a comment