The studio at which I used to mix in London had an RPG Diffractal (fractal QRD diffuser), which offers the best of everything. I wanted something broadband, meaning it would diffuse as many frequencies as possible for my money. Within the “diffusion” acoustic-treatment bracket, there are several types of diffusers that treat specific frequencies. ![]() Primacoustics explanation of reflection points What Frequencies Do I Diffuse? I wanted to be even more cautious with my reflection points and treat a larger frequency range, though, so I added a diffuser behind me. In my studio, I used absorptive sounds panels at the reflection points by the mix position and an acoustic curtain behind the mix position to deal with this. The best way to deal with this is to place absorption and/or diffusers at the reflection (or mirror) points. These reflections happen behind the engineer, too, and reflect off the back wall thus reflecting back into the engineer’s ears with an even longer delay. This confuses the brain and ultimately messes up the stereo image, which results in inaccurate mixes that could sound strange on different systems such as consumer headphones. The reason being that if the engineer hears the direct sound vibration from the speaker to his or her ear, he or she will then get a second version of the same vibration that’s reflected off the nearest walls and ceiling but at a slight delay. The first reflections are known as early reflections, and it’s in the engineer’s best interest to kill these reflections. Reflection points are places in a mix room where the audio from the speakers hits the nearest walls and ceiling. Sound hitting a diffuser and being reflected back in many different directions A diffuser jumbles up these reflections so they don’t return back into the room directly. Sound the same way.Īcoustic treatment is the act of stopping the sound bouncing off the various surfaces of the room. If you shine a flashlight at a mirror, the light beam gets reflected back at the angle of incidence (i.e., if you pointed the light at the mirror at a 45-degree angle, it would reflect off the surface at 45 degrees and back into the room). This brings me to the last major variation of acoustic treatment: diffusers. Arqen diagram of bass trap positioning and design Diffusing The idea is for the bass frequencies to pass through them and get trapped in the corner pieces before they come back into the room. They normally consist of pieces placed in the corners of the room. The treatment used to deal with these frequencies is bass traps. This typically creates a buildup of low energy at the corners and walls of the rooms called standing waves. This means that most of the low-end audio coming out of the speakers in the studio has a wavelength that’s longer than most rooms. The wavelengths of sound frequencies audible to the human ear (20 Hz–20 kHz) are thus between approximately 17m and 17mm, respectively. According to Wikipedia:įor sound waves in air, the speed of sound is 343 m/s (at room temperature and atmospheric pressure). The wavelengths of low frequencies are so large, and the energy they produce is greater. This is the hardest frequency range to deal with. The soft furnishings inside the building remove most of the higher frequencies, but the low beat of the music still travels through the walls. Bass TrappingĪnother example is hearing a nightclub from the outside. It will take some of the low end out, but because the physical sound waves are larger in the lower end, they tend to pass right through. Absorption is great at removing higher frequencies. This is due to the acoustic qualities removed by absorptive materials. Have you ever screamed into a pillow? Well, I do constantly, and if you do, you’ll notice that it sounds very muffled. Sound energy (vibration) hits the material and the thousands of tiny air pockets that make up the material remove the energy. You’ve probably seen Auralex pyramids, wedges, or something similar lining studio walls or sporadically positioned in random spots around a room. Usually soft and spongy, these acoustic gems are the most popular type of acoustic treatment. ![]() There are several different types of acoustic treatment that all have their own areas (or frequencies) in which they flourish. Partly due to the fact that I’m not a physicist and partly for the reader’s sanity.įirstly, let’s talk about acoustic treatment types in general. I’m going to try and simplify this article as much as I can. + Ryan Lott (of Son Lux) teaches how to build custom virtual instruments for sound design and scoring in Soundfly’s new course, Designing Sample-Based Instruments. This article originally appeared on the Full English blog.
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