Recording - March 2014 - 51

nails, and you're maybe looking at
$12-18 per absorber, depending on the
grades of lumber and cloth you choose.
What about the less formal alternative, better known as the "padded cell" design? This
uses all the ingredients of the formal design
except the frame. Lay a 34" x 72" piece of
thin fabric on the floor. Place a 15" x 48"
slab of unfaced R19 on the fabric, centered
(remember gloves and mask). Place an 18"
X 48" sheet of chipboard on the Fiberglass;
fold the fabric up over the sides and staple it
in place, without compressing the Fiberglass
too much. Staple a 20" piece of picture wire
onto the chipboard. Voila again: sound
absorbers. Not formally beautiful ones perhaps, but they do the job. Expect to spend
from $7-$12 per unit, mainly depending
mostly on the cost of the fabric.
(Yes, those descriptions are terribly
abridged. Go to recordingmag.com and
get the original articles for a much more
detailed story.)
Diffusion, by the book
Okay, you've put some absorption into
your room and it's sounding a lot better
balanced than before. Now it's time to
add some diffusion.
I mentioned that smaller objects tend to
create diffusion-lots of smaller objects.
Contrary to the tale that is venerable
enough to have attained the status of

Urban Legend, the cardboard from egg
crates will not work, ever. I've heard eggcrate studios for forty years, and they all
sound like, well, no diffusion at all.
You can buy devices that create diffusion;
gadgets that look like pseudo-random
abstract sculptures, designed using abstruse
mathematical formulas. Or you can buy
molded plastic squares, designed for mounting on the wall or in a dropped ceiling. Both
types of diffusers work very well, and will
give you good results if your budget supports it...
Or you can build a bookshelf.
I'm not joking; a bookshelf with a wide
assortment of books on it makes an excellent diffuser. Here's my favorite approach.
First, go to the hardware store and get
enough wall strips and brackets, plus
boards, to make a bookcase that covers a
substantial portion of a wall. (It could even
be the new wall you built in the room.) Put up
the strips; you'll need a stud-finder, and a
cordless screwdriver plus soap on the screw
threads saves wear and tear on your wrists.
Now fill the shelves with books-all
sizes of books, with maximum variability
in depth. Use hardbacks, paperbacks,
old pulp magazines, even the odd VHS
tape. Variety is your friend.
But how to afford all those books? If
you're anywhere near a metropolitan area
the answer is simple: Book Fairs! The book

fair has become an established institution,
at least in the USA; in my medium-sized
city there are frequent major book fairs put
on by local not-for-profits. The key moment
is "Bag Day", usually the last day of the
event, where the sponsors clear out all the
unsold material that would otherwise be
consigned to the landfill, typically for $5
per shopping bag.
Since your criterion for buying books is
size, not content, Bag Day is your chance
to fill your shelves at a discount price,
though visiting friends may be puzzled by
your ownership of four copies of Fighting
Father Duffy. It's all in the cause of diffusion,
so pack those bags full; you might even
help out a good cause in your community.
Oh, and if you're a renter, you can
accomplish much the same effect by lining one wall of your room with standalone bookshelves filled with books. It's a
bit more expensive, but has the advantage of being easily movable/removable
when the time comes.
Okay, there's your nicer-sounding
room. Next time, we'll put in speakers
and fill it with the rest of the needed toys.
See you then!
Paul J. Stamler (stamler@recordingmag
.com) is a recording engineer, educator,
and collector of interesting vintage audio,
living and working in St. Louis.


http://www.recordingmag.com http://CRAS.edu http://CRAS.edu http://www.audiorecordingschool.com/consumer.html

Recording - March 2014

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Recording - March 2014

Contents
Recording - March 2014 - Cover1
Recording - March 2014 - Cover2
Recording - March 2014 - 1
Recording - March 2014 - 2
Recording - March 2014 - 3
Recording - March 2014 - 4
Recording - March 2014 - 5
Recording - March 2014 - Contents
Recording - March 2014 - 7
Recording - March 2014 - 8
Recording - March 2014 - 9
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Recording - March 2014 - Cover3
Recording - March 2014 - Cover4
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