Recording - March 2021 - 38

Inside the

Studio
with Mark Hornsby

Demystifying Room Acoustics

Choose your space wisely

Are you being realistic? That room you picked out for your
studio-why did you choose it? Because it's pretty? Because it's
the only space you have, or think you have? Apartment living
has its constraints, but that 10x10 spare bedroom is probably
the last place you want to call 'my studio'. Avoid small square
enclosures. Most apartments have an open living area where
the kitchen/dining area opens up into the living room. This is the
space where you want to make music. Whether it's a separate
table in the dining area or the living room that doubles as a
creative space, anywhere that has longer, more open rooms will
sound better than a small box. Frankly, as powerful and portable
as modern gear is, the idea of the home studio being a strictly
defined space is past due for an update.
What about bigger houses? I wholeheartedly understand
that the sunroom, with all the big open windows, looks and
feels great, but the reality is that the room itself will not sound
that good. Whether it's glass or flat parallel walls, you want
to avoid any space with a whole bunch of matching surfaces.
There's a studio I know of that sits on a farm. Lots of windows,
lots of beautiful scenery, but-the rooms don't sound that
good. People that go there are paying for the vibe. The vibe
is important, but let's not forget what it is we're trying to accomplish. Save the glass-enclosed sunroom as a writing room.

Rupert Neve HQ

(GiK Acoustics Alpha Pro Series 1D binary design)
(Gik Acoustics Tri Traps)

Photos by Rupert Neve

Lost Ark Studios

(GiK Acoustics Bass Traps)

Up, down and all-around

What if you just want a mixing space? What should you
do? First off, look up. If you have a ceiling above you that you
can stand, reach up and touch, you need to treat it with some
absorption. Foam works, insulation covered in acoustic fabric,
whatever you got - put something above the listening position.
Now, look to your left and right. If there is a wall or flat surface
six feet to either side, put a panel on it. Again, prefab or something you made yourself. Then there's the wall behind you. If
it's within 10 to 12 feet of the speakers, put a bookshelf or two (with books)
on it. Finally, the wall in front of you that's behind your speakers-hopefully,
you don't have the desk/speakers right up against the wall, but if you do, try
absorption and diffusion and see which one works the best.

Try before you buy

Acoustic treatments are not cheap. So, experiment with stuff from
around the house before you go dropping mad coin. I've already mentioned bookshelves. Whether it's rugs, packing blankets, foam, whatever
you have, use it and see what works in your room. Sure, it's not pretty,
but the intent here isn't for it to stay that way forever, it's to see what
you're dealing with so you can have an intelligent conversation with your
salesperson when it's time to make a purchase. Good luck!
Mark Hornsby is an award-winning music producer and audio engineer.
He is co-founder and president of EchoXS Entertainment, LLC, a company
dedicated to providing artists with creative solutions by some of the
best people in the business.
markhornsby.com	
38 RECORDING March 2021

echoxs.com

A word about room modes

Let's face it, some rooms like Mixolydian, some
like Phrygian... But seriously, anytime you have
two surfaces facing each other, they will reinforce
certain frequencies. For example, if you plug a
bass guitar into a small amp and start playing
the high E on the A string (seventh fret) and then
slowly play each note down the neck, you will
probably run into one note that is louder than the
others. It may even make the light fixture rattle
slightly. That pronounced, resonant frequency is
one of the modes in the room you are sitting in.
A given room will have multiple modes. In a
square room, it will be wall to wall, ceiling to floor,
plus the opposing wall to wall. We should be interested in these frequencies because they can tell
us what is happening naturally in a given space
to correct it, or at the very least, know what to
look out for in our mix. If there is a 200 Hz mode
happening in our mixing space, we might find ourselves continually trying to cut out 200 Hz in our
mix, resulting in a mix with a 200 Hz deficiency.


http://www.markhornsby.com http://www.echoxs.com

Recording - March 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Recording - March 2021

Fade In
Fast Forward
Neumann KH 750 DSP + MA 1 Monitor Alignment Microphone and Calibration System
Inside the Box with Joe Albano: Monitor Controllers
KRK ROKIT 7 G4 White Noise Monitor and S8.4 Studio Subwoofer
Sons of the past, brothers of the future: In the studio with Hearty Har
Ocean Way Audio HR5 Powered Studio Monitor
Inside the Studio with Mark Hornsby: Demystifying Acoustics
RME ADI-2 DAC FS Ultra-Fidelity PCM/DSD 768 kHz DA Converter
A Family of Headphones Compared: The Audio-Technica ATH-Mx Series
Mackie CR3-X Creative Reference Multimedia Monitors
Session Log: The AngelHeaded Hipster Part 3: Leakage, Instrumentals, Stems, Monitoring
Cranborne Audio Camden EC1 Preamp, Signal Processor & Headphone Amplifier
Swiss Army Recording Rooms: Acoustic treatments for multipurpose studio spaces
SPL Marc One Monitoring and Recording Controller
Eventide H9000 Next Generation Harmonizer (Part One)
Fade Out: It’s All About The Room
Recording - March 2021 - Intro
Recording - March 2021 - Cover1
Recording - March 2021 - Cover2
Recording - March 2021 - 1
Recording - March 2021 - 2
Recording - March 2021 - 3
Recording - March 2021 - Fade In
Recording - March 2021 - 5
Recording - March 2021 - 6
Recording - March 2021 - 7
Recording - March 2021 - Fast Forward
Recording - March 2021 - 9
Recording - March 2021 - Neumann KH 750 DSP + MA 1 Monitor Alignment Microphone and Calibration System
Recording - March 2021 - 11
Recording - March 2021 - 12
Recording - March 2021 - 13
Recording - March 2021 - Inside the Box with Joe Albano: Monitor Controllers
Recording - March 2021 - 15
Recording - March 2021 - 16
Recording - March 2021 - 17
Recording - March 2021 - 18
Recording - March 2021 - 19
Recording - March 2021 - KRK ROKIT 7 G4 White Noise Monitor and S8.4 Studio Subwoofer
Recording - March 2021 - 21
Recording - March 2021 - 22
Recording - March 2021 - 23
Recording - March 2021 - Sons of the past, brothers of the future: In the studio with Hearty Har
Recording - March 2021 - 25
Recording - March 2021 - 26
Recording - March 2021 - 27
Recording - March 2021 - 28
Recording - March 2021 - 29
Recording - March 2021 - 30
Recording - March 2021 - 31
Recording - March 2021 - 32
Recording - March 2021 - 33
Recording - March 2021 - Ocean Way Audio HR5 Powered Studio Monitor
Recording - March 2021 - 35
Recording - March 2021 - Inside the Studio with Mark Hornsby: Demystifying Acoustics
Recording - March 2021 - 37
Recording - March 2021 - 38
Recording - March 2021 - 39
Recording - March 2021 - RME ADI-2 DAC FS Ultra-Fidelity PCM/DSD 768 kHz DA Converter
Recording - March 2021 - 41
Recording - March 2021 - A Family of Headphones Compared: The Audio-Technica ATH-Mx Series
Recording - March 2021 - 43
Recording - March 2021 - 44
Recording - March 2021 - 45
Recording - March 2021 - 46
Recording - March 2021 - 47
Recording - March 2021 - Mackie CR3-X Creative Reference Multimedia Monitors
Recording - March 2021 - 49
Recording - March 2021 - Session Log: The AngelHeaded Hipster Part 3: Leakage, Instrumentals, Stems, Monitoring
Recording - March 2021 - 51
Recording - March 2021 - 52
Recording - March 2021 - 53
Recording - March 2021 - Cranborne Audio Camden EC1 Preamp, Signal Processor & Headphone Amplifier
Recording - March 2021 - 55
Recording - March 2021 - 56
Recording - March 2021 - 57
Recording - March 2021 - Swiss Army Recording Rooms: Acoustic treatments for multipurpose studio spaces
Recording - March 2021 - 59
Recording - March 2021 - SPL Marc One Monitoring and Recording Controller
Recording - March 2021 - 61
Recording - March 2021 - Eventide H9000 Next Generation Harmonizer (Part One)
Recording - March 2021 - 63
Recording - March 2021 - 64
Recording - March 2021 - 65
Recording - March 2021 - 66
Recording - March 2021 - 67
Recording - March 2021 - 68
Recording - March 2021 - 69
Recording - March 2021 - 70
Recording - March 2021 - 71
Recording - March 2021 - Fade Out: It’s All About The Room
Recording - March 2021 - Cover3
Recording - March 2021 - Cover4
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