bass traps installed...it's worth the effort


I built some custom Ethan Winer midbass/upperbass/midrange traps for my listening room, covering the front wall behind the speakers.
Cost was under $200, and took about a week to construct.
The improvement in overall bass clarity and impact is striking.
YMMV

1khz Reference level = 75db
Hz--------w/o traps---w/traps
200-------72---------79 (+7db)
160-------69---------76 (+7db)
125-------68---------75 (+7db)
100-------68---------74 (+6db)
80--------69---------74 (+5db)
63--------62---------68 (+6db)
50--------67---------68 (+1db)
40--------75---------76 (-1db)
31--------77---------76 (-1db)
25--------73---------73
20--------63---------63

pix of traps
snickelfritz
Hey Snick,

No problem -- it's better to be busy than not busy and in business you have to rake it in while the raking is good. Give me a shout when you have time to breathe. And if you have any bass traps left over, put them aside for me would you?! :)
Thanks Plato,

Ethan stated the center frequencies of the panel traps would be approximately 90hz and 150hz, but I was surprized how effective a single wall treatment can be down into the midbass.
I'm probably going to install another 8'x2' midbass trap in the ceiling directly over the listening position; maybe I can get that 50-60 range up into the low 70's; there's definitely a major cancellation in my room in that region.

BTW,
Sorry I've been such a stranger the past week.
Between building these traps and keeping up with my business, I've barely had time to sleep! (September/October is always a busy time in my graphics business)
Hopefully we can get that meeting together later this week if the phone stops ringing for a day or two.
:)

cheers,
snick
It's surprising that the response changed so much (from 63Hz-200Hz) with the addition of the traps (at least to me). It looks like the traps are "tuned" for that bandwidth...

Good work!