Room treatment with acoustic panels


Most folks on here consider this a no-brainer as far as it being necessary but people new to the hobby may wonder if it’s worth the expense. YES! 

I never used them before because I knew nothing about them. With my newly created system I figured I would give them a shot so I’ve been getting a lot of help and advice with them from GIK Acoustics.

I ordered bass traps for the corners and side walls. I also  bought the panels that go on the side walls for the "first reflection" spots and the panels that mount to the ceiling. 

Not everything has arrived yet but yesterday I started placing some of the side wall panels. 

Even just temporarily resting on blocks of wood while placement is finalized, the difference is extremely and immediately noticeable. Fuller, cleaner sound that makes the speakers disappear. 

Boy, I can’t wait to get everything installed! If you’re new at this and think your gear already sounds good, treat the room anyways. You will love the difference.

GIK Acoustics will refund your money if you don’t. Probably something they’ve never had to worry about I’m sure. 

If it is of help to anybody, here’s everything I’ve ordered from GIK:

 

 
 
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SoundBlocks™ - Stack - Free Stand / Black

Free Stand / Black

  • Pattern: Wavy Leaves
  • Finish: Walnut

 

Quantity: 1
Total: $749.00

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Amplitude™ Corner Bass Traps - Standard / Black

Standard / Black

  • Pattern: Wavy Leaves
  • Finish: Walnut

 

Quantity: 1
Total: $299.00

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Amplitude™ Corner Bass Traps - Demi / Black

Demi / Black

  • Pattern: Wavy Leaves
  • Finish: Walnut

 

Quantity: 1
Total: $229.00

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Classic Bass Trap Panels - 100Hz / Rectangle / Black

100Hz / Rectangle / Black

Quantity: 4
Total: $109.00

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Amplitude™ Bass Trap Panels - 100Hz / Narrow / Black

100Hz / Narrow / Black

  • Pattern: Wavy Leaves
  • Finish: Walnut

 

Quantity: 6
Total: $129.00

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FlexRange® Acoustic Panels - Rectangle / White / Full Range

Rectangle / White / Full Range

Quantity: 3
Total: $99.00

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Ceiling Cloud Brackets - White

White

Quantity: 3
Total: $19.00

toddsyr

@ricred1 If your happy then that's all that matters. Me? I'm happy too. There's always going to be something better in this hobby, usually at a higher price. For now I have enough rabbit holes of my own, LOL!

@frank009 Thank you, I wish you the same. Enjoyment is what it's all about.

@gkelly Nice to hear you obtained great improvement with the treatment. I won't pretend to know all the audiophile jargon, but the panels sure make a good system sound even better!

@hilde45 LOL! Sounds good to me (pun intended). 

@tcutter Thanks. I actually do listen to the folks on here when it's something I think I can accomplish. I have received an immense amount of help from the Audiogon community and it's very highly appreciated. 

@wolf_garcia Hey, whatever works for you as long as you like it. I gotta tell you though, I was quite happy with my sound before trying the panels too. I wasn't expecting much from room treatment because of that. I sure was surprised though even with just some of the panels situated. Companies like GIK Acoustics do offer a money back guarantee so why not take some for a test drive? 

@tuberist Maybe. I never delved into room treatment before simply because I never heard of it before joining this forum. 

@nd1der Call GIK or send an email. I didn't have time to figure out the web function they use to draw out the listening room and explained that to them. I measured EVERYTHING in the listening room and drew it out on paper. Then I sent the image to GIK and they took care of the rest. They will bend over backwards to help you. 

@kevemaher I believe GIK even recommends using REW. Again, for me, no time to delve into something else new. I usually work 60-65 hours a week, take care of the lawn, house etc.   

@fire_water Glad I piqued your interest. It is a fascinating  subject for sure. I've learned some of it recently. You stated "I created diffusers using wood elements that actually define the room but whether they work acoustically or not I couldn't tell you." Take them out of the room. If you hear a significant difference or not will give you your answer. It's immediately noticeable. 

Hey toddsyr,

I’m working on a similar plan using GIK. 

If you want to maximize your investment and take it another level, with minimal effort and cost, I can highly recommend working with Kevin Fielding. I’ve seen pics of his listening room...he practices what he preaches. 

You send him REW measurements and a few screen shots, and this is what you get (and FaceTime/WhatsApp consults) for way less than most here spend on an interconnect, or even few GIK panels.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1_27JndFi-2HYjtwqYWtf1LlBMfVXV9P5/view?usp=sharing

@toddsyr lol if I could I would.  The diffusers I'm talking about are actually room partitions and can't be removed. One consists of eight pieces of 250 yr old rustic beams that I've cut down to 60" lengths and weighting 550 lbs. The other partition consists of a tall frame of random pieces of fire wood. While these are actually architectural elements they double as room diffusers in that they are uneven and staggered chunks/lengths of wood. Some fine people here on Audiogon have suggested that I've inadvertently created diffusers. But how well they actually work I'm not sure. 

@fire_water 

While your set-up likely provides some diffusion, the random configuration and placement is unlikely to achieve the smooth and desirable frequency response that properly designed and placed quadratic, skyline, etc. diffusers provide. You may have some frequencies impacted more than others, leading to an uneven room response. 

Consider using the search term: "are formulas important for good acoustic diffusion" for further elaboration.