Acoustic Panel Construction
 Printer Friendly Version
 This project is a credit to Tom Skeahan and Ethan Winer at the musicplayer acoustics forum for their great advice and inspiration. they know what they are talking about...the method is simple and it WILL give you more detailed imaging, a bigger soundstage, and a flatter low end response. Your mom wouldn’t notice the difference but you will.
To save Tom & Ethan from saying it again, i will echo their words: it is all about ‘coverage.’ In other words, the more traps you install, the flatter the critical low-end frequency response of the room will be. more is more.
If you don’t want to DIY, RealTraps are the way to go. but here’s how i did it.
|
|
|
Acoustic Panel Construction |
|
You are basically making a large picture frame. select a wood for the frame. I chose this 3¼” moulding, and another 3 9/16” moulding for the thicker traps (not shown). I would recommend something more robust, like 1x4” pine. my stuff splits and cracks too easily. |
2 |
cut the wood into (2) 2’ lengths and (2) 4’ lengths. these are INSIDE dimensions of the frame. (i added 5/8” to the total board length for each angle cut, and there are 2 cuts for each board.)
i made my cuts with a circular saw angled to 45° and a large metal framing square to keep it in line as i mitered across the moulding. it’s a little awkward, but cheaper than a buying a miter saw, and nicer looking than straight lap joints.)
(sorry, no pictures) |
3 |
decide how you are going to keep the frame together. screws were splitting my wood so i had to go with finish nails. |
4 |
|
once the wood is cut, pre-drill holes for your nails or screws.
makes things easier later and reduces chances of splitting the wood. |
5 |
  ready the nails on the long boards with a few taps of the hammer |
6 |
at this point it’s best to make a simple jig that will support the frame as you screw or nail into it. mount a piece of your angled scrap into a wall whose appearance you don’t care about (like your landlord’s basement). the idea is that the jig holds one of your 2’ pieces for you while you put the frame together.
i mounted mine at a height that allows a 2’ section, when placed into the jig, to come up to about table height. it’s hard to see but look for this in the next photo. |
7 |
 insert one of your 2’ sections in the angled jig |
8 |
 lay a 4’ section over it horizontally at a right-angle to the 2’ piece & nail it up |
9 |
 turn the frame around and get ready to attach the other 2’ section |
10 |
 i’m using 3 nails in the long boards, and 2 nails perpendicular in the short boards. anyone experienced in finish carpentry is calling me a fool at this point for A) using moulding in the first place, and B) expecting to nail into it without it cracking like an egg. use screws instead, if your wood can deal with them.
another option is attaching L-brackets to the insides of the frames. this didn’t work out for me because i wasn’t able to successfully screw the brackets in to the thin moulding. |
11 |
  at this point find a way to hold up the tri-frame and position the last long 4’ board over the open top of it. |
12 |
  this is tricky to hold together at this point. steady the frame and the long board in place while attaching them. i am using my left shoulder and some quiet prayers to support the upper long board.
notice how i made the jig so that there was a flat area at the top of it which is at the same height as my table, effectively giving me a larger resting area for the frame. if you have a larger table to work on then this is irrelevant. |
13 |
  turning the frame around again....
and attaching the last corner.
(nice! the nails are already there.) |
14 |
  not-so professional nail setting. if you are using finish nails, go out and buy a $7 nailset instead of cutting up your fingers with my technique |
15 |
  sexy frames.
(now would be a good time to give them a paintjob) |
16 |
 now lay out a frame morgue-style on the bench. cover with a 35” width of fabric (i used a heavy white linen, bolt length was 60” which was just enough to cover the 48” length of the frames.) |
17 |
checklist before proceeding:
paper facemask, gloves, eye protection, long sleeves, long pants. you have been warned!
insert your owens-corning 703 or 705 fiberglass panel on top of the fabric and fit it snug into the frame. if the inside dimensions of your frame were close to 24”x48”, it will fit nice and snug. |
18 |
  lightly tug the fabric so that it peeks out evenly around all edges
Right now the fabric & insulation are ‘floating’ in i.e. unattached to the frame. |
19 |
  now to attach the fabric&insulation to the frame. you may find a more robust method, but here’s what i did
the left pic shows the back side of the panel where i screwed THROUGH the insulation into the side frame with 2” drywall screws and fender washers. however, the insulation can’t really be ‘screwed’ i.e. the screw does not grab the insulation. but the washer helps hold it into place. not an ideal solution by any means.
if you use this method be sure not to drill too far or you will have screws poking out the side of your panel! |
20 |
 tucking away the extra fabric with the staple gun. save yourself the trouble i had and buy an electric staple gun ($30). |
21 |
 almost there |
22 |
  two mounting methods. regardless of whether you mount them vertically or horizontally, screw your eyehooks into what will be the frame’s side walls, not its top piece (like in the left photo).
in the right photo, the angle brackets are sticking a few inches under the top board of the frame. but over time the weight of the frame will cause the top section to pry loose of the rest of the frame, so in this case support it from the bottom as well. |
23 |
  happy studio.
mounting the eye hooks on the shorter 2’ side boards at a point 2” from the top of the frame, and then hanging the panel from ceiling wires, naturally angles the frame toward the listening position. |
|
questions are best asked on the musicplayer acoustics forum however feel free to email me.
happy DIYing...
mark
new york, usa |
