I get a lot of questions about what gear to buy, what is the best mic, or how do I use a compressor to make my recording sound better. After a few minutes speaking with budding engineers is seems one thing constantly comes to the surface….. What have you done to your room to treat it acoustically? This is usually followed by a blank stare with a huge question mark situated just above his or her head telling me that they indeed have done nothing what-so-ever to treat their studio to sound it’s best!

A studio’s number one tool for good sound is the room itself and how it is treated acoustically. Think about it this way… If you are recording or mixing in a room that is basically telling you that you have too much bass or your high end is too bright, when in fact it is not – rooms do lie you know – how do you know what is sounding good and what may need better micing or mixing to sound better? You don’t. Room acoustics treat a room to be basically flat. Now, don’t get me wrong and don’t get the rampage going…. getting a room acoustically flat is pretty hard and it can be expensive if the room was not built from the get go with acoustics in mind…. However, you can treat a room with acoustic devices to get pretty near flat or at least in an acceptable range that will allow you to know what you are recording or mixing actually sounds like what you are hearing out of your speakers.

Acoustic treatments include broadband absorbers, bass traps, diffusers, and other off the shelf or home made solutions to control the sound within your room. Off the shelf solutions have come a long way in the past 10 years but are still very expensive. Home made versions are cheap, generally do a better job, and are really pretty simple to construct if you have a plan of action! Most musicians and artists know what the 2″ foam stuff looks like. This is typically absorbs the broadband frequencies of sound, but do little for the low end or bass reflections of a room. I have many, many studios that have way, way too much of this stuff around the room. Simply buying off the shelf material and sticking it on any wall you can find is not the solution to any acoustic issues you may have in your studio!

Acoustic treatment is a science, but a science that even a musician can follow…..er um…. I am allowed to say that because I have been a musician for my entire life!

This is the first of many, many blog posts, tips, tricks, and ideas to come about studio acoustic treatment. I just wanted to get you thinking, get you studying and well, wet your whistle a bit. In the next few days we are going to dive into the world of treating your studio so that you have the best tool in the world to a great sound!

Peace,
Jai