Xec needs listening/whisky room advice

Discussion in 'Speakers' started by Xecuter, Oct 30, 2016.

  1. Xecuter

    Xecuter Brush and floss your amp twice a day

    Pyrate
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    Not much to update atm other than the framing is basically complete.

    [​IMG]

    In the quote I asked him to do a desk between the poles at the rear using a nice slab of hardwood.
    Not sure if this is the slab they are using for that but this is extremely dry timber, looks to be silky oak.
    Will have to ask if this is what he is using for the desk because I worry it won't hold up very well.
    [​IMG]

    We also did the rough electrical plan, some things have moved around a bit since my initial plan.

    upload_2021-6-14_20-19-9.png

    this is my rough plan. Any feedback is appreciated. I will likely feed the projector HDMI from a pc/apple tv, which we can run the audio from the desk to the rack.
    independent GPO on separate circuit for the speakers at the rear.
    aircon will go above the door. Can run long XLR from the rack to behind the speakers or I can place the rack in the centre of the speakers.

    Getting very close to them closing it in!
     
  2. ogodei

    ogodei MOT: Austin AudioWorks

    Pyrate
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    GPO is a power outlet I take it. I'd suggest two or even 4 outlets in the ceiling by the projector (for projector, powered HDMI booster, wireless, etc). I also made the box up there big and deep, like 10 x 10 inches, it holds all power cords, stacked surge protectors for the projector, and acts as an end bay for the HDMI run.

    I ran flexible PVC pipe through the joists from my rack to the ceiling bay to hold the HDMI cables, it will help if I need to upgrade & fish cable in the future. I also put in a redundant HDMI cable when I built which is probably overkill, but test your cables before you wall them up.

    If you plan on running subs consider putting a cable in the walls to the intended places, although wireless is an option these days.
     
  3. Xecuter

    Xecuter Brush and floss your amp twice a day

    Pyrate
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    Awesome advice.

    Thank you
     
  4. Xecuter

    Xecuter Brush and floss your amp twice a day

    Pyrate
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    @ogodei I took your advice and had them add conduit from the desk area to the projector. I asked the builders about putting a 'hush box' in the bulkhead to contain the projector but I don't think the plumbing will allow for this. Will discuss further tomorrow.
    Thinking of adding 2x flexible conduit to carry XLR from the rack to the left and right speakers from the rear. under the floor or something so I can easily run long cables from the DAC to the rear of the room if I choose to keep the DAC in the 'rack area'.

    We have a solid core door and the window is now closed up.
    [​IMG]

    By the end of this week, windows will be in and then insulation will begin.
     
  5. ogodei

    ogodei MOT: Austin AudioWorks

    Pyrate
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    My projector's about 5 feet behind my seated position, ceiling mounted. At regular fan speeds I don't notice the noise.

    If you leave yourself power up there you could build the hush box later if you feel you need it.
     
  6. Xecuter

    Xecuter Brush and floss your amp twice a day

    Pyrate
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    talked to the builder today, they can put a hush box in the bulk head so the projector is all tucked away in the bulk head
    gonna cost an extra $6-700

    [​IMG]

    There will be a heap of space and a conduit to the rear of this so we can put all the electrics behind it. Great suggestion @ogodei
     
  7. Armaegis

    Armaegis Friend

    Pyrate BWC
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    Run some ethernet cabling in all the conduits while you're at it. You never know when it'll be handy in the world of digital audio/streaming/movies/etc or even direct ethernet speakers.
     
  8. Xecuter

    Xecuter Brush and floss your amp twice a day

    Pyrate
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    Hush box built!

    [​IMG]
     
  9. ogodei

    ogodei MOT: Austin AudioWorks

    Pyrate
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    Your builder seems to be on top of things. I'd do as many small fans as possible at low-speed for noise with a low voltage switch you can hang off the projector's trigger. If you put a high speed bathroom vent in there you haven't solved much unless its dumping into an acoustically damped chamber?

    Looks like they ran cable for the electric from the rear, Id ask for as straight a path into your conduit as possible to avoid dealing with turns.

    How will the box affect room acoustics? Take the opportunity to hang diffusion or absorption off it?
     
  10. Xecuter

    Xecuter Brush and floss your amp twice a day

    Pyrate
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    well the bulkhead is basically an acoustically damped chamber? I'll see if we can fit a small noctura PC fan to suck air through that vent and pump it into the cupboard or even better outside.

    There is a manhole in the cupboard that gives access to the back of projector 'hush box', some conduit from the desk area runs to the manhole so you can easily run cables from the pc rack area all the way to the rear of the projector, It's about a short of path as manageable.

    WRT to acoustics.
    I think I'll measure the temps in the box and see if I can put some acoustic foam to cover the front except the lens (will see if this makes the temp in the box too hot). Because it could become an echo chamber if left completely empty. I'll likely line it with acoustic foam to try and reduce the fan noise.

    I'm going to put a diffuser cloud in front of the box, absorption panels at reflections points and a mixture of absorption and diffusion behind the screen (will use acoustic transparent fixed screen mounted 6 inches off the wall and cover the entire rear window with a faced glass wool panel).

    That's the plan in my head at least :D
     
  11. Armaegis

    Armaegis Friend

    Pyrate BWC
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    Do we have different definitions of hush box? This is what I think of when I hear the term (first and second image on google actually...)
    What Xec has right now could potentially make the projector noise worse by acting like a resonant box or horn.
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
     
  12. Xecuter

    Xecuter Brush and floss your amp twice a day

    Pyrate
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    I was going to do something similar just not with the glass and put it in this box within the big box I have now?
     
  13. Armaegis

    Armaegis Friend

    Pyrate BWC
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    Ok that could work. Mainly you just want to force noise to make at least two 90° turns before entering your listening space.
     
  14. Xecuter

    Xecuter Brush and floss your amp twice a day

    Pyrate
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    I think I will try it as it is as a big noisy box and see if i can get an acceptable result if not i can add the hush box retrofit.

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    Insulation going in, the guys have listened to my requests to be very thorough with this installation.

    Even with parts of the room still open the effect is profound, I imagine the room will be extremely dull when complete
     
    Last edited: Jun 17, 2021
  15. ogodei

    ogodei MOT: Austin AudioWorks

    Pyrate
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    Insulation in the wall will increase it's transmission loss, meaning you'll hear less in the other parts of the house. Once the dry wall is up you'll get the echoes back in the room. You'd need a lot of in-room absorption if you want the 'dead' sound you're hearing with all the insulation exposed but you really don't want it.

    In my current room I have floor-to-ceiling light blocking draperies covering about half of the walls. Necessary to deal with multiple windows and glass door but very good for sound absorption as well.

    A 'fun' aside: I used blow-in insulation for a basement theater build some years back. Biggest mess in the world. Worked just OK and later we had a leaky pipe. The insulation got soaked and spread the mess through the room, had to replace about a third of the drywall after ripping the stuff out.
     
  16. Armaegis

    Armaegis Friend

    Pyrate BWC
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    Some rubber/sorbothane pads for the projector feet, and a few sheets of acoustic foam shoved in to make the "walls" is the easy and cheap solution :D

    It's true the drywall will reflect sound again, though the insulation will still absorb a little. He could also build a "soft wall" instead, which is either a fabric wall or a thin panel wall which lets sound transmit into insulation.

    If you stuff insulation into the ceiling and use acoustic tiles up top, that will significantly absorb as well.

    My basement rooms use thin wood panels on the sides and acoustic tiles up top with rockwool on the sides and above. It makes the room very "cozy"
     
  17. ogodei

    ogodei MOT: Austin AudioWorks

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    @Armaegis , I think he already specified gyprock/drywall to match current construction in the rest of the building.

    Fabric panels would be cool and you could do the drywall later, but a room with full exposure of glass fiberboard walls would be massively dead.
     
  18. Xecuter

    Xecuter Brush and floss your amp twice a day

    Pyrate
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    yeh the goal with the insulation is not to soundproof but more to try and control bass response, we are putting 150mm of glass wool in the ceiling and filling the bulk head and 50mm on all the walls.

    I decided to go normal gyprock rather than sound check or anything because sound proofing was never my intention. I wanted to more so begin trying to treat the bass modal issues that would be caused by the rooms dimensions.

    Once the dry wall goes up we will get some base line measurements and see what the room sounds like completely empty.
    I have 16 vicoustic absorption/diffusion panels. I'll probably order another 30 diffusion panels maybe from sonitus and can play with them to do the treatment.

    Gotta figure out how I will mount the projector screen and still allow for some panels behind the screen. rear window will be blacked out.
     
  19. Armaegis

    Armaegis Friend

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    Here I was thinking a soft wall something like this:
    [​IMG]
    ...but yeah that's a firm commitment to the look, whereas drywall is sort of a blank slate.
     
  20. Xecuter

    Xecuter Brush and floss your amp twice a day

    Pyrate
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    [​IMG]

    Drywall is now 70% on, wall is insanely echoy with all the hard flat surfaces, going to need lots of stuff in here to liven it up. Getting close now!

    [​IMG]

    They didn't fill the entire bulk head, 100mm on the ceiling and 50mm on the floor of the bulk head, I can fill it if needs be through the manhole (with difficulty and itchyness).
     

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