Custom dedicated audio room owners unite!

sbo6

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May 18, 2014
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I'm hoping to be amongst the small percent that can custom build their audio room. I know there's a lot of information on this site, however, I was hoping to procure information consolidated that answers:

1) What are the dimensions of your room and were there any restrictions that led to the dimensions / why did you pick the dims you did?
2) Are you satisfied with your custom room?
3) If you could do it again, would you change anything?


Thanks in advance to all. I'm hoping to align on a new home in the next few months and am thinking (based on info I read / rooms I've been in and heard) ~30' D x ~20' W x ~12' H vaulted ceiling.


Steve
 
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sbnx

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Mar 28, 2017
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You have some pretty good dimensions. once you reach 29' then the lowest mode is below 20Hz. If you use the armoc tool then 29X21X12 has a slightly better room mode distribution than 30X20X12. But likely just splitting hairs.

If you are going to go the drywall clips with double drywall route then that is going to take up 3" per side or 6" out of the lenght and 6" out of the width. So don't forget to take that into account.

If I were to build again I would do a lot of stuff differently. One thing is I would do bamboo flooring rather than hardwood as the hardwood moves throughout the seasons and moves your speakers along with it. Bamboo doesn't have that problem. Also, bamboo is a natural vibration absorber.

Also, I would not build anything directly into the room. Not enough flexibility.
 

sbo6

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May 18, 2014
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Thanks, all important points.

Also, I was thinking the same with the treatment, I would do all that after the fact for flexibility.
 

Tapetech

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Apr 10, 2014
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Fairfax, VA
Don't be all that worried about getting the so-called "optimum room dimensions". Acoustician Dr. Floyd Toole says the golden ratios only work if you have a speaker in one corner and your ear in the far opposite corner. If you move your ears or speaker to another location, the ratios get thrown out the window as in they no longer work.

Once I listened to a very high end system in a room built 100% from scratch to have the correct/optimum room dimensions . The bass response was terrible. Unlistenable.

Floyd Toole - Sound reproduction – art and science/opinions and facts - YouTube
 
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pjwd

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Jun 22, 2015
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Brisbane
I'm hoping to be amongst the small percent that can custom build their audio room. I know there's a lot of information on this site, however, I was hoping to procure information consolidated that answers:

1) What are the dimensions of your room and were there any restrictions that led to the dimensions / why did you pick the dims you did?
2) Are you satisfied with your custom room?
3) If you could do it again, would you change anything?


Thanks in advance to all. I'm hoping to align on a new home in the next few months and am thinking (based on info I read / rooms I've been in and heard) ~30' D x ~20' W x ~12' H vaulted ceiling.


Steve
 
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pjwd

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Jun 22, 2015
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Brisbane
Hi Steve,
Thats almost same dimensions as my room..
8.6x5.6x3.2m .. I focussed on keeping noise out and in with solid concrete filled blockwork , doubly glazing and dense ceiling. No internal linings as these could be be unpredicatable membrane absorbers .. I get about 25db ambient except when a harely goes past or rain belts down.
Acoustic treatments are applied in median plane ( 600 to 1800mm high ) .. baffles on ceiling and corner bass traps
It is a fantastic room .. a listening lab my acoustic engineer buddy calls it !

If doing again I would pay more attention to the builders work in acoustic sealing of joints between materials ( walls and ceilings) and I would perhaps hang ceiling (https://durrapanel.com/?gclid=CjwKC...1ENAePmiIpHC2GYPbZZvOKJ860rIvEIhoCzhkQAvD_BwE)
Off resilient hangers to minimize structure born sound from the roof
The raytrace on thr armoc site mentioned by sbnx is also a great tool
I have speakers on long wall .. I believe you get a better result with first reflections thus a ckearer phantom image with that setup

Cheers
Phil Resized_20200622_091652.jpeg
 

MarkusBarkus

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Feb 6, 2021
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One thing is I would do bamboo flooring rather than hardwood as the hardwood moves throughout the seasons and moves your speakers along with it.
...I would refine this a wee bit, as an engineered floor is very stable, even below grade (appropriate vapor barrier assumed). Solid, tongue and groove products would be much more susceptible to movement, the variables being species and RH in your location.
 

sbo6

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May 18, 2014
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Round Rock, TX
...I would refine this a wee bit, as an engineered floor is very stable, even below grade (appropriate vapor barrier assumed). Solid, tongue and groove products would be much more susceptible to movement, the variables being species and RH in your location.
I have engineered hardwood floors that I installed some years back and they are completely stable as they are glued to a concrete slab, FYR.
 

treitz3

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Dec 25, 2011
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I am among the small percent. The choices are overwhelming and I will have concrete for flooring. Clean slate.

Heard so many folks who built a dedicated room with ill effects....

Dimensions or build? That's my question.

Tom
 

pjwd

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Jun 22, 2015
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I am among the small percent. The choices are overwhelming and I will have concrete for flooring. Clean slate.

Heard so many folks who built a dedicated room with ill effects....

Dimensions or build? That's my question.

Tom
As long as dimensions aren't silly ( a cube) the build is what gives you the low noise floor where you can hear so much more... never hurts to optimise dimensions as much as possible but I would never reduce a dimension to achieve that ... bigger is better
 

treitz3

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Staff member
Dec 25, 2011
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The tube lair in beautiful Rock Hill, SC
That's kind of exactly what I am thinking about doing. Making the room smaller (albeit slightly).

Hear me out. I know I don't want a rectangle. I have that now. What I would like to do (or what I am thinking about doing) is to (see photo below) Take the rectangle and build walls within it. My theory is to have nothing in the room that is parallel, including the ceiling and the floor. The corners would be bullnosed and what I mean by that is rounding them out over the course of two feet, not just a couple of inches.

The ceiling would be sloped, moving up as it gets further away from where the system would reside. The walls would move outward from where the system would reside. I was thinking about building in wall acoustical treatments, as well as ceiling treatments for the room as well.

In the diagram below, the dimensions are totally whack. I just wanted to do a quick sketch of my idea....or where my thought process is at this moment in time.

I will be going from the current room, which is 13x15x8 to an area (that also needs a powder room somewhere in the mix) I can work with that is 22x24'x12. I would need to subtract about 4 feet from one of the area dimensions for the powder room, physical music storage, the RCM and other storage for the system (possibly the rack as well). So, while I may be taking away, going from the current room to this would be a huge change for me and would allow the dual Rythmik F-25's and the Tyler Acoustic Woodmere's to have a chance to finally breathe.

I am still in the planning stage, so I am open to ideas. The build will most likely start in about 3 months or so.

1676480602219.png

Tom
 

Tapetech

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Apr 10, 2014
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Fairfax, VA
Heard so many folks who built a dedicated room with ill effects....
Dimensions or build? That's my question.
Perhaps both. A friend once installed double drywall on his listening room walls to prevent loud music getting to other areas of the house. He claims his bass problems became worse after that. Perhaps the walls were more rigid and reflecting bass rather than some absorption due to flexing.
 

MarkusBarkus

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Feb 6, 2021
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...I could maybe understand some sort of unpleasant "boom" effect to the bass, but those waves are *virtually* unstoppable, so I'm skeptical of bass reflections being the issue. I think with the double-wall drywall, you're meant to have a *flexible* constrained layer between the two gypsum layers. Uniformly glueing them together, I do not believe, would be desirable.

And certainly not intending to imply there was no issue with your friend's room, @Tapetech
 

sbo6

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May 18, 2014
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Round Rock, TX
That's kind of exactly what I am thinking about doing. Making the room smaller (albeit slightly).

Hear me out. I know I don't want a rectangle. I have that now. What I would like to do (or what I am thinking about doing) is to (see photo below) Take the rectangle and build walls within it. My theory is to have nothing in the room that is parallel, including the ceiling and the floor. The corners would be bullnosed and what I mean by that is rounding them out over the course of two feet, not just a couple of inches.

The ceiling would be sloped, moving up as it gets further away from where the system would reside. The walls would move outward from where the system would reside. I was thinking about building in wall acoustical treatments, as well as ceiling treatments for the room as well.

In the diagram below, the dimensions are totally whack. I just wanted to do a quick sketch of my idea....or where my thought process is at this moment in time.

I will be going from the current room, which is 13x15x8 to an area (that also needs a powder room somewhere in the mix) I can work with that is 22x24'x12. I would need to subtract about 4 feet from one of the area dimensions for the powder room, physical music storage, the RCM and other storage for the system (possibly the rack as well). So, while I may be taking away, going from the current room to this would be a huge change for me and would allow the dual Rythmik F-25's and the Tyler Acoustic Woodmere's to have a chance to finally breathe.

I am still in the planning stage, so I am open to ideas. The build will most likely start in about 3 months or so.

View attachment 104450

Tom
Since I'm in process of figuring out the size and construction for my room, I'll tell you my thoughts and relative to yours: From what I've read, there are mixed results with parallel vs. non - parallel walls. As such, I have no plans to skew any wall(s). If I did anything non - parallel, it would be based on Art Noxon's premise that low frequency waves sometimes need to be coaxed directionally and away from your speakers. This not only aids in reducing all high / mid frequency smearing but also yields tighter, better bass (as he states). And in my case with side - firing woofers there is a reasonable probability that more low frequency energy is latent toward the front of the room vs. the mid / back. Now, this may matter less if my new room is ~30' deep vs. my current 19' but it's certainly worth exploring after the room completion (mock - up, measure adjust rinse, repeat).

Also, my concern with building non - parallel / skewed walls is - once it's done I'd be very reluctant to tear it down if the results are less than acceptable. However, I can build a wall - height wooden deflector to experiment and tune to best sonics at my heart's content afterwards. My 2 cents :)
 

pjwd

Well-Known Member
Jun 22, 2015
508
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Brisbane
Perhaps both. A friend once installed double drywall on his listening room walls to prevent loud music getting to other areas of the house. He claims his bass problems became worse after that. Perhaps the walls were more rigid and reflecting bass rather than some absorption due to flexing.
Best to have density and rigidity on your perimeters otherwise you may get unpredictable bass absorbtion via the vibrating membrane of wall sheeting

Phil
 
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Fishfood

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Hi Steve,
Thats almost same dimensions as my room..
8.6x5.6x3.2m .. I focussed on keeping noise out and in with solid concrete filled blockwork , doubly glazing and dense ceiling. No internal linings as these could be be unpredicatable membrane absorbers .. I get about 25db ambient except when a harely goes past or rain belts down.
Acoustic treatments are applied in median plane ( 600 to 1800mm high ) .. baffles on ceiling and corner bass traps
It is a fantastic room .. a listening lab my acoustic engineer buddy calls it !

If doing again I would pay more attention to the builders work in acoustic sealing of joints between materials ( walls and ceilings) and I would perhaps hang ceiling (https://durrapanel.com/?gclid=CjwKC...1ENAePmiIpHC2GYPbZZvOKJ860rIvEIhoCzhkQAvD_BwE)
Off resilient hangers to minimize structure born sound from the roof
The raytrace on thr armoc site mentioned by sbnx is also a great tool
I have speakers on long wall .. I believe you get a better result with first reflections thus a ckearer phantom image with that setup

Cheers
Phil View attachment 104413
Holy crap Phil! Those are some gorgeous speakers. Bet they sound incredible. What's the rest of the system? What does it take to drive something like that?
 
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pjwd

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Jun 22, 2015
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Holy crap Phil! Those are some gorgeous speakers. Bet they sound incredible. What's the rest of the system? What does it take to drive something like that?
Not wanting to derail .. but a quick response ..the dipole woofers are not in use .. part of a future plan
The stacked boxes are a 20 year old Transmission line system I built ... 3.7m line on woofers .. just driven at the moment with 2x ncore 400 amps, supratek pre and topping dac ... sounds pretty good for the level of gear

Its our holiday place but has the dream room.. new kit to come

Cheers
Phil
 

slowGEEZR

Member Sponsor
Sep 20, 2010
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Colorado Springs, CO
It's been my experience that having a fully stocked bar in the rear of the room helps with the sound.
Room dimensions: 19'4" wide, 30'7" to wall behind bar, 24'7" to bar, 8'6" to ceiling.
 
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pjwd

Well-Known Member
Jun 22, 2015
508
342
298
Brisbane
That's kind of exactly what I am thinking about doing. Making the room smaller (albeit slightly).

Hear me out. I know I don't want a rectangle. I have that now. What I would like to do (or what I am thinking about doing) is to (see photo below) Take the rectangle and build walls within it. My theory is to have nothing in the room that is parallel, including the ceiling and the floor. The corners would be bullnosed and what I mean by that is rounding them out over the course of two feet, not just a couple of inches.

The ceiling would be sloped, moving up as it gets further away from where the system would reside. The walls would move outward from where the system would reside. I was thinking about building in wall acoustical treatments, as well as ceiling treatments for the room as well.

In the diagram below, the dimensions are totally whack. I just wanted to do a quick sketch of my idea....or where my thought process is at this moment in time.

I will be going from the current room, which is 13x15x8 to an area (that also needs a powder room somewhere in the mix) I can work with that is 22x24'x12. I would need to subtract about 4 feet from one of the area dimensions for the powder room, physical music storage, the RCM and other storage for the system (possibly the rack as well). So, while I may be taking away, going from the current room to this would be a huge change for me and would allow the dual Rythmik F-25's and the Tyler Acoustic Woodmere's to have a chance to finally breathe.

I am still in the planning stage, so I am open to ideas. The build will most likely start in about 3 months or so.

View attachment 104450

Tom
Tom
In support of rectangular room I would propose thinking along these lines( obviously not knowing your constraints re entry etc)
You get max volume but use powder room and treatments to get the " fuzzy" dimensions as far as room modes go but you also get first reflection points directed away from listening chair .. 2 jobs done !... bass accumulates in corners so that is location for traps
As for ceiling baffles are the best .. you just locate them for stopping first reflections and have a flat ceiling ... cheaper and 20230216_114410.jpg
 

Mike Lavigne

Member Sponsor & WBF Founding Member
Apr 25, 2010
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I'm hoping to be amongst the small percent that can custom build their audio room. I know there's a lot of information on this site, however, I was hoping to procure information consolidated that answers:

1) What are the dimensions of your room
29' x 21' x 11' inside dimensions, an oval shape without 90 degree square corners. a room inside a room. cocooned inside 2 layers glued of 5/8" sheetrock. Quietrock 458 (now 510) covers the front third of the room walls. 100% of the inside walls and ceiling are 3/4" finish grade plywood, or hardwood diffusion built to spec, so no painted surfaces.
and were there any restrictions that led to the dimensions
i had a horse barn with a potentially open space with a practical limit of 26' x 35' x 14'. i had a drive thru garage area included and needed to create an entry door, and then consider did i want hallways with only one listening room door? or did i want multiple doors from my listening room into the other barn spaces? there was a kitchenette bathroom area and a sawdust garage. this was a real barn with horses.
why did you pick the dims you did?
it was important to have a large enough room to not limit dynamics and allow for large speakers to breathe. my whole reason for selling one house and moving was to have a room without limits. yet too much space, unless you have otherworldly dipoles like the big Genesis, will then become a real issue to control. so i wanted the right size where real world speakers could command it. i needed to have it just right. another thing at that time was my infatuation with 5.1 SACD multi-channel, which required a wide room to get the 115 degree rear channel set-up.

so Chris Huston considered all these issues and suggested the 29' x 21' x 11'. it would not limit scale, but could still be pressurized reasonably. it would still do intimacy, but would not get over-driven. with the oval shape, ceiling design, and built-in bass trapping, there would be lots of flexibility in the future to adapt it to whatever speakers came along. that size gave me an entry hall and side hall which would further separate my listening room from other activity including the HVAC outside unit, and kitchenette/restroom. and all those things have turned out to be spot on.

at that time Chris asked me if i wanted him to design the room for my then current speakers, the Kharma Exquisite 1D's? i said no, i want it to handle large speakers with lots of capabilities. the speaker needed to live up to what the room could do, not the opposite.
2) Are you satisfied with your custom room?
well.....er......i had to grow up as a music listener and audiophile to find my way. initially i was smitten and all was perfect. but over time i confronted areas of imperfections, and had to work my way through them. which i did. about 10-11 years in i got my head around what i needed to do to finish the deal and then i did it. now 7 years later i'm still absolutely thrilled and satisfied. the room has delivered on it's initial promise. and my expectations now are sky high. way beyond my sonic universe vision 18 years ago.
3) If you could do it again, would you change anything?
me learn quicker. :rolleyes: about the room? can't see how i could have anticipated the things i did. the changes i ended up paying for in the room, and the initial cost of the items i removed, maybe totally amounts to what i'm invested in one of my three turntables. after 18 years. hard to argue with proof of concept on how the initial plan worked out. the fundamental room design is wonderful.

an interesting sidebar is i started out listening in the far field. way beyond the equilateral point. as my room evolved i moved up more and more and now i'm in a medium near field sweet spot. had to tame the room bit by bit to allow for greater intimacy and immersion. would have been unthinkable to sit where i now sit at the beginning. it's still great sound in the far field, but the near field experience is revelatory. the lesson is to keep your mind open on your 'rules' and follow the musical truth. if it sounds better, it's better.

a dedicated purpose build room puts lots of demands on the listener to test limits if you want to progress.

as i sit here today; building this room was easily the best move and most cost effective decision in my 28 years in the hobby. it's the hardest thing and most significant thing. but a huge lifestyle commitment and not for everyone.
Thanks in advance to all. I'm hoping to align on a new home in the next few months and am thinking (based on info I read / rooms I've been in and heard) ~30' D x ~20' W x ~12' H vaulted ceiling.

Steve
obviously i like your anticipated dimensions. they do not appear limiting to me.

good luck.
 
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