help with killing ceiling reflections...

[kakumei47]

so my main live space has 7.5 foot ceilings. i'm trying to deaden the ceiling up as much as possible on the side where I track drums. I have treatment up and it sounds ok but I want to step it up and need some advice.

Here's my plan, partly because I have all the materials, from top to bottom:

ceiling-->2x4s to anchor/add space-->soundboard-->2" 703-->fabric

I know more space would be ideal, but I can't drop too low. I'm mainly wondering about the soundboard--would this help at all or hurt for absorbtion? Would I be better off just anchoring the 703 directly to the 2x4s? Any other low/no cost options?

Thanks! I'm going to try to do this tomorrow or Saturday...

[Ethan Winer]

> I'm mainly wondering about the soundboard--would this help at all or hurt for absorbtion? <

I'd just stick 2-inch 703 right on the ceiling. The 703 absorbs more than anything else, so the other materials just get in the way and make the ceiling even lower.

--Ethan

[goldstar]

Kaku

Is the ceiling you're talking about already finished w/ drywall or plaster? If so, I'd suggest this, from top to bottom.

finished ceiling
2x4's on edge, so they hang down 3 1/2"
1 1/2" airspace
703, cut tight to wedge between 2x frame and flush w/ bottom of 2x's
1/4" to 1/2" plywood (thicker ply=lower effective freq.)
fabric

This will make a bass trap above the drum area; look at Ethan Winers' website for better details on how to do this, and what it'll achieve.

www.ethanwiner.com

Soundboard isn't very effective for anything except making it seem like you've done something; it's not dense enough to give much isolation, though it will absorb a bit of high end. You could leave the ply off, and still get some bass trapping if $ is tight. Good luck.

Frank

[trodden]

i just got explaining what i did in another forum.. brb to cut and paste here...


ok.. i too have 7.5 ceilings and drums sound like poooop so this is what i've got above the drum area of the live room (basement). I hope to add some more, i've also got rigid fiberglass in the corners as well.. but could use some of this on one of the near walls to help out with too much reflection...

i suck at explaining things...

as i posted earlier.

"here is a picture of the shit i have hanging from my celing, which are only like 7.5 tall so i NEED that shit up there, too much crap flying around and making drum oh sound crappy...



these on the ceiling are the 2'X4' roxol bats much like your OC705/703 . covered in burlap. Then i take those strips of wood, cut them to size and measure them to put them PRECISELY at the same spot for each bat. I liquid nailed the wood to the fabric. Precisely the same spot for each bat because you're going to do some math and measureing when installing the eyelets into your celiing..not fun at all cause i suck at it.. plan it out as much as you can before you start drilling holes into your ceiling..unless you own the place and don't care.. i unfortunately rent.

after the liquid nails has dried and the wood strips are affixed to the fabric covered rigid fiber.. drill hole through the wood and through the cloth and through the fiberglass, just big enough to pass your 3" eyelet bolt through. attach the nut as washer as shown.

here is a pict of the pain in the ass way i connected them to the ceiling studs/sheetrock. there is about a 2" gap between the fiberglass and the ceiling sheetrock.



i had measured it out so that two of the three bats had eyebolts that would be 16" a part (to hook onto a stud in the celing while the middle bat has only center eyebolts to hook on a studmaking them line up perfectly in a row..

see..



the math works out that way.. unfortunately i spent hour trying to strap them across diagonal cause i set up drums in the corner, but the stud layout in the ceiling and my horrible measuring and skills made it impossible for me to figure out. so i went across parallel with the studs.

any questions ask, as i said, i suck at explaining so maybe these photos help.

[kakumei47]

thanks folks.

trodden, how did yours work out? do you feel like it made a big difference?

i'm doing essentially the same thing, just over a little bigger area (about 8x8). i'm assuming that it's probably only the few feet right around the mics with this ceiling height that really do the damage so hopefully i don't need more.

i have concrete ceilings and brick walls so I'm liquid nailing wood to screw into. it's a pain (especially for the ceiling), but at least I can put the studs where I want them. The hook thing looks really sturdy but tough to do. I have trouble hanging pictures so I'm sure I'd be cursing in no time trying to hang them.

i read somewhere (ethan's site i'm pretty sure) to use screws through these big (1" or so) small hole washers. they have a specific name i just forgot. they hold the 703 pretty well, just maybe keep the screws a little away from the edge.

[trodden]

made a totally postitive difference man, totally. My live room is also our band rehearsal room and the drums, be it someone coming over to record, or the drummer in our band, are always in that spot in the room. Our drummer is much happier with way his drums sound as well just playing them in practice. as far as recording, yeah big difference on overheads. I still do a lot of "out in front" mics cause i've gotten used to having to do that, but now having one come over the shoulder or true overheads sound a lot better.

Yeah, my area treatment patch is only 6' x 4', 8'x8' will definitely improve, once i get the patience i'm going to make my area a little larger as well.

thats totally cool that you can liquid nail some 2x4's in whatever layout needed, much much much easier than using a cheap ass stud finder and measuring out stud spacing... drove me crazy... i'm glad you don't have to do it that way...

large washers should do the job. the thing with the strips of wood i have going acroos mine, they kinda even out the weight distribution allowing less hook/contact points.

try to leave some airspace though between your rigid fiberglass and your ceiling. I've only got 2" in between but i'm sure its better than none.

good luck!