What kind of traps, etc do I really need starting out?

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iC
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Post by iC » Fri Apr 11, 2008 5:11 pm

AnalogousGumdropDecoder wrote:God, there's so many factors to this shit and every time someone answers one of my question I have way less of an idea of what I should actually do to solve my problem. This is so confusing. I mean, it's simple enough to clap or stomp a floor... but having any idea what to listen for or what that means... I wish I could get some kind of clear answers.
Don't let the wealth of information paralyze you.
Higher ceilings (10'+)are better and certainly not worse than lower ceilings.
Most parallel/perpendicular walls can be dealt with by building simple diffusion and absorbtion panels. These are stupid easy to build.
http://www.johnlsayers.com/phpBB2/index ... 227f309329
Good read on this subject there.

Now you say room... are you putting your studio in your apartment? or is this going to be a stand-alone facility?
Either way, listen to the ENVIRONMENT that the space is set in. Do you hear trains? The semis over on the highway? Children/pets/neighbors walking on your ceiling? The birds/frogs in spring mating season? Is your neighbor a carpenter? If you can hear it, the mics hear it better.

As you narrow down your choices.... perhaps have an electrician check into the power situations. If a space is still running on glass fuses.... maybe that space issa nah so good? You'd ideally like a minimum of 60amps for your gear/instruments/pinball.

oh.... and LEAKS. LOOK EVERYWHERE for roof leaks and groundwater seepage.
Even when you've found the spot you want, make sure to go there in the AM, noon, PM, sweaty summer and frigid winter, rain and shine. This way you won't be surprised when there's an inch of water (or 5 feet) and all that gear you had on the floor is floating towards the door.

and most importantly:
Don't let the wealth of information out there paralyze you.
"There is nothing in a caterpillar that tells you it's going to be a butterfly."
R. Buckminster Fuller

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AnalogousGumdropDecoder
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Post by AnalogousGumdropDecoder » Fri Apr 11, 2008 6:20 pm

We haven't picked out the place, and we still have a lot of time. We're planning on getting a house in the country (no neighbors to complain or interfere, drop-ins by friends discouraged due to proximity, etc). I was just trying to figure out the kinds of things we should look for acoustically and how we should rectify any problems we might encounter. That post was actually enormously helpful. As I am also an idiot in the world of electricity, I would like to know more about what to check for, what instruments to check with, and in the event that I should need to get an electrician what I should ask him to look at.

Fuses bad. Got it. Flooding bad. Got it. Thanks.

Is everyone in agreement on high ceilings and wood?

I am going to go read that link immediately.
Love your new bananaskin shoulderpad,
Cody C. Gaisser
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syrupcore
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Post by syrupcore » Fri Apr 11, 2008 7:32 pm

high ceilings and wood is nice.

Wiring is a weird one cause there are a lot of variables. When you are into a place, you're going to have it inspected anyway. Just ask the inspector to pay careful attention to the wiring.

You want things to be grounded. You would prefer to have mulitple circuits available (doesn't often happen in a house). Old wiring is usually fine although in a moist place like alabama, maybe not. "Is it knob and tube?" is the question to ask (that's the old style wiring). Fuses work fine but they're a pain to deal with - breakers just require a reset, a fuse requires a new fuse.

If you're looking to buy an old country house, I'd just budget in 2k for electrical work and ignore it. More likely than not, there will be issues. You may be able to just fold it into your loan or get it taken off some fee somewhere.

Doing the basic grunt work of electrical is actually pretty easy (running cable, installing outlets). If you read a little and do most of that work yourself, you can maximize your electrician dollar. I had a dude come in, tell me what to do, paid him for an hour of consultation. I did what he said, he came back and finished it up. Saved a lot and learned a lot.

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roscoenyc
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Post by roscoenyc » Fri Apr 11, 2008 7:58 pm

stop now and buy this book.

http://www.amazon.com/Home-Recording-St ... 1598630342


If one month from now you can honestly tell me that it didn't help you I'll personally buy it back from you.

Most straight shootin' book out there.

Get the book.
the only thing that sucks about it is the title. It is ten times the book than the title suggests.

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AnalogousGumdropDecoder
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Post by AnalogousGumdropDecoder » Sat Apr 12, 2008 11:29 am

Thanks. I'll check into it for sure.
Love your new bananaskin shoulderpad,
Cody C. Gaisser
www.myspace.com/codygaisser

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