@@midnightwind8067 please post specific statements or theories and we'd be happy to discuss. This tutorial is solely for music production / mixing / engineering control rooms. Not recording spaces, home theatres, or hi fi listening rooms. So for that reason, sometimes you'll hear advice from acousticians in those niches that may be different.
Ohhhh "SBIR", "Against the wall", "Acoustic axis of the speaker", "Equilateral placement", "A point just a little bit behind the head of the listener". It is extremely hard to explain complex scientific information in a simplified manner. You are incredibly talented man! Bravo!
I think I've watched the whole youtube in search of a solution to my cubical spare bedroom 3mx3mx2.3m with window and doors that I'd like to use for production and I finally found this one. Thanks - I can go and start doing something.
He is right on a lot of points except the placement of the monitors on the rear wall The “in-phase“ frequencies get amplified, and the “out-of-phase“ frequencies cancel out. This principle is known as the boundary effect. To solve the problem, pro studios often build their monitors directly into the wall, thus eliminating all rear reflections. however, by placing the monitors directly in front of the wall will cause even more build up of energy this is what should be done create the maximum separation between the wall and the monitors that the room-size will allow. For most rooms, that’s between 1-2 feet. This won’t SOLVE the problem, but it will lessen it somewhat, by reducing the strength of the reflections. also buy monitors with front bass ports
thanks Drew! I learned a lot in this video. Especially the reflection off desk, I haven't seen anyone address that issue in any other videos on youtube
Well done on making a common sense, no frills video without lots of in your face product endorsements. Easy to follow and most refreshingly done in an average, small room! 😎
Hey Tekk. Thanks for watching. If you liked that one, then you'll LOVE this. It's the new studio design I'm building, with TONS more info on best practices and design hacks: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-5VrG2K_E7qI.html
Thank you for this! Very informative and nicely done. One question though: You say "Push the monitors right up against the wall", but everywhere else I'm reading they should be 30 cm (12 inches) away from the wall due to bass buildup. Can you please elaborate on this? Thanks again for the video!
This might help : ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-T10_MLGOBfc.html I'm not shure if it changes with the speaker's bassport on the front or the rear
a year late to this comment but thought i'd share. it sounds to me (from pretty extensive time spent watching all kinds of different videos on this) like its fine as long as its a couple of inches from the wall. also, if the speakers are not parallel to the wall and are slightly off axis pointed towards you at an angle you will be fine. and also (what surprised me) front VS rear ported doesn't make much of a difference for the most part. unless you are designing a very specific and thorough studio meant for professional use you really don't need to sweat it with these kinds of details. Also, you should use headphones as a secondary reference as well. hope this was helpful
brilliant video, i realised i have so much acoustic problems in my room that i will need to sort, going to use this video as a base list but it's going to be a very hard job. thanks for posting this
Glad you got some value out of this one. Yes, acoustics are involved and time consuming. But the rewards are huge. As a producer, you really will benefit from being in a better room.
As recommended by well-knowns like Wes Lachot and Rod Gervais, and other notable acousticians, the Stereo Vertex Point (the focused point where the speakers are aimed behind your head) should be 14" to 16" from your Listening Position (ear line). The reason you don't want to just to brush the ears is because of head lean. You need to add 4" to the left, 4" to the right, 4" forward, and 4" back from the Listening Position point to account for typical head lean. No one keeps their head perfectly straight and centered at the Listening Position at all times. At 10" behind the Listening Position and 4" of head lean, your L or R ear would be 2-1/2" outside of the equilateral line. At 12" behind the Listening Position and 4" of head lean, your L or R ear would be 1-1/2" outside of the equilateral line. When you map it out in a CAD program (with the human head being close to 8" in diameter) you will find that 14" behind your Listening position works out perfectly for keeping your head inside the stereo field despite any head lean. i.imgur.com/hRtuFXX.jpg
Hey Andy. We use about 12" as a standard, so a similar measurement. I am curious though about these measurements. If you toe your monitors out further, as Wes and Rod may recommend, that accounts for head lean backwards but not forwards. As the monitors are toed out further out, then you lean forwards, you're actually much further away from the sweet spot. How do they explain this? Of course you're going to lean forwards and backwards are you mix. For that reason it's important to know where the sweet spot is, and to buy monitors that disperse directional frequencies (high end) sufficiently wide to account for this.
@@warpacademy Well 14" wouldn't mean toeing anything out further. You are still maintaining the 30-degree equilateral triangle. At 14" you are just moving the Listening Position (sweet spot) directly up 2" into the triangle from your 12". Basically just more into the triangle. I think it's easier when you see a CAD drawing. Here's an image from Sterling Hill that explains it better: i.imgur.com/hRtuFXX.jpg
Absolutely fantastic and easy to understand guide! Thanks so much! This should help many people! I've learned so many tips of you from this video! Thank you very much.
I did exactly like this. I have a windows on a fully square room and i put my desk infront the window and now have 3 dry walls where i can put my acoustic treatment. I even measuered perfectly how far the speakers are from the corner and my desk and now i am sitting perfectly in shape with the sound. cant wait till i get my acoustic treatment shipped
Good info at least I know were to set up the deal now, and yes it's in front of the window. Question is ..... how do I treat the window? Wall to wall very thick curtains ????????
Well-needed video! I've been trying to use REW to fix my room and it left me confused and with damaged equipment. This video made things much clearer. Thanks!
Not sure exactly which gadget you're referring to, but in the shot are the Apogee Duet II audio interface and the Sonarworks room measurement mic. Cheers!
Thanks for the vid. I did not know about the desk issue. My biggest issue is my vaulted upstairs ceiling. The walls to either sidevof me are only a meter high, then the ceiling begins angling inward. For now I use calibrated Sonarworks HD650’s and a Subpac turned up only enough to feel the sub. All that and refrence track/analysis (which is the most helpful of all).
Glad you enjoyed the video. Yeah the desk issue is a huge one. Especially considering most pro studios have huge mixing desks, cluttered with gear. If you saw an acoustic test of that setup you'd cringe. Your spot with the vaulted ceilings sounds difficult for sure. Have you ever done acoustic tests?
Warp Academy I’ve only run the Sonarworks calibration up there in that room. At the time I had Auralex everywhere. What is your feeling about a window right in front of my mix position? Do I need a diffusor? Is that a problem? I use the Se Munro Eggs w port on bottom-front of speaker and I wonder if they will exhibit the same concentric bass patterns as your test monitors? If I recall, these are shaped like eggs tto avoid a lot of reflection issues in the vicinity of the monitor itself.
I have not re-run calibratiob since version 4 was released. Should perhaps do that. I’ve just gotten too comfortable with doing most of the work like I described above. This day and advanced analysis tool age one get get FAR with good ref material, a decent analyzer/oscilliscope and Sonarworks it seems
@@nsjx if you have a window in your studio it'll be a major acoustics issue no matter where it is. Covering it with absorption won't help much as that can create a resonant chamber behind the panel. Probably your best option is to stuff the entire window full with rock wool, then place an acoustic absorber over top of that. Won't be even close to perfect, but it'll help a lot. Cheers!
Normally I wouldn't take any advice about anything from a guy who wears his hat backwards and starts his video with "What's up guys", but this dude is pretty good!
I actually wear the hat backwards for acoustics reasons. The brim interferes with the audiopath picked up by the overhead Rode NTG-2 shotgun mic and compromises pickup ;)
Also if this kind of set up isn't possible for you, you might want to consider getting a pair of really good reference headphones and a subpac. This will bypass bad room acoustics :)
This is hands down the best, most informative video on acoustic properties of a room on the internet! I kind of feel like I owe you a consultant fee! I do have one quick question, if you have a minute... I am a woodworking enthusiast, and am planning to build a desk that I will use for both my recording, and for work (software engineer, working from home). None of the bedrooms in my house are ideal for conversion into a home office, so I was planning on just using my large living room as my home office/recording studio/living room. Watching your video has made me question a few things though. You had, in both your studio and guest room, the desk pushed up to a wall, with the user facing the wall. I had planned to have my desk pulled out 40 or so inches from the wall, and I would sit behind the desk with a sheet-rock (dry wall) wall directly behind me. Is that just a huge no-no? I am perfectly fine with it if I'd have to dead the wall behind me with thick cloth covered Owens Corning 703 panels to prevent sound from reflecting off the wall and at the back of my head. But, do you think deadening the wall behind me completely like that would solve one problem but create another? I'd love to know what you think. Thanks for the killer videos.
Thank you a lot for this helpful video! It's everyone's personal decision to follow your buying recommendations but you shared a lot of knowledge and explained well.
I'm a bit perplexed about how you encourage setting the monitors right up against the wall. All I've ever read and heard from other people is to have space between the back wall and your nearfield monitors. Would you care to elaborate?
This was done so well. I love how clear and to the point you are. And the editing was superb!!! Now if only I could find 300 dollars for sonarworks laying around. Lol
Excellent & very informative video, especially with offering the science & thorough explanation behind why certain obstacles may arise & how they can be remedied, much appreciated bro, God bless & continued success -Anon One
whoa I thought it was for sure better to keep the speakers as far away from the wall as possible? Wouldn't being nearer to the room boundary increase the amount of colored sound at the listening position?
Hey Alex. Good question. You're going to get reflected sound from all surfaces around you in any bedroom studio. The key here is to position your speakers for the most ideal frequency response in a non-ideal space. The prime way to set things up is to custom build a front wall and flush mount your speakers into it, thus avoiding the problem entirely. However, this is technical, and costly, which makes it prohibitive for many people. The next best thing is to reduce the degree of phase cancellation by getting the bounced signal as close to the direct signal as possible. I highly recommend you do your own acoustic testing to look at the results for yourself. If you use a free app like Room EQ Wizard (REW) and a calibrated acoustic measurement mic like the Mini-DSP UBIK-1, you'll clearly see for yourself the effect of different speaker positions. Don't take my word for it, check it out yourself :)
Thanks old musician disabled building my studio about to buy a new house so Now I know what type of room to look for. Also I got some folding stands do you think they will be ok as I start out. I also just downloaded to that software for that mic you have to check specs of sound positioning my equipment and set up. Just using one of those plastic folding tables with a yoga mat on it. I plan on getting one more for my Akia mpk225 and my Zoom R24 also . I was planning on getting a adapter to change the output of the Zoom R24 from USB to optical to add more channels to my Audient 14-2 . I like to hear your thoughts if you got the time. I plan on buying some gear from you as I get set up. Thanks for your help. ✌️
Hey Jay. I hope the room testing kit helps with your setup. I'd definitely try to get your monitors on stands close to the wall if you can. Go from there.
Great Video! Would you recommend putting the subwoofer near the wall, too? I used this Trick for my monitors and they Sound much better now. Just left 7-8cm for the Bass Reflex whole
Yes, you definitely want your sub against the wall or flush mounted into the wall. If you look at the manual where they talk about sub setup, you should see instructions on that. You'll definitely want to do some proper acoustic testing though, to ensure your low end is in phase.
Hi there, Excellent video. Much appreciated!! One question tho. You mentioned that the ear should be on the same level as the acoustic centre of the monitor instead of the speaker's tweeter. However, there're lots of articles, videos and even official site of speakers brand that recommend an ear should be on the same level as the speaker's tweeter. So I am quite confused about which of these two ways should be applied to set up my monitors. It would be really helpful if you could answer my question. Thanks again!! Cheers
I have the same question, and i was buffed by the confidence he mentioned it since its the first time i heard that opinion. Usually as you said everyone from official manufacturers to forums to pros recommends tweeters at ears height. After one year has passed what do you recommend?
Hey hey. I have an updated video that includes full details on the floating flooring. Building a Mixing & Mastering Studio - Part 2, Design Walkthrough ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-5VrG2K_E7qI.html
Glad you liked this one. The Ultimate Support stands decouple just fine on their own. They're designed to decouple. However, in some applications that may help. Ultimate Support actually partnered with Iso-Acoustics and made a model of stand that has the Iso-acoustics decouplers built into the top of the stand. I'm not a fan of angling monitors at all. The reason is that if you move slightly forward or backward in the mix position, then you're outside of the sweet spot as the monitors will now be firing above or below you.
Thanks for the comment Luiz. Glad you liked the video. We definitely strive to add in visuals, like animations, wherever we can. Of course, they all take a lot of time to create so we have limits on how many we can include.
Love this! Question: when you built your monitors into the walls, won't those walls (and the space behind the wall around your built-in monitors) act as a big speaker cabinet -driven by the actual monitors?
Good question. The entire area behind the monitors is filled with absorption. The monitors are rear ported, which usually won't work for a flush mount, but they're highpassed by the sub at a frequency above the port tuning, so it works. The front wall is super heavy as it's made of ply layered with heavy MDF. The speakers are also acoustically decoupled behind the wall on custom concrete blocks and urethane bushings.
