STUDIO DESIGN
ACOUSTIC TESTING
Once you have determined which room or rooms you will be using in your home you will want to take acoustic readings of the ambient noise levels in each room you are considering, as well as any adjacent rooms. You should also take readings of the areas around your home, including your backyard or common area, local streets, and parks or businesses that are within earshot of the rooms you will be using. Take multiple readings throughout the day under all expected working conditions and make special note of regularly occurring sounds. Measurements are taken with a Sound Level Meter (SLM) and are indicated in dB SPL (decibels of Sound Pressure Level). Click on the image below to shop for SLMs.
Sound Level MetersACOUSTIC MATERIALS
Acoustic materials can function as Sound Diffusers, Sound Absorbers, or Sound Blockers. These are used, often in combination, to reduce or redirect sound and improve the audio quality of a room. You can find a wide variety of acoustic materials at Sweetwater and Amazon
Sound Diffusers
These materials scatter sound waves rather than absorb them, helping to create a more natural and balanced sound in a space.
Sound Absorbers
Sound absorbing materials, typically porous and lightweight, convert sound energy into heat and are used to reduce echo and reverberation within a room, improving sound clarity.
Sound Blockers
Sound blocking materials, which are dense and/or massive, prevent sound from traveling between spaces and are measured by their Sound Transmission Class (STC) rating.
Isolation Booths & GOBOS
Isolation booths are designed to offer maximum isolation from outside noise and other instruments playing in the same room. Drum and vocal isolation booths are suitable for small studios and are widely available at reasonable prices are a good option for one-room studios. Many home studio owners now use microphone stand mounted mobile vocal booths for reducing unwanted room reflections. You can also purchase or build movable partitions called gobos, which allow you to modify the room's acoustics on the fly
SOUND TRANSMISSION CLASS (STC)
The system that rates the sound-blocking efficiency of a wall or barrier is called the Sound Transmission Class (STC). The STC number of a material indicates how effectively it blocks airborne sound waves. Sound transmission losses occur as sound waves travel through a barrier and vary depending on the frequency of the sound waves. Acoustical engineers have adopted STC numbers as a measure of the resistance to sound transmission of a building element. The higher the class number, the greater the sound barrier. Your goal should be to get your recording and mixing rooms between STC 45 and 60. For more information see the following:
