Studio Acoustic Treatment- October 2011

I recently installed a custom acoustic treatment package in my home studio. Aside from the obvious benefits to the listening space, I wanted to tell you about the great experience I had working with Joel DuBay, owner of ReadyAcoustics.

A while back, I began working with Joel and his team of acousticians to determine what I would need to acoustically treat my home studio. The room I mix in was very boomy, and I had problems with early reflections of the high frequencies. This made it hard to get my mixes exactly how I wanted them because the stereo image wasn’t accurate. I found that even if I got my mixes to sound okay in the listening space, they wouldn’t translate well outside of the listening space (car, iPod, other systems, etc.). It was easy to over compensate and take out too much low end, or lose that “sparkle” in the high end by cutting out too much.

I sent ReadyAcoustics my room dimensions and pictures of my listening space. Within a day, they rendered a 3D image of my room, which displayed the exact location and amount of bass traps and diffusers I needed.

Once we decided the optimum setup, they began to custom build the package. I got to choose the color scheme of each bass trap and diffuser. ReadyAcoustics has a wide variety of options, giving the customer many different varieties of frame and fabric colors to enhance the look of your room. They work extremely fast! They completed assembly of the panels and they were delivered within two weeks.

Installation was easy. I installed all nine panels in about an hour. The flat-mounted wall panels were especially easy using the included mounting hardware. The corner-mounted panels were a little trickier, but if you’re fairly handy, it’s no big deal at all. I highly recommend having an extra pair of hands to help you, though.

After the install was complete, I could notice a difference in the way the room sounded, even before I started playing any music. The room was significantly more “silent”, and there was virtually no echo of any kind in the room. Upon playing music at my listening space, the difference was massive. Right away, I could hear things in my mixes that I couldn’t hear before; the stereo image was bigger, tighter, and more focused. All of that “boominess” that was so prevalent in the room was no longer an issue. I could hear the low end. The highs are improved, dramatically. Before, it sounded as if the high frequencies were coming at me from behind (and they probably were!). But now, they are right up front. Everything is so much easier to listen to. On top of it all, the panels are aesthetically pleasing to look at. It gave my space a cool and comfortable vibe. They say red is the “creative color. I do find the look and feel of the room more inspiring to work in.

The whole experience has been great. The customer service at ReadyAcoustics is just fantastic. Their products are legit, and they are a welcomed improvement in my home studio. If you’re looking for professional room treatment for your studio, definitely consider going with ReadyAcoustics.