WHERE TO PLACE ACOUSTIC PANELS?

Before we focus on the acoustic panels and where to place them, we need to figure a few things out.

In order to decide where to position your panels you need to find your monitoring or mixing position, this is your listening position.  Most recommend experimenting by setting this position approximately 35 to 40% into the room.

You do not want to be in the center of the length of the room. We suggest facing the shorter wall rather than the long wall which maximizes the distance between your ears and the rear wall.  Note your back wall should be at least 10 feet from your ears.

What you should hear when sitting in your monitoring chair should be mainly the direct sound from the monitors. However, we know there will be some room reflections. The strongest of these should be either absorbed or diverted before they reach your prime listening position. This can be achieved through wall angles to divert reflections. However, most likely your studio is set up in a rectangular room, and that is not an option.

Monitors placement– make sure they are being positioned the right way up.  Don’t lie them on their side.  Put them on stands at head height when possible and pointed towards your head.

Read the manufacturer recommendation on how far from the walls and then set there symmetrically within the room.

Take a look at where your equipment and gear is going to reside.  Desks should be lower than monitors, and hardware like computer screens should not come between the monitors and you.

First Reflection

This is when sound arrives at the listener’s ear before the rest of the reflected sound does.  The reflected sound can be coming off the walls, floor, and ceiling along with everything in between.  This can have the worst effect on sounds in a room.

Manage this through absorption.

Place the panels on the hard surfaces to the left and right of the mixing position and the ceiling cloud above which is the minimum treatment expected. We suggest ceiling clouds be at least 12 inches deep.

We didn’t do the geometry calculation but used a mirror instead to find the best placement.

• Sit down in your listening position and have a someone else hold a mirror at speaker height against the left wall.
• The person will then start to move towards the back
• Once the left monitor can be seen in the mirror, mark that spot as that is your first reflection point
• Continue down the wall until you see the right speaker and again mark the spot as that is another reflection point
• Repeat this on the other wall.
• Place your absorption panels on the spots marked