Products used in this application.
Kimchee Records Reaches New Heights with AlphaSorb Ceiling Panels
The control room at Kimchee Records, in Cambridge, MA, was the only room without windows. In order to keep an open feel they designed an open "A Frame." This looked great, but created some serious sound issues.
Application Introduction
The control room's "A Frame" ceiling had a single steel beam forming the horizontal element of the A. When the space was designed, The studio not only choose to keep the ceiling open, but they wanted to highlight the ceiling with upward-pointing flood lights to make the room feel more spacious. But they also knew that they would have problems with the sloped ceiling focusing first reflections at the listening position, causing anything but a "focused" sound.
Treatment Provided
Sound Engineer, Andrew Hong, specified AlphaSorb cloud mount panels from Acoustical Solutions. He ordered four 2'' thick, 6 ft x 2 ft clouds with the lower face and edges wrapped in Guilford fabric and with brackets (suspended-ceiling runners) attached to the upper (hidden) face.
AlphaSorb cloud mount panels can be ordered in custom sizes and covered with custom fabric to fit your studio's specific needs. However, Mr. Hong specified "stock" sizes and colors for the control room. Turnaround time varies for each order; this order arrived within a couple weeks after the order was faxed to Acoustical Solutions, Inc.
Using a system of steel angles, C clamps, and 20 gauge steel wire, the panels were installed below the aforementioned steel beam by Mr. Hong. He angled each cloud to minimize reflections at the listening position, and took about one evening to install.
The clouds were just wide enough to treat the listening position while still leaving enough open space around them so the room doesn't feel smaller.
Quantitative Results
Sonically, the panels do exactly what Mr. Hong hoped they would do. All the usual words come to mind - tight, accurate, focused - without the room sounding too dead. The clouds, which are easy to dent, came via a contract shipping company. They were well-packed and arrived in perfect condition. See Acoustical Solutions' website for fabric choices, custom sizing, and sound-absorption coefficients.
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