Decent sound......inside shower?

M

Msmithabr

Audiophyte
Wishing to ask those with lots of acoustic knowledge if it is possible to make a tile shower sound.....decent. Nothing is set in stone and there are no design limitations. From custom shaped tiles to waterproof poly absorption panels. I'm game for anything. And shape doesnt matter either. Just looking for the ideal shape and treatments. I understand it will never sound great because of the size and the need to be waterproof. Would just like to get the best sound possible.

Thanks,
Mike
 
ryanosaur

ryanosaur

Audioholic Overlord
Hmmm. Never thought about critical listening while I take a shower. How big is your hot water heater? Can you make it through a full symphony? A Wagner or Verdi opera? are you practicing conducting while you shower? :) Or just looking for for rousing morning jams to help wake you up? ;)

I love good audio, but just short of putting outdoor rated speakers in the bathroom, what is it you want? I'd be happy with a good, yet simple setup in that environment. Hell, a Sonos Play would be fine IMO... plus it can't record your singing! :p

What is your goal? Is this a new build? What's your budget?
 
M

Msmithabr

Audiophyte
New build. Really just want the best sound possible. The bathroom has always been my room to relax and reflect. Enjoy a good listen while I'm at it. I build high end bathrooms and kitchens for a living. So possibly some commercial aspect to it as well. Shock and awe sort of situation. Just not sure what is possible.

Thanks,
Mike
 
lovinthehd

lovinthehd

Audioholic Jedi
Would the audio need to be in the shower itself rather than elsewhere in the bathroom? Personally I spend little time in the bathroom in general so not a place I've installed audio (altho I have in most rooms of the house) nor have any particular opinions for gear for such. Depends if you want box speakers or in-wall/ceiling, too. What sources of audio and whether passive or active speakers would make a difference, too...
 
ryanosaur

ryanosaur

Audioholic Overlord
New build. Really just want the best sound possible. The bathroom has always been my room to relax and reflect. Enjoy a good listen while I'm at it. I build high end bathrooms and kitchens for a living. So possibly some commercial aspect to it as well. Shock and awe sort of situation. Just not sure what is possible.

Thanks,
Mike
OK.
First, just about anything is possible.
LMGTFY:
https://www.kbsound.com/collections/bathroom-sound-system
https://www.thisoldhouse.com/ideas/media-toys-bathroom
https://www.dreambathsremodeling.com/quick-guide-to-bathroom-speakers-and-sound-systems
https://www.smarthomesounds.co.uk/blog/faqs/top-5-in-ceiling-speakers-for-your-bathroom

Obviously the acoustics is a big thing. Considering the humidity in a bathroom, and the tendency toward reflective surfaces, treatments are tricky though possibly achievable in terms of deadening the walls and what not. I suspect with a little research you could find ways to do panels that could be added to dampen the reflections a bit more and be resistant to mold and mildew. Beyond that, weatherproof speakers.
All of this could be achievable, sure.
If you are in business for yourself, I'd suggest looking for an acoustics person you could consult with. His/her time would cost you, but be deductible in the end, even if the project goes nowhere.
There seems to be good products on the market as demonstrated above.

Please send me your address so I can bill you for my consulting fee.
:p :D :cool:
 
M

Msmithabr

Audiophyte
OK.
First, just about anything is possible.
LMGTFY:

Obviously the acoustics is a big thing. Considering the humidity in a bathroom, and the tendency toward reflective surfaces, treatments are tricky though possibly achievable in terms of deadening the walls and what not. I suspect with a little research you could find ways to do panels that could be added to dampen the reflections a bit more and be resistant to mold and mildew. Beyond that, weatherproof speakers.
All of this could be achievable, sure.
If you are in business for yourself, I'd suggest looking for an acoustics person you could consult with. His/her time would cost you, but be deductible in the end, even if the project goes nowhere.
There seems to be good products on the market as demonstrated above.

Please send me your address so I can bill you for my consulting fee.
:p:D:cool:
The speakers are pretty straight forward. I have installed many systems during past projects. I have just never been impressed with the result. Still sounds like your sitting inside a boom box. So I was curious with freedom of shower shape and surface, what could be achieved. I have done some research on poly panels and think that could be an option in the wetroom environment. Designed a few custom accent tiles that could serve refraction/dissipation if such things were useful. If I knew the ideal I could then trouble shoot the mold, moisture, and cleanliness of the situation and see if the obstacles are worth over coming. This is going in my house commercial viability would depend on results.

Thanks for the reply,
Mike
 
afterlife2

afterlife2

Audioholic Warlord
There are TWS(Truly wireless IN-EAR phones) IPX 7/8 that you can take in the shower. I have a friend who tried it out and he said works great in the shower. Just giving you options.
 
ryanosaur

ryanosaur

Audioholic Overlord
You're welcome. I know I'm being a little cheeky, but I do think if you are interested in pursuing it as a professional service which you offer clients, consulting with an acoustics professional would be ideal. As well. the research and development write-off exists for a reason. If you've had people interested in it and you see that the numbers add up for a successful (profitable) offering, then that investment in your business should lessen your tax liability. Effectively, you've little to lose for the effort, maybe a lot to gain.
That being said, perhaps you should get something like the Master Handbook of Acoustics or similar text that will help you look at the design aspect from that side of the equation.
Cheers!
 
Pogre

Pogre

Audioholic Slumlord
I think your biggest issue is going to be sound reflections in a bathroom. I have no idea what type of acoustic treatment one would suggest for a bathroom...
 
M

Msmithabr

Audiophyte
I think your biggest issue is going to be sound reflections in a bathroom. I have no idea what type of acoustic treatment one would suggest for a bathroom...
That is the primary concern for sure. As I mentioned I have found hydrophobic panels that would probably do some good. I am more wondering what the ideal shape and driver placement would be in such a small reflective space. Octagon, hexagon, out of parallel rectangle, diamond, oval, kidney? I just need a starting point. Probably going to build a freestanding mock unit in the shop and work out details before modifying any framing in my house. Best case scenario without treatments and then work out treatments one at a time until I'm happy with it. Paying for someone's acoustic knowledge is definitely not off the table. I dont have time to go get a master's in sound engineering at this point in life just thought I would try to crowd source some decent info while doing some research myself first.

Thanks all,
Mike
 
M

Msmithabr

Audiophyte
Thought about doing in wall, down facing wave guides and horns so it may be possible the speaker doesn't see direct water but only moisture. In ceiling would be a decent option to accomplish something similar but that is the direction the moisture and steam is heading. I don't have the vocabulary to explain my thoughts I guess. Maybe I will render something up to make it easier to picture.

Would the audio need to be in the shower itself rather than elsewhere in the bathroom? Personally I spend little time in the bathroom in general so not a place I've installed audio (altho I have in most rooms of the house) nor have any particular opinions for gear for such. Depends if you want box speakers or in-wall/ceiling, too. What sources of audio and whether passive or active speakers would make a difference, too...
 
S

shadyJ

Speaker of the House
Staff member
Acoustics will be your biggest enemy in a bathroom. You can get some decent outdoor rated loudspeakers that will not bass as badly affected by the humidity, but normal bathrooms are like reverberation chambers. The problem is that the way to tame that is soft surfaces, but of course, soft things are normally going to have problems in a very humid environment. You have to figure out how to get acoustic absorption in there without it getting messed up by the moisture right away.
 
TLS Guy

TLS Guy

Seriously, I have no life.
Getting sound in the bathroom and even shower is not a problem. Shock and awe is the problem.

A shower is highly adverse environment for speakers. Although there are speaker cones and frames that have no water adsorbent parts, there is always the suspension which in every speaker made will be fabric and get soggy in a damp humid environment.

Now the only one speaker I know that ever existed is that has no fabric, or any parts that would be affected in this environment. That unit is the old JW module that appeared in 1959. I actually did do a bathroom/shower system with those drivers once. Even the suspension is metal!





The driver has been unavailable for years. It is however in my view the best full range driver that has ever appeared. A pair of those sound incredible and properly loaded have a good accurate bass response down to the lower forties. That are not a high spl driver though.

So now you are limited to marine drivers.

This is probably your best option.

The driver has a very sloppy suspension which is wise as they probably figured the suspension would get soggy and it won't matter if it gets soggier. That means it is a very high Qts driver and only suitable for a sealed true acoustic suspension design. The bass will not be tight.

If you are interested I can model the boxes for you.
 

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