Sound treatment on front wall

[cgk]

I'm setting up my HT in the basement of a rental house where I will be for two years. Currently I have a LCD projector shining on a white wall. I don't want to buy a screen or paint the wall (it is a rental). What I was thinking of doing was making some DIY sound panels with black fabric covering and using that to frame the "screen." I could, alternativiely, and more easily, just hang some black fabric to frame the screen. Two questions then:

1. Is it bad or good to have sound treatment on the front wall?

2. Will framing the area where I am shining the projector on the wall with black fabric or black sound panels make movie viewing better?

Thanks!

 

[WmAx]

1. Is it bad or good to have sound treatment on the front wall?

It depends on your situation. In most cases it is desirable. With some speakers(omipolar, dipole, etc.), if placed sufficient distance from the back wall, then the ambience enhancement effect can be desirable, especially on large scale music recordings.

2. Will framing the area where I am shining the projector on the wall with black fabric or black sound panels make movie viewing better?

Many people do put a black coth around the boundaries of the screen. As for making the veiwing experience better? I have not a clue.

-Chris

 

[Audioholics]

1. If you have bookshelf or floorstanders this is a very good idea. Use 2" thick owens corning fiberglas as a base. You can buy it from an AC company or supply store. Frame it with 1x2's and wrap it in fabric.

2. This will GREATLY aid in the perceived contrast for the overall image.

 

[bpape]

Agree with Clint. I like 2" on the front wall to help keep the front image clean and free of reflections from the surrounds. The black background on the front wall can help make the picture just leap out at you if you can get the room totally dark too. A lighter wall, to me, is very distracting.

 

[jaxvon]

You know, you COULD buy a Carada screen for a few hundred bucks then take it apart and move it with you when you leave the rental place. You can hang it on the wall like a big picture. Of course, I don't know what the money situation looks like to you, and that makes a big difference. The sound treatment is still a great idea though.

 

[cgk]

Thanks for the input!

You know, you COULD buy a Carada screen for a few hundred bucks then take it apart and move it with you when you leave the rental place. You can hang it on the wall like a big picture. Of course, I don't know what the money situation looks like to you, and that makes a big difference. The sound treatment is still a great idea though.

My money situation is OK, however, I'm married and we have two unfurnished rooms in the house, and my wife earns twice what I do, so furniture first! (Of course, I think the dining room would be a great theater...who uses their dining room anymore, anyway?)

My money situation will be dramatically better in a couple of years at which point I envision a dedicated theater with projector (ideally projecting onto rear projector screen). Although we could afford one of the Carada screens, I'd prefer not to buy stuff that I will discard in two years. My plan is to slowly upgrade the system to its final composition. (Grabbed the Marantz SR8400 for $460 to make the plunge into surround sound, will likely add a subwoofer next year, then new speakers and projector when location and budget change)

I figure that framing the wall with black DIY absorbers would improve both the audio and visual experience AND the absorbers are removable and could be used in any future theater I put together.

I'm pretty handy with tools so I think I can bang together the absorbers in an afternoon. I'm currently pondering how to rig it to adjust the aspect ratio depending on what we are watching. I'm thinking that the sides and bottom will be fixed and the top panel will be adjustable...

I'll post some pictures later this summer when it's done. I'll graph the room's frequency response before and after the absorbers, too. (Anyone have a link for blank graph paper?)

I appreciate everyone's input!

 

[jaxvon]

I don't think you'd ditch the screen in 2 years. It's high-quality and, if you buy a big enough one, it'll be good for upgrades. What I was saying is, since you assemble it yourself, I would think you could disassemble it when you move out and use it in your new place. Of you could just move it as one big piece, but regardless, it isn't something I would just toss.

 

[BMXTRIX]

You could also check eBay for some inexpensive 16:9 screens. I have an old manual pull-down 52"x92" screen that will end up on there once I get a good tab-tensioned screen. I'm sure there are a bunch there that would be similar in price to you doing all this other stuff yourself.

But, it is fun to do some work yourself sometimes, I know. Just look at some of the costs involved with what you are planning to do yourself vs. just buying a cheap screen to use for a couple of years... or more.