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[oldtimeblues]

How concerned do I need to be with room treatment when I only record solo folk and acoustic blues singers/guitarists and nothing more?

I don't mind spending the money on traps and room treatment I just don't want to overdo it. Room is about 13W x 18L x 11H. Being all the music has no bass, should I be concerned about bass traps or serious room treatment for either the recording process and/or the mix process, which is never at high levels, and done with nearfields only.

[ted nightshade]

If the artists' wishes are the main concern, it will be a matter of taste how funky and casual to get. Blues might get funkier than folky stuff- for instance singing old Celtic songs with passing cars picking up on the back porch might not cut it, but could provide all kindsa vibe for the blues.

Quieter the music is, less of a problem, but I can ring the hell out of a room many times as big with my voice. You got blues shoutin' in there, reflections'll be coming at you from all over and loud ones too.

One thing for sure- it's always real wierd to track and playback/mix both in the same too-small untreated room. You can't tell what room sound is on the tape or what isn't.

Stay tuned for more useful info- more useful than this!

I'm thinking about Robert Johnson in that hotel room with Lomax- That had to be a ribbon right? Who knows? But that figure-8 with a serious baffle behind it could be one way to get a happening old-time small room vibe- the big old null on the figure 8 will minimize the floor, ceiling, and a couple walls if you have it pointed horizontal at  the man and his guitar. If he lives that long. Never did make it to Carnegie Hall.

[Ethan Winer]

> Being all the music has no bass, should I be concerned about bass traps or serious room treatment <

I think so. Bass traps do more than just prevent problems below 80 Hz. They also improve the mid-bass range that covers, in musical terms, the lower two or three guitar strings. And that's every bit as important as the lowest two octaves.

An equally useful goal with acoustic treatment is to improve monitoring generally by avoiding first reflections that reduce clarity and confuse imaging.

For a good overview of acoustic treatment basics see the Acoustics FAQ, second in the list on my Articles page:

www.ethanwiner.com/articles.html

--Ethan

[brandondrury]

I recorded with no treatment for a my first few years and even instruments like acoustic guitar and especially vocals are effected by a horrible room.  

Then again, your room may not be horrible.

I'm just beginning my acoustic work on my rooms, but I can tell a huge difference by just building little forts with my still in the package rockwool around a guitar amp or whatever.

Brandon

[oldtimeblues]

I guess my basic question is how much to treat the room being I have no intentions of blowing out the volume. The artists I work with aside from myself are more laid back, not really in the style of RJ but more John Hurt Country Blues and Soft Folk.

[ted nightshade]

I think mostly it will be about monitoring for you. I would recommend some very very good headphones as a reference to let you hear exactly what room sound is on the tape.

[oldtimeblues]

Would 4 Real Traps will help me out here or is that not enough?