L-Shaped Room Acoustic Solution (1 Viewer)

[Badies]

I am currently in the process of wrapping up construction of the 2x4 walls in my basement - soon to be home theater, but have a conflict of interest. Other members of my household want the room to be one big open space, (multipurpose room) while I intend to set it up in the best acoustical configuration. Unfortunately, I will have little choice but to build the room in a relatively symmetrical L-shape.

(Attached is the floor plan)

At this point, what would be my best option in terms of 5.1 reproduction without having all of the sound float into empty space on the left side? I have considered dividing the room with some kind of sound absorbing/reflecting material such as these:

http://www.audimutesoundproofing.co...dGEP9paV6mxzcSFI48VY52FEwM7yIz2w5saAgU38P8HAQ

http://www.audimutesoundproofing.co...KzpitN66mCdb4fo2TcJb8YgwQHG-wmxQ9YaArSK8P8HAQ

I realize that if I closed off the room with one of these to form a rectangle that I would need to put the same material on the other side to provide symmetry. Would this really be a good option? It certainly wouldn't be perfect, as the material does not have the same density of the 2x4 stud wall on the other side of the room, but would it be better than nothing/sound treating the open space of the room? Is there another option that I am overlooking that could provide me with a temporary wall that could be taken down and put back up with relative ease?

 

[Wayne A. Pflughaupt]

Short answer: Soundproofing requires mass (such as double- or triple-layered sheetrock) and isolation (such as staggered stud or fully separate studs, along with an airtight room). Anything less is basically a waste of time and money.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

 

[Badies]

I recognize this, and will be hanging the walls on isolation clips as well as doubling the drywall. My main concern in my question is not how best to soundproof, but rather if there is a good way to temporarily close the room into a rectangle instead of the current L-shape.

 

[Wayne A. Pflughaupt]

If you’re trying to totally block sound from the open space, that will require a wall. If you’re worried about reflections from the left and right affecting the way things sound because of asymmetry, then go with the curtain and (as you noted) hang one on the other side as well.

However, this will only affect reflections in the upper frequencies. Not sure down to what point exactly, but once the curtain is up, frequencies that you can hear on the other side of it are obviously going straight through and not being reflected as they would be at the wall on the right. Whether or not this makes an audible improvement or detriment is anyone’s guess. You’ll just have to try it and see. Before you spend any money, you could experiment with some heavy blankets.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt