Room Dimensions Help needed. (1 Viewer)

[Oswald Pascual]

O.K. guys I know there is some type of formula for starting a room from scratch to help you make it more acoustically pleasing. I am not that knowledgeable in room acoustics, but I do belive there is a formula of some type floating around to help you select a workable room dimension. Anyone have it handy?
Ozzie

 

[Robin Smith]

The one formula I was able to rummage up from my collection of HT related files was:
H:W:L = 1:1.5:2.4
e.g. with 8 foot ceilings you should ideally have 12 foot wide by 19.2 foot long.
I think the celing height is the least crucial but the 1.5 to 2.4 for width * height is a good formula to go by.
This was taken from a PDF I have called "Loudspeakers and Rooms - Working Together" by Floyd E. Toole, Vice President Acoustical Engineering, Harman International Industries, Inc.
More basic info says to avoid even multiples i.e 12 * 24 would be bad.
I can email anyone the file if they want to read it. Message me at [email protected]

 

[Nicholas Rexing]

You need to go the "Stereophile Guide to Home Theater" website. Scroll down to a link titled "The Sweet Spot." Download the Excel and associated files. This is the DIY first step. Russ Herschelmann's series of the previous two or three years is invaluable for understanding this worksheet, room-acoustics and therefore the dimensions you want.
There are a number of great articles on the room acoustics manufacturer's sites such as tubetrap.com
If you're really into it, I recommend getting a copy of the "Master Handbook of Acoustics" by F. Alton Everest. Its very comprehensive but written at a level most any hobbist can digest. It made a huge difference in my understanding the basics.
If you're going to spend the time, energy and money to build and "stock" a dedicated room, you owe it to yourself to do the planning right. I am concerned for you that if you don't you will not get your investment back in great!! sound.
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[Scott-C]

I'm pretty behind in my reading and as a result was reading the July Widescreen Review only today (shame, shame on me). There's an article in there called "Minimizing Acoustic Distortion in Home Theatres" by Dr. Peter D'Antonio, and in the article he references a model called the "Room Sizer" that is supposed to help one determine ideal room dimensions given maximum possible size. He references the following link, which is supposed to be a demo of the "Room Sizer" product:
Link Removed
From what I can gather you need to get a serial number to try the free demo, and the program looks like it's around $100 if you want to buy it.
In the article Dr. D'Antonio postulates that this model is the most accurate way to determine ideal room dimensions. I've never used it and don't really know what goes into the model, but it may be worth a demo. At the very least, the article itself was very informative!
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Scott

 

[Oswald Pascual]

Thanks guys that just what I needed!
Ozzie