[stump4545]

Any general tips, advice, or things I should consider as I build an extension room to my home which I will be using as a listening room/ sitting / entertaining room for company.

For ex.  I will have a dedicated circuit for ONLY my audio equipment back to main panel.

For ex. I will purchase some room acoustic panels that look like artwork/ decorations.

Any other general tips/advice, or things to consider as I build my room extension to my home?



thanks!

[jimtranr]

One tip: Avoid room dimensions that are multiples or derivatives of each other. In other words, nothing that's square or cubical  (e.g., 16'x16'x8' or 16'x16'x16').

[mcgsxr]

I assume that you will want some measure of sound separation from the existing dwelling?  How far you want to go will dictate what lengths you need to go to.  I did the simple stuff with my finished basement - details below.  I did not go the green glue, double drywall, resilient channel route as I did not need THAT much sound separation from the balance of the home.

Roxul safe n sound in all interior walls that are attached to the main house.  Solid core door (I used a Safe n Sound door) into the new space.  Weather stripping around that solid core door to help create a good sound barrier to the rest of the house.  I did all these in the basement I finished off last winter.

Assume it is for 2 channel only?  If so, then you likely don't need to run any conduit unless you want to locate your gear away from the middle of your speakers, or not at the front of the room.  I did this in my basement, where I created a media closet for all the gear to live in.

Agree that the shape of the room will impact the resultant sound.

So too considerations for floor covering.

You might want to consider a 20A dedicated line for the audio gear to help future proof it.

You may also want to run ethernet or coax or other network capable wire to the area the gear will sit in.  Could be that you decide to use a music streamer, or need to add a wireless access point to that space.  I have yet to regret running ethernet to various locations in my basement as the walls went in.  There are 1 or 2 spots that in retrospect even the 2 lines I ran could have been more.  Cheap insurance for potential future changes.

I had a thread or 2 about it in the  Home Theater circle, you might want to search those up to see what other excellent suggestions I am overlooking.

[JLM]

For the room the priorities should be:

1.) Size, bigger is better (less room interaction)
2.) Shape, as mentioned avoid simple ratios (the ancient Greeks who built out of stone used 5:8 ratios that are considered pleasing to the eye)
3.) Isolation - both incoming noise so you can listen at lower levels and outgoing to maintain the domestic peace (electrical - yes a 12 gauge/20amp circuit, HVAC - flexible/insulated/lined ductwork, track mounted electrical/lighting - my mistake was using recessed cans in the ceiling, exterior door - solid core with weather seals, staggered/insulated stud walls - not that expensive, time/function - so you can listen to what/when you want)

As far as setup/gear, read Floyd E. Toole's "Sound Reproduction" and search Audio Circle for "swarm".  Toole has ratio/swarm advice.  Listening and entertaining is tough to mix in the same room.  Good luck and keep us posted.

[FullRangeMan]

Any general tips, advice, or things I should consider as I build an extension room to my home which I will be using as a listening room/ sitting / entertaining room for company.

For ex.  I will have a dedicated circuit for ONLY my audio equipment back to main panel.

For ex. I will purchase some room acoustic panels that look like artwork/ decorations.

Any other general tips/advice, or things to consider as I build my room extension to my home?



thanks!

Best shape room for music (Golden Trapagon by Cardas) sizes in cm:

http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=107352.msg1183456#msg1183456
Usual Golden ratio room:

[JLM]

Yep, FullRangeMan the "Golden Cuboid" is the shape I picked.  Also went full Cardas with his near-field speaker/listening position advice and haven't looked back.  Overall I'm very pleased with my "poor man's" audio listening room.  The first few days/weeks in the room felt almost spooky due to feeling so isolated due to lack of outside noise.  Another plus of the Cardas room/setup is very little need for or benefit from room treatments.

Unfortunately my crummy builder (who bragged about knowing how to design such rooms) refused to "float" my drywall ceiling via sheet metal furring strips running across and attached to the bottom of the floor joists above (and the afore mentioned recessed cans) combine to transmit lots of sound to/from the kitchen/mud room above.  But it's noticeable primarily to the rest of the design working so well.  But we're empty nesters now and I do a lot of listening in the wee hours, so it's not much of an issue.  And I could replace the cans with track lighting and add another layer of drywall with Green Glue (to also get me to the exact room dimensions I was after originally).

[FullRangeMan]

Too bad your room had this minor prob, anyway congratulations for it, seems it made a nice sound.

[Wayner]

Keep the room symmetrical!!!!!!

Wayner

[JLM]

Keep the room symmetrical!!!!!!

Wayner

IMO slightly non-symmetrical can be a good thing.  My room has a 2 ft x 5 ft notch in the back corner (to access mechanicals from the adjoining storage room).  Rectangles aren't the best shape for acoustics by a long shot, just the most common/researched.  An old favorite local stereo shop had back to back listening rooms with a shared wall that was purposely set at an angle to break up standing waves.  So I'm glad to have the notch.

[Wayner]

If the side walls of the left and right are not symmetrical, the sound-stage can get screwed up, with things like doorways or windows on one side and something different on the other. I don't care if you make walls crooked, just make it the same crooked on the other side.......Centerline the room from the front wall to the back wall and go from there.

Wayner

[jimdgoulding]

Agree with Wayner.  The end of the room with your speakers should be symmetrical.

[SteveRB]

I found improvements when I renovated my place by ensuring the walls and especially the floor were as stiff as possible (like a speaker enclosure). An extra layer of plywood in the sub-floor (glued and screwed) goes a long way to making the room feel solid and sound tight.