[Joseph Stavitsky]

Again - many thanks to everyone for the excellent advice. True to Mr.
Krueger's predictions, I did indeed realize that I had been rather
delusional after reading a fine tome by Mr. Everest and Mr. Mike Shea
called, how to build a small budget recording studio from scratch (3d.
ed.) . Mr. Everest is indeed a genius - waaay over my head for now, I'm
afraid, but I got what I needed, and that's what counts. I am currently
in the process of constructing a project/semipro studio in a friend's
garage.

Unfortunately, we have a rather large problem. Before I met this
gentleman, he decided to place the electrical box for the whole
operation _inside the studio space_. Now it's up to me to figure out
what to do with the damn thing. Besides the electromagnetic shielding
(which I suspect will be required in order to keep the current from
playing merry hell with the microphones) I imagine this thing will
destroy room acoustics. Not to mention, any treatment I do come up with
needs to be movable to allow access to the damn thing. Do I have any
reasonable options besides begging him to move it?

Thanks so much for the continuing help and support
Joseph Stavitsky
Donovan Digital Recordings

PS - thanks in no small part to the help and advice I have recieved onb
this group, I will be attending Bergen Community College starting this
fall, toward an associate degree in music with a concentration in
Computer Based Recording. Thanks Everybody!

[hank alrich]

Joseph Stavitsky @ wrote:

Unfortunately, we have a rather large problem. Before I met this
gentleman, he decided to place the electrical box for the whole
operation _inside the studio space_. Now it's up to me to figure out
what to do with the damn thing. Besides the electromagnetic shielding
(which I suspect will be required in order to keep the current from
playing merry hell with the microphones) I imagine this thing will
destroy room acoustics. Not to mention, any treatment I do come up with
needs to be movable to allow access to the damn thing. Do I have any
reasonable options besides begging him to move it?

1. It's just a metal box. In the big picture it is easily treated by
putting something absorptive over it.

2. It's just a metal box. And it's grounded. You could alomost think of
it as being shielded.

3. It's just a metal box. Have you put up any mics in the room to test
your theory that it will be "playing merry hell with the microphones"?

--
ha

[Joseph Stavitsky]

hank alrich wrote:
Joseph Stavitsky @ wrote:

Unfortunately, we have a rather large problem. Before I met this
gentleman, he decided to place the electrical box for the whole
operation _inside the studio space_. Now it's up to me to figure out
what to do with the damn thing. Besides the electromagnetic shielding
(which I suspect will be required in order to keep the current from
playing merry hell with the microphones) I imagine this thing will
destroy room acoustics. Not to mention, any treatment I do come up with
needs to be movable to allow access to the damn thing. Do I have any
reasonable options besides begging him to move it?

1. It's just a metal box. In the big picture it is easily treated by
putting something absorptive over it.

2. It's just a metal box. And it's grounded. You could alomost think of
it as being shielded.

3. It's just a metal box. Have you put up any mics in the room to test
your theory that it will be "playing merry hell with the microphones"?

My reading tends to imply that any protrusions from the walls obviate
any other acoustic treatments.

As for 3, won't that destroy the microphone if you're wrong?


--
ha

[anahata]

Joseph Stavitsky wrote:
My reading tends to imply that any protrusions from the walls obviate
any other acoustic treatments.

Not at all. Every acoustically treated room has some hard reflective
surfaces in it unless it's meant to be an anechoic chamber. A small
metal box will make no appreciable difference. Some would say it adds
some useful diffusion...

3. It's just a metal box. Have you put up any mics in the room
to test your theory that it will be "playing merry hell with
the microphones"?

As for 3, won't that destroy the microphone if you're wrong?

Only if you throw the mics at the metal box with sufficient force.

--
Anahata
-+- http://www.treewind.co.uk
Home: 01638 720444 Mob: 07976 263827

[RD Jones]

hank alrich wrote:

3. It's just a metal box. Have you put up any mics in the room to test
your theory that it will be "playing merry hell with the microphones"?

Joseph Stavitsky wrote:

My reading tends to imply that any protrusions from the walls obviate
any other acoustic treatments.

As for 3, won't that destroy the microphone if you're wrong?

You're way overthinking this ...

Assuming everything's properly grounded, shielded, and
balanced there will be very little if any (noticable/measurable)
interaction between these systems.

rd

[Laurence Payne]

On 22 Jul 2006 22:27:56 -0700, "Joseph Stavitsky"
wrote:

Unfortunately, we have a rather large problem. Before I met this
gentleman, he decided to place the electrical box for the whole
operation _inside the studio space_. Now it's up to me to figure out
what to do with the damn thing. Besides the electromagnetic shielding
(which I suspect will be required in order to keep the current from
playing merry hell with the microphones) I imagine this thing will
destroy room acoustics. Not to mention, any treatment I do come up with
needs to be movable to allow access to the damn thing. Do I have any
reasonable options besides begging him to move it?

There's lots of electric power used in the studio. And there will be
lots of equipment in there, of various sizes and shapes. Why is this
box a particular problem?

[Mike Rivers]

Joseph Stavitsky wrote:

My reading tends to imply that any protrusions from the walls obviate
any other acoustic treatments.

As for 3, won't that destroy the microphone if you're wrong?

Whoa! Just how big is this electrical box, and what else in the
building gets its power from the box other than your studio? The
elevator? The air conditioner for all 16 floors? The arc welding shop
in the back? The halogen vapor lights in the 2000 space parking lot?
The sawmill?

There are all sorts of things protruding from the walls of studios, in
fact you even want some to break up the regular wall surface. Didn't
you read that in Everest's book?

As far as an electromagnetic field resulting from current flowing
through the box, assuming that it's not distributing hundreds of amps
throughout the building, the magnetic field will be relatively small. A
wall wart that powers a piece of gear in your studio is probably worse.


It would be a very good idea to be sure that this new electrical
breaker box and the wiring feeding it is "according to code" which will
assure that there's proper grounding and bonding. This is primarily for
safety and protection from lightning strikes, but an improperly
grounded electrical power distribution system can be the start of a lot
of headaches that will only go away when the wiring is done correctly.
That should be your biggest worry, not what the box will do to the
acoustics or what the current will do to the microphones.

[Ty Ford]

On Sun, 23 Jul 2006 01:27:56 -0400, Joseph Stavitsky wrote
(in article .com):

Again - many thanks to everyone for the excellent advice. True to Mr.
Krueger's predictions, I did indeed realize that I had been rather
delusional after reading a fine tome by Mr. Everest and Mr. Mike Shea
called, how to build a small budget recording studio from scratch (3d.
ed.) . Mr. Everest is indeed a genius - waaay over my head for now, I'm
afraid, but I got what I needed, and that's what counts. I am currently
in the process of constructing a project/semipro studio in a friend's
garage.

Unfortunately, we have a rather large problem. Before I met this
gentleman, he decided to place the electrical box for the whole
operation _inside the studio space_. Now it's up to me to figure out
what to do with the damn thing. Besides the electromagnetic shielding
(which I suspect will be required in order to keep the current from
playing merry hell with the microphones) I imagine this thing will
destroy room acoustics. Not to mention, any treatment I do come up with
needs to be movable to allow access to the damn thing. Do I have any
reasonable options besides begging him to move it?

Thanks so much for the continuing help and support
Joseph Stavitsky
Donovan Digital Recordings

PS - thanks in no small part to the help and advice I have recieved onb
this group, I will be attending Bergen Community College starting this
fall, toward an associate degree in music with a concentration in
Computer Based Recording. Thanks Everybody!


1. Open a dynamic mic. Is it quiet? Done.
2. Acoustics? Is the electrical box big enough to cause unwanted reflections?



Regards,

Ty Ford

-- Ty Ford's equipment reviews, audio samples, rates and other audiocentric
stuff are at www.tyford.com

[Ty Ford]

On Sun, 23 Jul 2006 02:48:20 -0400, Joseph Stavitsky wrote
(in article .com):


hank alrich wrote:
Joseph Stavitsky @ wrote:

Unfortunately, we have a rather large problem. Before I met this
gentleman, he decided to place the electrical box for the whole
operation _inside the studio space_. Now it's up to me to figure out
what to do with the damn thing. Besides the electromagnetic shielding
(which I suspect will be required in order to keep the current from
playing merry hell with the microphones) I imagine this thing will
destroy room acoustics. Not to mention, any treatment I do come up with
needs to be movable to allow access to the damn thing. Do I have any
reasonable options besides begging him to move it?

1. It's just a metal box. In the big picture it is easily treated by
putting something absorptive over it.

2. It's just a metal box. And it's grounded. You could alomost think of
it as being shielded.

3. It's just a metal box. Have you put up any mics in the room to test
your theory that it will be "playing merry hell with the microphones"?

My reading tends to imply that any protrusions from the walls obviate
any other acoustic treatments.

Obviate acoustical treatment? I use protrusions to break up the sound.

As for 3, won't that destroy the microphone if you're wrong?

No.

Regards,

Ty Ford




-- Ty Ford's equipment reviews, audio samples, rates and other audiocentric
stuff are at www.tyford.com

[philicorda]

On Sun, 23 Jul 2006 10:53:07 +0100, Laurence Payne wrote:

On 22 Jul 2006 22:27:56 -0700, "Joseph Stavitsky"
wrote:

Unfortunately, we have a rather large problem. Before I met this
gentleman, he decided to place the electrical box for the whole
operation _inside the studio space_. Now it's up to me to figure out
what to do with the damn thing. Besides the electromagnetic shielding
(which I suspect will be required in order to keep the current from
playing merry hell with the microphones) I imagine this thing will
destroy room acoustics. Not to mention, any treatment I do come up with
needs to be movable to allow access to the damn thing. Do I have any
reasonable options besides begging him to move it?

There's lots of electric power used in the studio. And there will be
lots of equipment in there, of various sizes and shapes. Why is this
box a particular problem?

In my little studio, the electrical box is behind a false wall in
the live room, and the main power feed runs up the wall
into it.

I've yet to notice any hum or anything caused by proximity to the box or
feeder cable. However, drums normally live in that part of the room, so
perhaps an electric guitar played right next to it would pick up something.

I had considered having it moved before building the studio, as it's in an
inconvenient place (we had to have a hole in the false room wall and build
a box around it). This would have meant digging a trench in the concrete
floor and extending and reburying the cable though, which worked out to be
surprisingly expensive.