Buyer Beware: Dennis Foley and Acoustic Fields

[tinkerphile]

I'm not going to touch elements of the OP's post, nor am I interacting with many of the replies. In fact, the only reason for me to reply at all is that the subject of acoustic treatment products, consultants, vendors, and just treating a room is a complex subject, a mystery to many, and so often misunderstood. Folks need all the good, solid help available. A number of very good products are available, as are a limited number of capable "consultants" for home high fidelity (or home studio, for that matter) acoustic treatment and/or engineering needs. The other side of the coin is the one you hope you don't call in a division playoff game. There seem to be a lot of those coins in circulation. Nuff said.

Regarding Acoustic Fields products and application/implementation for acoustic treatment of a listening room or home environment, it's a bit of a mixed bag. Several years ago, when I didn't know much about the science, I did contact the company. The response was not very informative, and it did not look like much work went into it. It appeared "turn-key." I wasn't comfortable at the time since I had read enough on the subject that too many questions remained for me. As I continued to study acoustic engineering and explore product testing and application, along with consulting with top engineers in the field, and as I saw Dennis' name and products pop up here and there, knowing what I now know, I'm glad I moved on. I can't accept his approach, and I don't have confidence in some of his products and their application. Amongst some of the best/better acoustic engineers out there, the opinions are less generous than mine, and that is across the board. Full stop. When reading those opinions and the basis for forming them, I find they are very well studied and well-reasoned from a scientific perspective. I fully agree. If a member asked me, I'd not recommend Acoustic Fields, nor would I suggest some of his products for implementation in a member's treatment scheme. Some products he shows on the Acoustic Fields site are okay, e.g., quadratic diffusers. I won't comment on the cost or materials, or make a comparison to other QRDs available, nor on specific applications in a given room. I certainly would not be interested in any other product. Were a member of friend to ask me for a recommendation, I wouldn't recommend the company.

 

[Lee]

I'm not going to touch elements of the OP's post, nor am I interacting with many of the replies. In fact, the only reason for me to reply at all is that the subject of acoustic treatment products, consultants, vendors, and just treating a room is a complex subject, a mystery to many, and so often misunderstood. Folks need all the good, solid help available. A number of very good products are available, as are a limited number of capable "consultants" for home high fidelity (or home studio, for that matter) acoustic treatment and/or engineering needs. The other side of the coin is the one you hope you don't call in a division playoff game. There seem to be a lot of those coins in circulation. Nuff said.

Regarding Acoustic Fields products and application/implementation for acoustic treatment of a listening room or home environment, it's a bit of a mixed bag. Several years ago, when I didn't know much about the science, I did contact the company. The response was not very informative, and it did not look like much work went into it. It appeared "turn-key." I wasn't comfortable at the time since I had read enough on the subject that too many questions remained for me. As I continued to study acoustic engineering and explore product testing and application, along with consulting with top engineers in the field, and as I saw Dennis' name and products pop up here and there, knowing what I now know, I'm glad I moved on. I can't accept his approach, and I don't have confidence in some of his products and their application. Amongst some of the best/better acoustic engineers out there, the opinions are less generous than mine, and that is across the board. Full stop. When reading those opinions and the basis for forming them, I find they are very well studied and well-reasoned from a scientific perspective. I fully agree. If a member asked me, I'd not recommend Acoustic Fields, nor would I suggest some of his products for implementation in a member's treatment scheme. Some products he shows on the Acoustic Fields site are okay, e.g., quadratic diffusers. I won't comment on the cost or materials, or make a comparison to other QRDs available, nor on specific applications in a given room. I certainly would not be interested in any other product. Were a member of friend to ask me for a recommendation, I wouldn't recommend the company.

Honestly, this is an unsatisfying post. You claim negative things about Dennis but you defer to other people's opinions and don't agree specific issues with his approach...what if the so-called experts are just competitors? why would they give a good report?

I've heard Hugh's room many times and the acoustics are extremely impressive. I think a better response is to debate specific areas where you believe Dennis is not practicing good acoustic science.

 

[tinkerphile]

Honestly, this is an unsatisfying post. You claim negative things about Dennis but you defer to other people's opinions and don't agree specific issues with his approach...what if the so-called experts are just competitors? why would they give a good report?

I've heard Hugh's room many times and the acoustics are extremely impressive. I think a better response is to debate specific areas where you believe Dennis is not practicing good acoustic science.

Honestly, this is an unsatisfying post. You claim negative things about Dennis but you defer to other people's opinions and don't agree specific issues with his approach...what if the so-called experts are just competitors? why would they give a good report?

I've heard Hugh's room many times and the acoustics are extremely impressive. I think a better response is to debate specific areas where you believe Dennis is not practicing good acoustic science.

HI, Lee! Glad to have your feedback, and I appreciate how an individual may view a product or vendor favorably, while others may not. And of I also understand how, among those individuals, there will be some who would take umbrage with a contrary opinion such as mine. So, I get that, brother. Though it could seem as if you are more upset than unsatisfied with my post. I'm making an effort to pick up what you're puttin' down.

I'll try to address your obvious concerns as I understand them, keeping in mind time and length.

The first concern regards my opinion and others' opinions, and why I would want to include that information: What you are arguing here is two-fold, that is, use of other expert opinions in order to substantiate or justify a claim; and next, is that "experts" is too vague, and unless I'm an expert at judging experts, and can demonstrate that, then... Third, as I am reading it, a concern phrased as a strong likliehood for potential conflict of interest or ill-motive based on supposed economic interests - a serious accusation on several levels.

The term "expert" can indeed mean a wide range of education and experience, and/or sometimes, notoriety. For my post, I didn't think I needed to cite their degrees, business backgrounds and markets, and level of credibility and respect and notoriety (and even among whom?) in the field. But, I can see where at least something along those lines would be helpful, so I getcha there. Point taken. I realize full well that an appeal to authority is a poor method for supporting an opinion. And though you didn't point that out, I was aware of the fundamental problem of appealing to experts. Of course, who am I to really know who an expert is, you imply. Fair enough (I guess...kinda). Of the half-dozen acousticians I hand in mind in my post, only one is in the U.S., while the others were in Great Britain, Europe, and Asia. The degree of concern these guys have with competition by Foley is about zero. Each is highly credentialed, and most are often sought out for technical/scientific opinions and analysis within their vocation - some from around the world. Quite a number of detailed scientific studies and accompanying data on challenging, deeper issues have been a part of their advice. A couple of them have published. Most people ask them; few debate them. As for me, I spent several years studying acoustic engineering even before beginning to adopt an approach to my listening room: RFZ, NE, BNE, FTB, LEDE, or modified variations. I've learned to understand scientific data, its reporting/form, and its application, and I've done that frequently. And I've spoken at length with some of them regarding projects and the associated application, as well as industry products (not to purchase) including their research conducted on "panels" custom made for specific applications at a particular project, and so on.

I wouldn't even want to think about a tacit inference to question their scientific ethic, and I think each are held in the highest regard by their industry peers, with long, established reputations.

I hope that information is helpful to address at least a couple of your concerns. And like I said, it would have been wise to include something like that in my post to allay concerns such as you or others might be expected to have.

BTW, you also made the fallacious appeal to authority, but it was just one guy you appealed to (said in a joking manner).

In my conversations with Mr. Foley and email exchanges, I was not provided science. Period. And, it was a turnkey-type thing. Additionally, I do not believe his product testing has been available in a manner that allows confident scientific interpretive/predictive value for application in most projects. Not just my opinion. I had reason to begin to question his QRD panel design and performance; so did others. I do not know what his current product line is at all, but I assume not much has changed with his main two or three products. And like I said, I wouldn't go into customer service or satisfaction, or his morals. Ain't touchin' that. And if he had begun to operate on professional forums under multiple pseudonyms for product/consulting promotion, or to make claims against his competitors' products, I'd have no way of knowing what he, himself, is writing. I certainly haven't let his earlier contacts with law enforcement affect my opinion in any adverse way (because that's all around out there, and I don't subscribe to that junk).

I definitely stand by my opinion in my first post. At the same time, I think you're justified to raise at least two of the concerns you had. If you need to talk about stuff some more, feel free to MSG. Btw, I really like the way you've put your system together. Are you feeling like you'll be keeping the AR components for a while? I've recently become fairly interested in AR in particular (I use Pass, but... LOL, I can't resist this so forgive me - - but a coupla experts recommended them to me in my situation, on the same day no less, and one was unsolicited (John D and Ron).

Again, thanks for the feedback, Lee. I appreciate it.

 

[Lee]

HI, Lee! Glad to have your feedback, and I appreciate how an individual may view a product or vendor favorably, while others may not. And of I also understand how, among those individuals, there will be some who would take umbrage with a contrary opinion such as mine. So, I get that, brother. Though it could seem as if you are more upset than unsatisfied with my post. I'm making an effort to pick up what you're puttin' down.

I'll try to address your obvious concerns as I understand them, keeping in mind time and length.

The first concern regards my opinion and others' opinions, and why I would want to include that information: What you are arguing here is two-fold, that is, use of other expert opinions in order to substantiate or justify a claim; and next, is that "experts" is too vague, and unless I'm an expert at judging experts, and can demonstrate that, then... Third, as I am reading it, a concern phrased as a strong likliehood for potential conflict of interest or ill-motive based on supposed economic interests - a serious accusation on several levels.

The term "expert" can indeed mean a wide range of education and experience, and/or sometimes, notoriety. For my post, I didn't think I needed to cite their degrees, business backgrounds and markets, and level of credibility and respect and notoriety (and even among whom?) in the field. But, I can see where at least something along those lines would be helpful, so I getcha there. Point taken. I realize full well that an appeal to authority is a poor method for supporting an opinion. And though you didn't point that out, I was aware of the fundamental problem of appealing to experts. Of course, who am I to really know who an expert is, you imply. Fair enough (I guess...kinda). Of the half-dozen acousticians I hand in mind in my post, only one is in the U.S., while the others were in Great Britain, Europe, and Asia. The degree of concern these guys have with competition by Foley is about zero. Each is highly credentialed, and most are often sought out for technical/scientific opinions and analysis within their vocation - some from around the world. Quite a number of detailed scientific studies and accompanying data on challenging, deeper issues have been a part of their advice. A couple of them have published. Most people ask them; few debate them. As for me, I spent several years studying acoustic engineering even before beginning to adopt an approach to my listening room: RFZ, NE, BNE, FTB, LEDE, or modified variations. I've learned to understand scientific data, its reporting/form, and its application, and I've done that frequently. And I've spoken at length with some of them regarding projects and the associated application, as well as industry products (not to purchase) including their research conducted on "panels" custom made for specific applications at a particular project, and so on.

I wouldn't even want to think about a tacit inference to question their scientific ethic, and I think each are held in the highest regard by their industry peers, with long, established reputations.

I hope that information is helpful to address at least a couple of your concerns. And like I said, it would have been wise to include something like that in my post to allay concerns such as you or others might be expected to have.

BTW, you also made the fallacious appeal to authority, but it was just one guy you appealed to (said in a joking manner).

In my conversations with Mr. Foley and email exchanges, I was not provided science. Period. And, it was a turnkey-type thing. Additionally, I do not believe his product testing has been available in a manner that allows confident scientific interpretive/predictive value for application in most projects. Not just my opinion. I had reason to begin to question his QRD panel design and performance; so did others. I do not know what his current product line is at all, but I assume not much has changed with his main two or three products. And like I said, I wouldn't go into customer service or satisfaction, or his morals. Ain't touchin' that. And if he had begun to operate on professional forums under multiple pseudonyms for product/consulting promotion, or to make claims against his competitors' products, I'd have no way of knowing what he, himself, is writing. I certainly haven't let his earlier contacts with law enforcement affect my opinion in any adverse way (because that's all around out there, and I don't subscribe to that junk).

I definitely stand by my opinion in my first post. At the same time, I think you're justified to raise at least two of the concerns you had. If you need to talk about stuff some more, feel free to MSG. Btw, I really like the way you've put your system together. Are you feeling like you'll be keeping the AR components for a while? I've recently become fairly interested in AR in particular (I use Pass, but... LOL, I can't resist this so forgive me - - but a coupla experts recommended them to me in my situation, on the same day no less, and one was unsolicited (John D and Ron).

Again, thanks for the feedback, Lee. I appreciate it.

Thanks for the thoughtful reply Tinkerphile. I appreciate this a lot.

I think acoustics is part science and part art. The art part being critical listening skills and arguably many decades of experience. I learned this when Jim Smith did my room.

I do plan on keeping Audio Research gear for a quite a while. I just purchased it and it matches well with my Alexia 2s. The Reference line is sublime in so many ways.

 

[tinkerphile]

Thanks for the thoughtful reply Tinkerphile. I appreciate this a lot.

I think acoustics is part science and part art. The art part being critical listening skills and arguably many decades of experience. I learned this when Jim Smith did my room.

I do plan on keeping Audio Research gear for a quite a while. I just purchased it and it matches well with my Alexia 2s. The Reference line is sublime in so many ways.

Good point there on the critical listening aspect of room treatment/acoustics and the artful skills involved. Gave me some good food for thought.

RE your ARC amp - - do you find you listen in triode mode most often? And do you note a significant degree of difference? I had just read a reviewer observing how the LF response and higher freq's response in one mode had an effect on the midrange presentation, but I don't recall further comment on the midrange character when the mode was switched.

 

[SeagoatLeo]

Please take this post down. We don't know the whole story and OP is clearly trying to harm this man's reputation and business.

No, I had a truly mediocre experience with Dennis Foley. He also can't count. He also demands wire transfer of funds prior to any delivery. I had a $150,000 custom built room with an excellent contractor who did several jobs with him. This was a new room from foundation up except for the ceiling, The resulting room was 19.5' X 15' X 10' with 16" multi-layer designed walls. Mr. Foley said he would provide plans. He NEVER did. He quoted a price for 4 chambered activated charcoal bass filters (for the walls). He quoted a price for wall and ceiling sound absorption panels. He quoted a price for quadradic diffusion (I could not afford and they would have eaten up another 12" to 14" of front and rear wall space). I paid him $50,000 in advance by wire transfer.

He said his company was so busy he could not deliver the full amount of bass filters. He delayed my construction by about two months. He only delivered half the number of bass filters, claiming he would use insulation batting in an up down pattern in the walls. Well, at the end of the contract, he said it would have been better with the full number of filters but he used higher quality ones at half the number and still charged me full price. He delivered incorrect sized filters (for 2X10 studs but then changed the plans to 3X10, not accounting for filter size). My contractor had to deconstruct the filters, empty the charcoal into separate buckets, resize (cut) them down to correct size and reassemble the filters. This took about four solid days which I paid extra for.

Then he delivered ceiling absorption panels (six) which were to cover most of the ceiling. Unfortunately, he chose to deliver six same size panels which did not fit. Two had to be taken to a custom cabinet maker to cut and reassemble. Guess who paid the difference and lost another week of time.

He instructed the contractor to install unfinished cherry plywood paneling. I wanted finished paneling to expedite and be uniform in appearance. So, I ended up with extremely toxic smelling finishing of the panels in place which took another 4 days and was less than uniform.

The front and rear walls did not need his absorption panels. They killed the dynamics so I used SR HFTs instead and my two pair of Hallographs to adjust for the slightly bright plywood front and rear walls.

Yes, I have an acoustically excellent listening room. However, Mr. Foley would not remit the difference of half the missing bass filters and refunded some odd amount that included shipping in some bizarred accounting statement at the conclusion of the job. The contractor surreptitiously took photos for use in Mr. Foley's video before Mr. Foley settled the refund bill. After would have been appropriate.

Oh, yes, Mr. Foley also had me order 10 rolls of acoustiblok vibration control when only 8 were needed. They result was another $1600 wasted.

He used very thick rolls of insulation brought for the attic area vibration control. He told the contractor to inform me that sealed, folded rolls would be better than unfolded, open rolls out of their plastic bag. I doubt that. I think he just didn't want to bother the contractor to lay out the 280 sq ft of fiberglass in the attic.

In all, I paid Mr. Foley $50,000 and received a mess for the contractor, higher expense, longer construction time and NO plans (all in his head).

I have no problem with the high quality of the Acoustic Fields products. The process was terrible.

 

[SeagoatLeo]

My mistake, I did not pay for the deconstruction and reassmbly of the bass filters, just the loss of time. I did have to pay nearly double the price for in place finishing of the cherry plywood paneling instead of buying uniform pre-finished paneling.

 

[SeagoatLeo]

I get worried about a first time poster airing dirty laundry.

Well, I'm not a first time poster and just related factual information.

 

[SeagoatLeo]

I also can confirm that Dennis Foley is someone that you should be cautious with. I watched many of his YourTube videos and ended up buying some of his products and plans he sold on his website. Unfortunately, buying those products was a huge headache and left me wanting me to warn others.

1) After a number of helpful discussions with Dennis, I paid $3600 for 900 pounds of activated Carbon that I would need to construct the units he determined would be necessary for my room. Even though I wasn't ready to do the work, he told me he was short on supply and wouldn't be able to have a new batch of carbon made for "a long while". He assured me that he would hold on to the carbon and ship it to me whenever I was ready.

2) After approximately one year (admittedly, I dragged my feet on the project), I contacted Dennis asking for my carbon, he told me that didn't have any carbon available and he had no record of me paying for it. I had to prove that I made a wire transfer to him and finally agreed to the transaction after I produced the wire transfer info. He told me that I would have to wait until the next carbon order (a couple of months later).

3) After contacting him again in a couple of months (when the carbon order should have been ready), he again told me that he had no record of me paying for the carbon. I would have to prove to him that I paid for the carbon order. In spite of the fact that I forwarded the email thread showing his earlier correspondence, this was insufficient.

His response:
"Please forward the receipt for proof of purchase under separate email per my instructions. You have our requirements that must be met. It is not my responsibility to produce your receipt for proof of purchase. It is yours."

4) After a number of emails which resulted in my resending the same bank transfer info, he agreed to send the carbon but indicated I would have to send an additional amount of cash to cover the shipping. Not wanting to go through the same rollercoaster and sending more money to him, I decided to use the money I already paid and adjusted accordingly. I ended up paying $3600 for 500 pounds of carbon, a box of acoustic foam, and shipping charges.


In the end, I ended up with something though it was less than what I was promised. I am a believer in the diffuser and BDA products that he sells. I use both in my room and they've made a huge positive difference. The experience and frustration with Dennis left a bad taste in my mouth, however, and made me vow that I'd never do business with him again.

Exactly, he doesn't remember what he said or what he received payment for and provides either less than promised/contracted for or more than necessary.

 

[Jake Purches]

Hi, I'm James. Didn't think an introduction was entirely relevant to the subject at hand. As stated in my post, of course that's my singular motivation. I'm bringing to light my experience and facts about an individual currently selling products and services. And I'm doing so for good reason: so others can make a more informed decision before working with him. His prior (and recent) conduct is inarguably more distasteful than my post about said conduct.

Welcome James. I would suggest that this was not a good way to start on this forum. We don't know this chaps side of the story and its also not very polite in my view. Even if your completely accurate. It would be more serious if he had ripped you off and taken your money, and then I think you may have a good motive to let us know. But he could be having a bad hair day or his wife might have left him.. someone died.. who knows. I think we aught to give him the benefit of the doubt. Best wishes. Jake

 

[SeagoatLeo]

Welcome James. I would suggest that this was not a good way to start on this forum. We don't know this chaps side of the story and its also not very polite in my view. Even if your completely accurate. It would be more serious if he had ripped you off and taken your money, and then I think you may have a good motive to let us know. But he could be having a bad hair day or his wife might have left him.. someone died.. who knows. I think we aught to give him the benefit of the doubt. Best wishes. Jake

You may not know this "chaps" side of the story but there evidence of how he rips people off in multiple ways. He makes up multiple promises and subsequent excuses. I did not receive any communications during the fouled up carbon filter delivery, dissasembly/reassembly, resizing of the ceiling absorption boxes, choice of panelling, etc. He only communicated with my contractor who was really pissed off with him because he had to eat most of the mistake costs. NO PLANS-JUST IN HIS HEAD!

 

[HughP3]

You may not know this "chaps" side of the story but there evidence of how he rips people off in multiple ways. He makes up multiple promises and subsequent excuses. I did not receive any communications during the fouled up carbon filter delivery, dissasembly/reassembly, resizing of the ceiling absorption boxes, choice of panelling, etc. He only communicated with my contractor who was really pissed off with him because he had to eat most of the mistake costs. NO PLANS-JUST IN HIS HEAD!

yeah i actually did all the drawings for my room and i was the foreman/construction engineer. dennis provided dimensions, acoustic layers guidance , diffusers and foam placement. i built my own carbon boxes (350+of them). if i had to rely only on a construction firm to figure things out the room build would have failed.

 

[SeagoatLeo]

yeah i actually did all the drawings for my room and i was the foreman/construction engineer. dennis provided dimensions, acoustic layers guidance , diffusers and foam placement. i built my own carbon boxes (350+of them). if i had to rely only on a construction firm to figure things out the room build would have failed.

This contractor had already done three major jobs with him and had pending an $850,000 job in Newport Beach. Dennis Foley did NOT send the correct number or size carbon filters, correct size absorption panels, too many absorption panels, too much acoustiblok and caused 100% delay of construction (2.5 months turned into 5.5 months). I'm glad he supplied you with all the materials you required for your construction. He advertises/promises full construction plans but delivered nada.

 

[HughP3]

This contractor had already done three major jobs with him and had pending an $850,000 job in Newport Beach. Dennis Foley did NOT send the correct number or size carbon filters, correct size absorption panels, too many absorption panels, too much acoustiblok and caused 100% delay of construction (2.5 months turned into 5.5 months). I'm glad he supplied you with all the materials you required for your construction. He advertises/promises full construction plans but delivered nada.

If he now supplies drawings then thats a new thing. 2 years ago he told me drawings and construction know how was up to me. I measured for all diffusors and triple checked him as things would get lost to some degree. My foam was full length sheets and i cut to size. Sorry youve had all this trouble, sucks.

 

[James Cohen]

Welcome James. I would suggest that this was not a good way to start on this forum. We don't know this chaps side of the story and its also not very polite in my view. Even if your completely accurate. It would be more serious if he had ripped you off and taken your money, and then I think you may have a good motive to let us know. But he could be having a bad hair day or his wife might have left him.. someone died.. who knows. I think we aught to give him the benefit of the doubt. Best wishes. Jake

Hi Jake, I understand your misgivings about my post; I originally included objective evidence of Dennis ripping people off and taking money, which was the most important part (to warn others). Unfortunately, the moderator deleted that part. Now I just look like a whiny Karen to anyone who finds this thread. Anyway, in case you’re interested, the links I posted originally are below. He served years in prison for fraud, and the recent judgement against him, combined with other’s experiences on this forum, demonstrate that he hasn’t cleaned up his act

[deleted]

Best,
James

 

[Ron Resnick]

James,

Please see my Post #16, above.

Thank you.

 

[sbo6]

Sweeps of frequency response are interesting, but useless to control the acoustic treatment. In order to have a reference for the quality of the work you should have measurements involving time, such as decays, impulse or waterfalls, carried before and after the treatment.

Otherwise, we can't be sure if the perceived improvement is also due to other changes, such as speaker moving or our bias expectations.

Actually you need both to give you the full picture. And listening doesn't hurt too.

 

[sbo6]

Setting expectations for first - time posters at first blush with lack of credibility while the OP provides a link to the court case / settlement. Here's another way to look at this - if the OP provided accolades would his credibility be questioned? Seems the scales are off balance.

Here's another data point FWIW - About 6 years ago I saw Dennis' videos and found it comical that his advice was almost always that - most rooms are no good for audio 2 channel (and I guess 5 channel) and the recommendation was to build a purpose - built room. What % of the market is going to build an audio room? Being generous, maybe 5%? Not to mention to state most rooms are no good for audio based on what sonic metric? What is the owners' expectations? So I decided to fill out the free consult form from Acousticsounds.com to procure his free initial assessment for shorts and googles. His summary states: "Unfortunately, your room size and volume do not work well for your intended usage. Attached find a chart showing room sizes and volumes for music rooms. The red is absolutely a no go acoustically and the yellow is problematic with treatment."

Here's where it gets interesting a) the dimensions in his chart only account for parallel walls and b) only allow for 8' ceilings. Net is, the chart doesn't work for my room. Additionally and further comical is that my room which is 9' H x 17' W to 19'W (room widens approaching the double entry doors) x 19' D = ~3070 cu ft which, in his chart is bordering green. Furthermore, what I presume he purports as "does not work well" is mostly specific to bass frequency management; I can attest to exemplary tight, tuneful bass via bass trap implementation, 4 JL audio subwoofers placed strategically and optimally along with minimal DEQ. I assume Dennis wanted me to knock down a wall or three, who knows. I can only imagine his expectations for more common smaller rooms. Needless to say I did not move forward ;-)

 

[Bobvin]

Has anyone else, who’s followed this thread, seen the “indeed.com” tv commercial (it shows on Fox News, don’t know about elsewhere) where the music guru needs to hire a sound man? There is a gray ponytailed guy in that commercial is a ringer for Dennis Foley. Maybe he has a side gig as an extra in commercials (though his role is a bit more than a typical extra)

yeah yeah, don’t hate me me ‘cause I watch Fox News (mostly Greg Gutfeld! thats where I see the commercial)

 

[dylan.smithe]

I think it's important for me to share my experience and inform potential buyers/clients about Dennis Foley of Acoustic Fields, as I've seen inquiries about him posted on several forums online.

I contacted Dennis Foley about a studio design, and not only was his advice nonsense, he came across incredibly arrogant and rude. Apparently my space was all wrong, and it would cost an insane amount of money to make it sound decent (not true; I went a different route and it sounds phenomenal). He claims he's "busier than a dog in a meat truck," yet his public calendar used to book appointments remains wide open.

[deleted]

I see he's a member of this forum, so I wonder if he'll chime in. Anyone else have experience with him?

I personally went to visit his studio about 5-6 years ago. Dennis Foley does not own a studio at all. He does not have a business or home address. The first thing he does when you call him, will be about money. He will ask you what is your budget. From there, Dennis will lie and give you the same products he gives to his highest paying customer and his lowest paying customers. It is the same product and the price is the same whether your budget is $1,000 or $10,000. James is right. You can get a phone call appointment anytime because his calendar is wide open. When I spoke with him, he came across as being very rude and he brags about how highly ranked his products were. I did a Google search and he doesn’t even rank. Arrogant is exactly what Dennis Foley is. He will run circles around you to throw you off during your calls to him. He has potential customers call him instead if the business calling the customers to give the appearance of having a bysiness when he answers the calls with “Dennis, from Acoustic Fields”. He is the only employee for his business. If I’m going to spend $5k on acoustic panels and solely by phone calls, I will do a background check on the business and on the owners, that has no physical studio, no business address, no anything. He is a convicted felon. His products are made from carbon, a technology used by water filters. Anyone can call up the businesses he advertises on his website. I called the Salk Institute, which at the time was his latest customer. It turns out whatever he did for the Salk Institute, it was returned. He kept advertising as having work done for the Salk Institute. The Salk Institute informed me they had his acoustic platform boxes returned because it made no apparent improvement to the quality of the piano sounds. The lady I spoke with at the Salk Institute told me that his guarantee was not really what he advertises. Dennis Foley will find loopholes so he doesn’t have to return all the money that his guarantee promises. The Salk Institute did not appreciate their name being used without permission, especially as an unsatisfied customer. The Institute contacted Dennis Foley to remove the Salk Institute name from the Acoustic Fields testimonials website. That was all I needed to hear to exclude Dennis Foley/Acoustic Fields. I would bet there’s more businesses that Foley listed that weren’t satisfied with his products. I would highly recommend checking his past projects as he advertises on the Acoustic Fields website. Don’t take my word for it, call the businesses he has listed on the Acoustic Field’s website. Better yet, schedule a meeting to get a tour of his studio, he doesn’t have one and nor does he have an address. Would you spend your hard earned money without doing a background check first?

The testimonials listed in this thread are probably people who are fake buyers that Dennis Foley set up to defend himself in this forum. I like my privacy but when I read all about the people defending Acoustic Fields, I had to make my opinion noted as well. No one has to believe me, do your due dilligence when you deal with a business that has no physical address nor a sound studio to hear how his acoustic panels work.