spiritofmusic

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I get having that wide diffusor panel on the front wall. But I'm slightly confused by the same panels on the side walls. I was always under the impression it was advised to have: diffusion front wall and absorption (not diffusion) side walls, esp at reflection points.
 
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Bodhi

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I too was concerned at first about the look of the bubbles but once painted and installed we love them.
Most of the people that enter our showroom love the bubbles on the ceiling.
They comment on them all the time. We even get people that want to buy just those. They look better in person as well
Fair enough Darrin. I guess I should reserve judgment until i've seen those ceiling panels in person. I should say overall the SMT room treatments looks amazing. I'm impressed by how tunable the SMT acoustic panels are to the specific needs of the room. And you can always opt for alternative ceiling panels if push came to shove; eg: ASC or RPG (as used by Magico).
 
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Folsom

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They're not exactly diffusors. They create a time delay, which is all you need on side walls. The first reflections are bad because they're too close in time to the fundamental wave. They also do actually absorb some stuff.
 
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spiritofmusic

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Bodhi, those Magico room ceiling panels are not a million miles different from GIK Polyfusors. I don't want to go OT here, but I'm putting a lot of thought into ceiling treatments for my 30° descending eaves, and the more install photos I see, the better.
 

Bodhi

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Bodhi, those Magico room ceiling panels are not a million miles different from GIK Polyfusors. I don't want to go OT here, but I'm putting a lot of thought into ceiling treatments for my 30° descending eaves, and the more install photos I see, the better.
Yeah I like GIK Acoustics. They're good value & work. But I don't want to derail this SMT thread any further, so i'll button my lip now :p.
 

spiritofmusic

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Same here. My abiding thought on room treatments is that it's so hard to make decisions on diffusion v absorption, placement, even choice within individual brands is complex.
 

Bodhi

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Darrin, how competitive were SMT with their quote (incl: consulation) vs altenative room acoustics companies you considered?
 

flyer

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I get having that wide diffusor panel on the front wall. But I'm slightly confused by the same panels on the side walls. I was always under the impression it was advised to have: diffusion front wall and absorption (not diffusion) side walls, esp at reflection points.

Putting absorbers on the side wall at first reflection point is actually 'old school' acoustics. It got implemented in the second half of the 20th century and is still very frequently recommended by acoustical firms. Not because it is required, but because it is cheap to make and the concept sells like belgian waffles to non-averted audiophiles.

I tested endlessly and after modifying and tuning and finally taking a 6-month course on acoustics as I was fed up with the unisono recommendation of each of the acoustic companies (their only difference being the absorber thickness recommended for the panel and the prices charged).
Simply explained, if you (try to) take away the first reflection point, this suddenly makes your sound image a lot narrower, to even half of it! You may argue: yes but then I don' have the negative effect of a naked reflection point. True! because a bare wall reflection is not natural in any acoustic setting and loudspeakers struggle with the effect. The thing is, how to get a diffusor to work as a concert hall wall or a recording studio where the walls are much further from the instruments etc?
Very few companies have worked that out and clearly SMT stands out with their S- and V-wings. These wings do not only diffuse the incoming sound waves, they also introduce - and that is unique - a time diffusion. Both combined explain their effect. Suddenly the room becomes (virtually) much bigger, the soundstage widens a lot but without loosing focus, on the contrary! The time delay causes the sound to be experienced as being 'richer' as our brain adds the delayed incoming waves from the wings to the original and this causes this effect.

There are quite a few other effects when using several wings or a whole room but I think I shared what I have to based on Marc's post.

If you want a first idea, before going crazy, of what the SMT can do: buy one pallet with four wings, put two on the first reflection point behind each speaker and two on the lateral reflection points, if it doesnt amaze you, you will stay away from them, simple! But you will be amazed and start thinking how many would fit in your room, don't be alarmed, join the club :)
 

LL21

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Putting absorbers on the side wall at first reflection point is actually 'old school' acoustics...

...SMT stands out with their S- and V-wings. These wings do not only diffuse the incoming sound waves, they also introduce - and that is unique - a time diffusion. Both combined explain their effect. Suddenly the room becomes (virtually) much bigger, the soundstage widens a lot but without loosing focus, on the contrary! The time delay causes the sound to be experienced as being 'richer' as our brain adds the delayed incoming waves from the wings to the original and this causes this effect.

...If you want a first idea, before going crazy, of what the SMT can do: buy one pallet with four wings, put two on the first reflection point behind each speaker and two on the lateral reflection points, if it doesnt amaze you, you will stay away from them, simple! But you will be amazed and start thinking how many would fit in your room, don't be alarmed, join the club :)


Very interesting...i am told that Stillpoints Apertures are both reflectors and diffusors, and the local distributor found good results with this same positioning to start. Behind speakers and to the sides at first reflection point. We could not do sides in the living room, but they are behind the speakers and work extremely well.
 

flyer

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Dec 16, 2012
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Very interesting...i am told that Stillpoints Apertures are both reflectors and diffusors, and the local distributor found good results with this same positioning to start. Behind speakers and to the sides at first reflection point. We could not do sides in the living room, but they are behind the speakers and work extremely well.

Well, looking at the website I read that its dimensions are very living room friendly and yet "Stillpoints Aperture have been found effective from 40 HZ to 40K HZ. "
When it is too good to be true...

But wait, only measuring 57x57 cms and costing 600 GBP!! In other words, 4 times as expensive as the MDF version of SMT diffusors or 8 times as expensive as the hard cardboard version of SMT! The wings of SMT measuring 120*60 cms in standard format.

No doubt it will have an effect, like everything is better than having a naked hard wall too close to the speakers or behind the listening position or behind the speakers. Question is, does it bring the best the speakers in your room can do for you ? If you haven't experienced proper diffusion, you can't miss it neither!;)
 

ACHiPo

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Feb 22, 2015
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I've tried contacting SMT directly with no response (I know, it's vacation season in EU, so maybe that's it?) Are there dealers service CA in the US?
 

flyer

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Dec 16, 2012
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I've tried contacting SMT directly with no response (I know, it's vacation season in EU, so maybe that's it?) Are there dealers service CA in the US?
I know Matts has been away in August, you might want to try again.
And yes, he has installation service in the US, he just embarked in a major refurb project of the factory demo room of a well-known company. Not to me to disclose already though.
 

ACHiPo

Well-Known Member
Feb 22, 2015
518
309
310
Pleasanton, CA
I know Matts has been away in August, you might want to try again.
And yes, he has installation service in the US, he just embarked in a major refurb project of the factory demo room of a well-known company. Not to me to disclose already though.
I heard from the shop in Nevada that reps them. Supposedly some new designs available in September.
 

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