Tweakers' Asylum

Posted by CBernardino (A) on November 14, 2020 at 17:48:48

With the pandemic keeping me in the house much more than I'd like, I decided to remove, replace, retry, and validate all of the various tweaks (including acoustical treatments) I've added to my system/listening room over the years. My conclusion as a result of doing this over many months was that room acoustics was the weakest link. The sound is much more natural and dynamic with all of the RPG BAD panels you see in my listening room photo on the walls and ceiling, but I still hear too much reflected sound at the listening position This is particularly true at higher volume levels. When I replaced the two BAD combination panels behind the listening seat with absorbing panels the reflections vanished but the room sounded completely dead. Note that I do not have any obvious bass mode issues and have not tried traditional bass traps because of the space they take up.
So I decided to try the DHDI ZR Acoustics panels on the wall behind the speakers (initially). The two photos are of one of the ZR panels I just received. I was surprised to see how complex and intricately "carved" they are (see the closeup photo). I have not seen any scientific studies that prove or disprove the "Quantum Acoustics" claims behind the design of these panels. My decision to try them was a function of the large and growing number of well known recording studios and mastering labs that are using them (see: https://deltahdesign.com/portfolio/). My layman's understanding of the science is that the many tiny non-parallel surfaces that you can see in the photo below essentially diffuse air at the molecular level, preventing the formation of reflected sound waves. I don't have to know if the science behind them is 100% accurate or not. There are many other tweaks we can hear working but can't explain the science behind. If my ears tell me that they work that will be enough for me. I will post the results of my experience with these panels.