John Sayers' Recording Studio Design Forum Archive

So back in February I made a post looking for advice on some basic room treatments for a small bedroom studio. With COVID and the inevitable setbacks that come from trying something like this for the first time (I literally had zero woodworking skills before this project, and had never tried anything like this before) it ended up taking a while to get things moving, but I'm finally at the point where the finish line is in sight and I have a couple of followup questions:

So back in my original post, Gregwor recommended that I cut the sheets of 703 into triangles and then stack them up in the corner like so. However, the table saw I've been using to build the frames is waaay too big to be hauled outside from the basement, and it's not even my table saw so even if I wanted to I couldn't just go cutting up the fiberglass into triangles with it. Having worked with the 703 in building my broadband panels, I know how fragile and crumbly it is (I lost an entire panel because I was sloppy with the wood glue and the vice I was using got stuck to the panel and tore a corner out) so I want to make sure that I am cutting up the 703 properly so I don't risk losing another. My first thought was to take a hack saw and just set the 703 panels on a table outside and use masking tape to mark off my measurements, but I really don't want to lose another sheet to my inexperience (I gave myself two "buffer panels" to cover the inevitable mistakes, but after that I'm screwed), so I figured I'd ask you guys about the most reliable way to neatly cut through compressed fiberglass. (I also have access to a tabletop paper cutter is that might work better)

Also, the triangle diagram Gregwor linked me doesn't specify what I'll be using to get the stacked 703 triangles to adhere to each other. My first thought was hot glue between the panels with a layer of acoustic cloth over the whole corner to stop people from picking at it but I figure it would be smart to double check that this is a good idea.

My last question is about actually mounting the 703 broadband absorption panels (not the corner traps). Most of the tutorials I've found on YouTube recommend monkey hooks for hanging broadband panels. However, I am going to be mounting at least one of the panels on a sloped ceiling (see attached image), and my experience with monkey hooks is that they don't hold nearly as much weight as they claim. I've also seen people recommending using hooks like this, but I'm such a noob at this that I'm not even sure if I'm supposed to screw the hooks into the wall or the panel itself, and none of the people who claim to be using them mention what those hooks are supposed to be hooking INTO. In other words, if I screw the hooks onto the broadband panel itself, what do I put on the wall to hold up the hooks? Or if I screw the hooks into the wall, what part of the broadband panel are they hooking on to? Alternatively, if anyone just knows a better way altogether, I'd love to hear it.

Once again, thank you all very much for helping me with this project.

Greetings snowblinded,

the most reliable way to neatly cut through compressed fiberglass.

An electric carving knife (you can get one for less than $20 at a big box store) works well because the blade is long and the mechanism does most of the work for you. If you can get a hold of a longer blade utility knife, that will work too. Regardless of your choice, use a straight edge.

All the best,

Paul

A few of these will create 'shelves' for small stacks of triangles. They also provide screw in points for whatever front frame/cloth you will use. Panel traps can have a wooden surround frame, but NOT a solid back.
This is a very clever design by a client of mine. It takes care of the fabric and provides solid easy mounting points. A small angle grinder makes construction very easy.

DanDan wrote:This is a very clever design by a client of mine. It takes care of the fabric and provides solid easy mounting points. A small angle grinder makes construction very easy.

That's a really nice design. Do you know what the steel he used is? Is it a preformed framing/shelving material?

Ooops, I left out that (best) bit. The metal is Electrical Wiring Tray. It is available everywhere and cheap! As it is galvanised it doesn't tarnish or rust and looks kind cool in a Mad Max kinda way.
Another client used 150mm Tray with 100mm fibre to include an airgap but with the frame mounted to the wall.

Thank you everyone for all the helpful advice.