Forum - Main Forums : DIY, Electronics, Studio Design & Acoustics

First, I need to invest in some monitors finally, as I have been doing all my work previously on headphones or computer speakers. My budget for monitors is somewhere around $400-500 for the pair. So far in browsing online the Yamaha HS50M, Mackie MR8mk2, KRK Rokit Powered 8 Generation 2, and the JBL LSR 2325P speakers have caught my attention. I plan on going to Guitar Center tomorrow to see if I can listen to some of them, but I am not sure what I should be listening for really. Also, I am wondering if for a small bedroom studio whether or not it is a good idea to get 8in monitors or if they would be too over powering for the small space.

Along with the new monitors comes the issue of placement. While I know that I should get them centered in my room and set up properly in a triangle shape with my listening position my issue is that my dorm room is a very funny shape. It is essentially a long rectangle, however, the front is made up of two angled walls that come to a point with one that is a steeper angle than the other. Essentially it is kinda like one of the corners was chopped off. For better or for worse, the only place I can conveniently position my desk and everything is on that chopped off angle wall. This may have a small advantage in that behind me is closets and corners at kinda a 45 degree angle that I assume should do a great job of diffusion, but my left monitor will be close to a corner (something like a 100 degree angle) and my right monitor will be near the point of the room (something like a 150 degree angle) How will the monitors react to those kind of funny angles and room placement? Will this be manageable, or do I really need to find a better place for the desk? Would being centered in the point be a huge advantage?

In addition to monitors I am also thinking about investing in some acoustic treatment of some sort. If possible, I would like to set them up in a somewhat modular way so I could take them off walls and use them around a mic to help with vocals. Currently I am leaning towards 2ftx2ft 4in thick Auralex foam tiles that I could move around pretty easily. I have also been looking at the 2in thick panels, but I am hoping that the thicker will reduce the need for bass traps a bit and will be more useful for the vocal recording application. When it comes to the 2in variety, I am also confused about the different shapes of the foam and how the tiles with a four ramp design compare to the tiles that have like 12 spikes. The alternative I am curious about is whether I should put together some panels myself with some ridged fiberglass Corning 703-type material. I have read that this can do more across a wider range of frequencies, but I am slightly concerned about how to mount heavier panels in a dorm room that I can't alter much and they would also be more difficult to move around. But if the benefit to the sound for mixing and for vocals would be greatly improved then I might be willing to mess around with that more. I also wonder am I crazy for trying to improve such a funny shaped dorm room? And would any of those options help vocal tracking? And how would that compare to something like a SE Reflection filter?

Thanks so much!