Ideal design for a new music room

Interesting article!Having done quite a bit of diy in my home my back and arms almost ached in sympathy as he wrote about doing the ceiling.I think the cost was reasonable also.A custom built room for any type of hobby could easily cost much more in custom built ins,woodwork,and furnishings.

Assuming you are serious. Stop fretting about perfect dimensions and focus on designing a room that will facilitate making the great sound you want. Don’t somply go for the largest room. Realize that bass traps are inevitable as is the need for diffusion. What size area and what ceiling height is practicable for you?

Robert Harley's current TAS article is a wonderful report about his design and construction of a DIY stereo reproduction room. Thanks very much for sharing so much practical detail.

This discussion thread has been very helpful for anyone with the luxury of being in a position to design for the construction of a new room. Thanks to all.

One subject I still wonder about: ventilation. What is the best way to keep the air fresh and comfortable through four seasons and not compromise the acoustics?

For ventilation I had ASC spec out a mini split which is a solution that will work just about anywhere, however I can still hear the unit when it’s on even two rooms away and through my sound isolated room. It’s probably unavoidable that low fan rumble will carry through any ducting into your room and the only fool proof solution is to turn the system off when you are listening - which will also remove any impact it has on the electricals as well

The ducting is all built into the acoustic soffit in my room, that way you get HVAC support without compromising the acoustic integrity of the room

Interesting. 

Can you give more details about the design of:

• a "mini split"; and
  
• an "acoustic soffit"
  

Thanks