This question is probably too stupid to ask Ethan…but does anyone know what would happen (theoretically) if you piled all of your bass traps in only one corner of a square 14x14x10 room?
Would you only able to hear bass out of your left ear and not your right? Or since bass isn’t directional would they work just the same?
I think Ethan is happy to answer stupid questions. he’s used to dealing with stupid arguments all the time, so I’m sure he’s happy to get questions. And if anybody has actually tested it to know the answer, it’s probably him.
But I would assume it’s less effective at killing ringing, because you’d have an unobstructed path for buildup. Think of it like a narrow hallway. If you only treat the side walls, but not the ends, you will hear the flutter bouncing up and down the hall, no matter how well treated the sides are. If you only treat the ends, you will hear the flutter on the sides ring out. Doing both, even with the same amount of treatment in total will at least reduce both sources of flutter.
But, I haven’t actually measured it, so take that with a grain of salt.
You certainly wouldn’t only hear bass out of one ear. Our ears cannot tell the direction of low frequencies. Bass can certainly be directional if you have a large enough driver. It’s our ears that are the issue with bass directionality.
Why would you put corner bass traps along only the side walls?
Like…the big triangle corner mega traps. Say the flagship Realtraps units. Those aren’t really meant to block mid range flutter. What I was wondering is what if you only treated one corner of a room?
[quote=“Jonathan, post:4, topic:1460”]
Why would you put corner bass traps along only the side walls?[/quote]
???
You wouldn’t. It doesn’t really matter what shape it is. The mechanisms of converting sound to heat are the same whether it’s bass traps or broadband. It’s just that bass traps are more effective in absorbing low frequencies.
I was just illustrating the fact that if you only put traps in one corner, you have another tangential and oblique mode that are completely untreated, and left to ring.
They’ll do a great job of blocking flutter, but that’s not really the point. The point is that if you only trap one corner, you are completely ignoring half of the issues.
I love stupid questions! But this is not stupid. And I actually tested this, so I have an answer. 
What I tested was six 6-inch thick bass traps versus twelve 3-inch thick traps, and having more traps spread around the room was much better. It was the same amount of material, but being more spread out worked better. Which makes sense. Bass waves travel in seemingly strange ways around a room, and it’s likely that some frequencies may never get to your one corner full of traps. Here’s my test:
Thanks Ethan. And I’ve been meaning to follow up with you about those photos. I’m actually having a few more things changed…then I’ll be ready for the next order 