curtains vs sound absorbing panels

I am in the process of finishing the home theater. My wife has done a nice job at the decorating plans but we are trying to figure out whether we will need sound absorbing panels.

A few details - the room is roughly square at 22 by 20 although one rear corner is chopped off at about a 45 angle. At the first reflection point side wall, we have a window so my wife is planning floor to ceiling curtains about 3ft wide. We'll do this on both sides for decorative purposes although there is no window on the other wall. At the second reflection point side wall we will have the same curtain on one side. THe opposite side is where the 45 degree notch is in the room so I was going to do nothing. THe floor is carpeted, the walls and ceiling are wall board.

Do you think i need sound absorbing panels in addition to the curtains? If yes, can I put them behind the curtains or will they not do anything. I imagine the curtain material will be a critical piece. THey won't be heavy, thick material - think regular cotton/polyester maybe a bit thicker than a dress shirt you might wear. Do I need any other sound absorbing panels and where? I have a 7.1 setup.

thanks

rick

[quote=usualsuspects;12740845]I have fairly thin curtains with linacoustic behind them on both sides of my theater. Curtains by themselves do very little to absorb sound. Putting the linacoustic behind the curtains works, because the frequencies that are not absorbed by the curtains go right through and hit the linacoustic.[/QUO

thanks! I know this is a bit speculative but do you think just using the linacoustic behind the curtains is sufficient or do i need to do more - should i post my room drawing?

Thanks guys - i will get the panels for behind the curtains and then see how the room sounds. For the bass traps, i understand you put them in the corner(s) of the room. My wife really wants to preserve the look of the room so visible acoustic treatments is not an easy sell. Can I put 2 of them in the front corners of the room behind the speakers. THis area will all be covered by a large frame door with GOM fabric. thanks for the advice!

rick