Creative Soundproofing Ideas?

R

Randy5235

New member
GO to a hard ware store and buy some MDF(medium density fiber)plywood its relatively cheap and is what they make most speaker cabinets out of is very very good at reducing sound leaking out or in use it to line the walls of your closet,You may want to use some foam or some the these other ideas as well to deaden it though as MDF is quite reflective

[This message has been edited by Randy5235 (edited 05-19-2000).]
 
So it sounds like it should be some sort of combination. like mattress pad/ foam lined door, walls and cieling. And then a second plywood layer over that.
DAMN, This message room is GOLDEN!
 
So, let's talk about Soundproofing. My Isolation booth/ cleared out closet needs some soundproofing from the constant R&B BAR-B-Qs/ice cream trucks/ gun shots/ barking dogs that are blaring outside. Any suggestions on highly effective yet affordable methods of soundproofing?
 
Hey.

Something that I found works reasonably well for real cheap are those foam mattresses they sell at Fred Meyers (local store, similar to K-Mart, Wal Mart etc. Dont know what they have in NY). Im not sure if this is the kind of thing you are looking for. They seem to do a good job reducing echos and things for the money, theyll run ya about $8 each. This may not be the type of thing you're looking for, just thought I'd chime in what I know.
 
If you wanna go realy cheap-egg carton boxes/wet tissue(eg.toilet roll) or foam. If you stick any of these over the complete walls you should be 'proofed'. I've heard the wet toilet roll thrown against the wall (leave to dry)is very efficient-they use this method in many amateur/proffesional studios-may sound stupid-try it out.
Good luck.
 
SSSSupppp' Swindel!. Go check out any Odd-Lot
store or Conway's,(I think there is 1 on Fulton street in downtown Bklyn) and buy a bunch of those cheap comforters they have on
sale for about $14.00 apiece and line your
booth with them. Them things work,though it's not much to look at 'specially if you buy the floral print! :)
 
I believe KingNothing is talking about "mattress pads".
They should work fine in a closet, but you might have to double up on them.
As for the gunshots, BBQ's, and barking dogs... I suggest a bulletproof vest, a bottle of Pepto Bismol, and a bottle of rat poison. :)
 
Foam does not sound proof, but it will make it dead. Placing a blanket over the foam makes it even better, plus it keeps the smell of the foam to a minimum. If you go with the foam, don't let anybody smoke in there, or they will be smoke. That stuff is very flammable.
 
I think your problem is like mine. The studio I building is within the city so understandably, the road noise is unavoidable unless you want to record at 2:30 in the morning. Most people confuses sound proofing with sound "deadening". I am building my studio with 5 inch cinder-block walls, doubling it up with 3 inch cinder-block spaced with 3 inches between them. I will be pouring sand in-between them. For the ceiling, It will be concrete slabs. I plan to have 3/4 inch plywood nailed around the walls where I will stick some cheapo foam (dipped in dark blue clothes coloring powder mixed in water, where I am at, it is hard to get those accoustic foams). I will be using your regular carpet foam and shag carpet on the floor. I believe me you will hear you ears ring in this studio. I will let you know when it is finished. The wall that separate the control room and the isolation room will be angled at 7 degrees to avoid right angles. How can I afford to build such studio? The land is paid for, it will be an extension at the back of the house, and labor and cement/sand/gravel/steel is cheap around here. I am in the Philippines. Just stay away from wood, they cost an arm and at least 2 legs around here.
 
I use a combination of:
1/4" Luan Plywood (first Layer interior sound barrier) plywood is not cut but overlapped by a minmum of 12" on every edge. Plus all corners are sealed with constuction Adhesive and latex caulk.

On top of the Luan Plywood I use acoustical ceiling tiles. Now These are expensive you could just as easily use SoundStop Board which costs about 1/2 as much as Acoustic Ceiling Tiles and is pretty much the same material. I just got a really good deal on some used ones pulled out of building that was being remodeled.

What you want is a minimum of 3 layers sound proofing. The first layer goes directly to your sound barrier. I then glue (not screw) 2" furring strips to that material. After the glue hardens I placed another Sound Barrier of Foilback Foam insulation. Then I glue acoustic ceiling tiles on to this barrier with construction adhesive. Overlapping each layer so there are no seems to the semms on the previous layer. Also VERY IMPORTANT you must seal all your corners with silicone, latex, or construction adhesive. Do this as each layer is installed. I then covered the entire system with Carpet Now I don't use carpet in big sheets. I just go and get all of the carpet square samples from carpet stores generally they will either give them to you or sell them really cheap. I just made mine is a sort of patchwork quilt pattern. I did an entire 14x14 room for around $500.00 doing it this way and keeping track of sales as Menards, Lowes, Payless Cashways, Home Depot etc.

Also I BLEW insulation into my walls instead of using fiberglass, I think it is a better sound barrier.

The other thing that I did is I made sure and had a seperate section for drums (8x8 corner) that is doubled up on insulation and sound proofing. with one SMALL Window.

Anyone with similar plans.

Thanks
 
believe it or not,burlap is a very effective sound proofing material.just cut up some burlap sacks,cover the walls,go over them with a layer of drywall and add another layer of burlap and you should see a drastic reduction in outside noise coming in,especially if you use a solid core door with a tight seal...good luck..les
 
I have seen sound barrier on a roll. I have never that I know of had any experience as far as using it. But this stuff was on a roll like Tar paper or if you have ever been a roofer, the black felt paper that goes on before the shingles. This stuff looked, felt, and ripped just like tarpaper. Anyone ever seen this stuff ? does it work good ?
T.J.
 
Okay, here's my sick Idea.

Get some 1"x2" strips of wood at your local DIY store (Scotty's, Lowes, Home Depot, H&S, etc. or whatever they have in New York)

Find a carpet company that makes and sells "sample tiles"/doormats, etc. from carpet. They will sew an "edge" around them, that keeps the carpet from fraying.

These "tiles" will be 18"x27" inches (some strange standard, huh?). You hang them starting from the Floor.
They will overlap with approximately a 3" overlap, and be 4 high in an 8' room.

They will be hanging 1" away from the wall, and because they overlap, there is an airspace created between them and the wall.If you used 2"x4"'s, you'd have a 2" airspace (well, really 1.75" inches, since 2x4 isn't really 2" x 4" anymore).

I did the inside of my garage this way.
They will cost you about $1 each.
so, if 27" is the HEIGHT of them (you hang them with the length hanging down) you can cover 18" wide from the ceiling to the floor for $4.00 plus the cost of the wood strips.

Mount the wood strips across the wall, at 24" intervals.

so, at 2' high, there is a board running across the wall.
then at 4', and then at 6', and the next just below the ceiling.

Make sure that you are nailing and/or screwing these boards INTO The Studs!
These carpet tiles will get heavy when added together. Just get some 1" nails, and nail the carpet tiles to the wood.
In the Corners, just "curve" them around the corner.

You can get different colors and have a "scheme" if you want.
I got several hundred of them of different colors, and made my place a Live end, and a totally Dead end where the carpet and my drums are. It's great for recording.

You can also nail them to the door, just make sure that you can close the door.
(Close the door, and put them on the door while it's closed.)

I'd just leave the ceiling alone, because these things will definitely make it isolated! In between the gap behind them, and the fact that they will suck up everything-it works pretty well.

Hope this helps,

Tim

[This message has been edited by Tim Brown (edited 07-06-2000).]
 
Damn this thing, I just typed a HUGE responce to swindle's soundproofing delama, and I hit "Submit Reply", and it said I typed my name wrong, and I lost my reply. If you want to know what I suggest doing, e-mail me. I'm building a recording studio out of my basement, and we're doing it RIGHT, so I can lead you in the right direction.
 
I was under the impression that egg cartons
dont dampen the reflections, that the overall
effect of all the surfaces of the egg cartons
give you an infinate amount of reflection?
all cancelling each other? Can someone with
more knowledge reflect on this. We once found
a carboard manufacturer in Colorado where we
bought the single layer for 18 eggs at a cost
of 37.00 for 1000. Not the cartons, just a
single layer to hold eggs. If you want to
use any egg cartons I suggest you try and find a deal like that. If you look in what is
called the Thompsons register you will find
manufactures for this. If you are in a large
population area you may be able to find manufactures for this in the yellow pages.
 
I had this room that my band and I used to play in. It was about 20'X12' with slanted ceilings because of the roof ya know ? At that time I was the nightcook in a diner. I had unlimited access to these 12"X12" cardboard egg cartons, so me and my buds Put insulation in the window. Then we threw up a rug on the wall over the window, behind the drums, Then we put up the cartons. Man there wasn't 2 inches of wall or ceiling that wasn't covered with this material. My main deal was to soundproof because of neighbors. The egg cartons muffled it out alot but not enough. In fact the rug probably did more than the egg cartons. But as far as deadening they worked great. I could put two mics in the room plugged into a cheapo regular sharp stereo cassette player. We played, we recorded live, and we could'nt believe our ears. Excellent, for the way it was recorded. These are a great economical way to take the ring out of your room if your on a budget, and ofcourse only if you want to take the ring out of your room. I have found that with Acoustic instruments the more room the better. But back to the soundproofing, we should have left it alone because there is always that one neighbor who's life becomes hell because of one repeated snare hit. This guy said " If I could hear everything else it wouldn't be so bad, but all I hear is Crack, Crack, Crack,...". ;)

That's my story, T.J.

[This message has been edited by T.J.Hooker (edited 07-10-2000).]
 
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