Soundproofing on a shoe-string

  • Thread starter Thread starter Yonie
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Yonie

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Heya HR.com

Was directed to this forum in the hopes of getting some ideas for soundproofing my room in order to record voice-over auditions. Do note that I am not necessarily after broadcast quality, but the better quality I can get, the better off I'll be.

Currently living in Los Angeles. I have two windows that are very thin and leak a lot of outside noise. Currently living in a fairly noisy neighborhood with kids running around and traffic-noise leaking in from a nearby road. The windows are 35" x 47" and with a 5" depth. The house itself produces no sound if I turn off fans, ACs, the fridge, and close all doors.

Unfortunately, my budget is very limited, I am on a 'shoe-string'.

Throw out any ideas you have as to how I could block out as much noise from the windows as possibly. My plan for the room's door is to get a tension rod just outside it and suspend a moving blanket on top of that. For the windows, I had an idea about layering blanket - foam - blanket - foam - blanket and plugging it in the frame. I am unsure as to what material I should use for "foam" in this case.

Appreciate any help you can give. Do not let my statement about money stop you from posting.
 
I never knew that shoestrings needed to be soundproofed.

That must be why I could never sneak in my sneakers....
 
You could just wear headphones....like, all the time....then you won't hear all that noise.

What's a "shoestring" budget in real numbers?
If you don't clarify your budget and goals...you'll get suggestions that will be out of your reach.
 
I don't think he's "coming out".... he's just looking for soundproofing options. :D
 
I'd say at most a couple of hundred dollars. I'll already have the blankets, so the main thing is really what I could use to hinder sound from penetrating the window frame.

I do have a very small closet, but it won't do for blocking out sound.
 
To soundproof your room, to stop as much noise as possible from leaking in or out, requires lots of mass and then some more mass. It dosn't come cheap. If hanging a blanket or a bit of foam would stop all that noise then recording studios would not spend all that crazy money building thick walled studios with floating isolated rooms within them. Sorry but that's the truth about soundproofing.

Getting a quality sound is a different topic, for which you will need to measure the room's acoustics and treat accordingly. Generally speaking that will mean installing a bunch of acoustic traps to absorb resonant and reverberating sounds, but only enough so that vocals do not sound dead.

There is a comprehensive reading list: Acoustics/Treatment Reference Guide. There is a lot there so the first sentence is both helpful: If you're looking for the quickest way to get started, I suggest checking out 1c, 2b, and 2a. These briefly and simply cover the basics (and have lots of pictures ).
 
$200 isn't going to go far for soundproofing.

Maybe some *solid* wood shutters on hinges, either inside or outside, that you can swing/close over the windows when needed....?

Build a couple of gobos on wheels that you can position in front of the windows when recording....?

Record during off-hours when there is less noise outside...?
 
yeah, unfortunately you're not gonna be able to soundprrof a room without lots of money. You will only be able to lessen the incoming noise some. Blankets and such will attenuate higher freqs some and that's about it.
However, that MAY be enough for what you want to do.
 
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