i m having a big big trouble because of my roommates. they listen to loud music, also I am disturbed a lot due to loud music; due to this I'm not able to concentrate on my studies, and i can't say anything to them. please do suggest to me what should i do so that my ears are safe.

I live in a townhouse, and the person next to me has a home theater system. I do not hear the music but sure notice the vibrations from the sub woofer. how can I get rid of this vibration? I feel it through my feet on the floor or even when I am bed. It's driving me crazy, and I cannot sleep at night. I told him about it but he could care less. Thanks.

i play halo 3 a lot because I'm like an mlg pro, but not noticed yet. basically not pro yet but good. i have to yell call outs on a mic and dad gets mad and turns the internet off. how do i make it where he can't hear me in his room from mine? i have a wooden door but it is not completely hollow. I'm thinking rubber around it but not sure. what should i do?

just read the book "Get Better Sound." it explains it all.

I am an amateur robot builder living with five people in a three bedroom duplex, and about once a day somebody complains about my noises from using tools or testing vocal functions/alarms or movement tests. I am on the top floor and most times have someone downstairs and sometimes sharing one wall upstairs. Some of the robots have legs and walk noisily (just testing) because i have hardwood. I put a rug down and it helps some but my room is bigger than the rug and the robots are out of my direct control because I am testing more than one at the same time, so they often scrabble on the wood. I thought, make the robots themselves out of soft materials that are sound proof and thought it could have stealth applications but that's not the direction I'm going in with this. There is no garage.

Im going crazy, i have a set of laptop speakers that run with a subwoofer and it seems that even when the bass is turned right down i still annoy the other people in my house. I listen to a lot of bass heavy dance music and i need a solution to this! The place is rented and the room I am in is on the first floor of a three story house, and i have house mates on four sides; above, below and on two sides. There is a fire door that keeps a lot of the noise in on the one side though and i have double glazing which is a bonus so that side's not so much of an issue. I think the bass is mainly being carried in the floor (even though i have raised it off the floor already.). Would putting the sub in some kind of sound dampened box on legs make any difference? or maybe sound proofing the wardrobe? Oh yeah, and I'm skint lol so cheapish materials are the only option really. Please, someone with some real music knowledge, advise! :)

Any suggestions to inhibit the low register thrumming noise from my neighbor's air conditioning unit? Will MLV on our party wall help. What about the floor. Would the same product work? I want to retrofit my bedroom first and would love suggestions from anyone. Thanks vrbchsusan

I'm thinking about doing a science project about soundproofing my room, but I don't want to spend a ton of money just on the project. what's the easiest, most inexpensive way to soundproof a room?

I have neighbours who bang a metal gate right beside my water tank. The noise is very grating. How can I stop this noise?

My room is right next to the TV, and my roommates like to stay up late watching it. The door itself is made of heavy wood, but I can still hear it. Any ideas? --Josh

Hi,

Well, I have birds!! Big loud birds and I need to soundproof the room they live in. I see there are a lot of different materials, but most seem to be discussed in the context of music. Any thoughts on what might be the best material for my house? thx CB

Right, I've completely soundproofed my garage, but now my other recording artists and I are struggling to breathe, any ideas for soundproof ventilation?

Hi a lot of things have been suggested and many are very good, especially GC's. However sometimes using a "Rockwool" (more accurately mineral wool as Rockwool is a manufacturer's name) can be quite bulky and reduce the size of your room. However, as mentioned sand can greatly reduce sound transmission and save space.

Products such as Karma Acoustic EasyPanel is a great way to do this. This is a double layer of cross fluted corrugated cardboard filled with silica sand encased in hardboard material.

This reduces sound by 6dB and takes up very little space. However, as mentioned before, making an independent wall system will reduce the sound transmission even further, but will greatly reduce the area of a room.

AF

I'm building a home studio. My set up is in the living room. The artist i work with can't record there, cause there is noise from the computer fan and refrigerator, so he will be recording out the room next door and my room is a problem. There is a big glass door which is next to the street outside. When someone starts a car or drives by i can hear them. I will be putting up blankets or stand the mattress. I can have them on on the corner when the artist records. He will be wearing headphones so there is no sound. How can i make this room more soundproof without having to spend a fortune and to record quietly. I can't stick anything to the original walls cause its an apartment so i cant make changes to it.

I play drums, in a one car spaced garage at the moment. I'm worried about the garage door. Can someone give me some ways to stop the sound from getting out of the door. One of my drum teacher's friend's has a garage. He got a wall built in where the garage door was with a double double glazed window and a double double glazed door, which stopped sound from getting out. It's very quiet, but I don't have the money for that!

What are those foamy things made out of that I see in the studio I go to? If anyone could tell me, i'll be just another happy kid wanting to play drums in a friendly environment! Thanks

Okay, from reading this thread, I have an idea regarding how I might reduce the low frequency sound coming from my home theatre subwoofer, I'd like the experts to tell me if it will work or not.

I live in a corner apartment, so I have only one neighbor to worry about. My home theatre front and center speakers are on a desk that is against the wall I share with the neighbor. My subwoofer is under it, on the floor.

Since what I've read here says that the best way to soundproof in an existing room where you can't modify existing walls it to build new walls, I'm thinking the following might help:

I don't think the higher frequency sounds travel that much compared to the sub because the sub is pretty loud in comparison to the front speakers. So the subwoofer is my largest concern. To isolate the subwoofer using the "new wall concept" without actually building a new wall, I'm thinking that if I add soundproofing material to the desk, which is a box with five sides (on the underside, that is) then the desk can serve as my new wall. The sub is under the desk, so if I add anti-vibration feet to it to get it off the floor, add anti-vibration feet to the desk to get IT off the floor, and add sound dampening material to the inside of the desk (the footwell) behind and on the sides of the subwoofer, I'll have a "new wall" that significantly reduces the sound coming from the sub, but doesn't dampen it from coming right at me when I'm watching a movie or playing a video game on my computer. Will that work?

def try soundstop fiberboard. it deadens sound by reducing vibrations, its cool because it deadens the sound as opposed to just dampening. Good if you're playing an instrument and you want the resonance.

anon11109,

Probably the only thing your neighbors and people living downstairs hear is the bass, which, at least for me, would get on someone's nerves quite easily. My roommate uses large fiberglass pads that hang from the walls for his dj beat development. However, honestly you should just visit their rooms and tune your bass down till it's not noticeable.

hi i am president of florida service dogs, inc and i recently purchased a new home with 3/42 acres of land, i had the back half fenced in and couldnt put in privacy fencing as i wanted to due to the water when it rains, and vinyl was way over priced. so went with chain link 6ft green fencing. i have 4 small 25 pounds and under pet dogs by the house in their fenced off area. and we want to build kennels out back of the property to house/train the dozen service dogs, (larger dogs 50 plus pounds) dogs in training that we have. course the problem we have is the noise of the barking, and even bigger problem is i am late deafened LOL. i have only lived at the new place now for a week, and until last night i had not one complaint from anyone about the barking dogs...normally the dogs dont bark, but the neighbors (which i have only one! sigh) came complaining how the dogs barked all night long. this is the little pet dogs not the big dogs as they arent on the property yet. how do i make their little area soundproof???? i need help please, we have a small portable shed building in their running area, its about like a 10 by 7 size shed, with a window and large door which opens to there yard running area. the neighbors house is probably 100 ft or more from mine! but there are no trees out there and nothing else out there...its all open property......no concrete no buildings etc...and how do i make the kennels soundproof?

I'm trying to put something on the walls in my apartment to keep the neighbors happy when I play the drums in a secluded bedroom. Is there anywhere to get studio foam for a better price than a music store? You know, the stuff you put in a bass drum to dampen it.

i live in a rented house and i am very fond of Trance, so every night i play trance with the lights off, and trance consists of high bass, so i think i am disturbing my neighbour, my room is made up of concrete floor, the people who stay below me are disturbed.. what can i do to reduce the noise to reach them, i have a very good sub woofer system to boost the sound, but i don't like to disturb people living downstairs me... kindly help.

Brooklyn, INDIA

two words - Green Glue. It's a fairly inexpensive material you sandwich between a double-layer of drywall (you can use in ceilings and floors as well) which works wonders.

For most of you who ignored anon1052's initial response to the article and want to do it cheaper and easier, you can't. You can only get slight reductions in sound. It must be kept in mind the difference between less resonance, echo, volume etc. of sounds already in the room and keeping sound from going in or out. All the urban legends about egg crates and stuff really do very little for in the room sound and next to nothing for sound going in and out. Think "soft stuff that absorbs" for internal sound and "total isolation barriers" for keeping sound from going in and out.

Not much sound passes through two feet thick of concrete to the outside, but anybody who has had a band play in their unfurnished basement knows it sounds terrible inside.

For the flute player: You have the perfect set-up already. Hang a bunch of clothes in the closet. All those irregular surfaces and absorbing fabrics just might do the trick. I do the same thing when I practice singing or my saxophone when I need to be quiet. Also, you are then using your closet as a closet.

i live in an apartment and want to convert a walk-in closet into a music practice room. i play the flute, so bass really isn't a problem. the closet does not share any walls with neighbors on either side, but there are apartments above and below me. also, there is a flimsy metal door on the closet with air vents running its entire length.

any suggestions on how this can be done effectively and cheaply (i hope).

thanks. tony

hallandale beach, fl usa

High frequencies are easy to dampen, carpet in the room will help this, even some carpeting on the walls. Heavy drapery etc...

Bass is usually the problem. Isolation of the rooms surfaces with dense, heavy material is the key here.

A room within a room. Walls ceiling and floor need to be isolated from the original. Isolation prevents the transfer of bass vibrations thru to the rest of the house.

Lay a new floor structure (2x4's and 3/4 inch plywood) on a series of rubber shims or blocks.

The same principal is used for the walls, build the new wall structure (2x4's and 3/4 thick plywood or 3/4 thick drywall) and support it on some kind of shock absorbing material. Don't fasten the new wall structure directly to the old, again use shock absorbing material between and do not fasten too tightly , the tighter it is connected, the more bass will transfer to the outer structure.

Ceilings, isolation of a drop ceiling, isolate the hanging wires on springs and allow the edges of the grid system to "float" against the wall to prevent vibration transfer, use the heaviest tile inserts available or cut your own from 3/4 plywood or drywall.

what about soundproofing pipe noise...can it be done? for how much? and are there any cost-effective solutions? my roommate likes to take long showers at night and i can hear the water running through the pipes of the sink in my own bathroom, unbuffered right next to my bedroom and i hear it.

hey jenosequa,

the easiest and cheapest way to soundproof a room?

I used sound proofing fiberboard. It's super cheap and lightweight, making it easy to handle. the only company I know of who makes this stuff is Knight Industries. there's a ton of info on their website.

let me know how it works out.

Why aren't bathrooms soundproofed? Ut seems like soundproofing a bathroom would be a very useful and valuable addition to any apartment or home!

It is all about how much quiet/silence makes it worth it for you.

Texture and material density will affect the sound wave. Ex.: try to scream in the water.

So it is like an infection chain control, you take one link of the chain and the entire structure gets weaker or disappears

Lin R.N.

I am in an office building where the sound comes up from the floor below and the hallway is rather loud. any thoughts on soundproofing the floor and doors? Thanks so very much! Jen

Is there any way of soundproofing train noise in a room?

Thanks for all of the great tips! I am wondering though, specifically, what would you say is the easiest and cheapest way to prevent sound from leaving a room? We rent, and our apartment is right next to our landlord's! I think his bedroom actually shares a wall with ours! Plus, our hardwood floors are apparently not insulated well at all. The downstairs neighbors complained about the noise from the last tenants, saying they could even hear conversations they were having, plus other noises which kept them up at night. Can someone please help us get some privacy and help our neighbors be able to live in peace??? Thanks!!!

I wish to obtain DRAPES for the purpose of sound blocking. I live in an apartment and there is a pool on the other side of a sliding glass door (with kids who scream). I also have a window in that direction.

Are there drapes made specifically with sound proofing in mind?

What material would be best, if searching for drapes for soundproofing?

Any suggestions on finding such drapes appreciated.

This article seems to be confusing two very different issues.

1/ Soundproofing is the action of preventing unwanted sounds from entering or leaving a bounded location.

2/ Acoustic treatment, is a way of preparing a room to provide a flatter frequency envelope, to minimise echo, flutter, reduce existing frequency resonances and generally 'deaden' a room.

Egg cartons are a shoestring budget attempt to attain the the latter. By breaking up the waves of sound reflected from a wall they aim to subtly reduce standing vibrations (in a tight range of frequencies) but will do virtually nothing to prevent the ingress or egress of sound.

Even expensive surface mounted sound treatments (as seen in most professional studios) are designed to do the same job more effectively and across a wider range of frequencies - many are high density and also act as 'bass traps' ... but again, you can pay up to $1000 per square meter and STILL not significantly reduce the ingress and egress of sound. But the sound that DOES get in will not echo, boom, or become coloured by the rooms own characteristic resonances. Hardly a help to those seeking refuge from the neighbours.

So, how do you soundproof a room ?

Well, sound travels well through air... but some of the most annoying components travel even better through water and most solids. What sound really doesn't enjoy is having to move from one density medium to another (energy is lost here) ... or trying to get past a free standing resonator (The resonating mass will soak up most of the energy at that frequency).

Soundproofing is one of those things that really needs to be planned for in advance. No matter what you place in the walls to deaden the higher frequencies will NOT prevent the annoying bass frequencies being transferred through the framework and using the internal paneling as an effective soundboard.

So, I'd say drop the blown fibreglass and mount slab rockwool. NOT to the panelling, but to the frame. The frame should be properly caulked and no air gaps left around the rockwool. The interior panelling should be isolated from the frame using silicone or neoprene gaskets. 5200 is great too.

For external walls theres little you can do beyond a standard blown-insultion job. However, by floating an interior frame from the wall as above you will get an additional layer of protection and the slab rockwool will soak up a lot of frequencies a brick wall (insulated or not) inevitably passes.

To correct the author on a few points:

Sound travelling between one wall and another does not set up a vibration. Sound already IS a vibration. The significance of parallel surfaces is that they create the potential for standing waves between the two parallel surfaces. This is an issue for recording studios and audiophiles as it can 'comb filter' the audio... but has no relevance for those annoyed by their neighours music, road traffic or lawnmowers. Non-parallel walls (And surface treatments) may help you to hear your music as it was meant to be heard - but won't stop external noises.

In particular, surface treatments are particularly expensive, are often misrepresented as 'soundproofing', and will do little or nothing for anyone suffering with noise pollution except needlessly lighten their wallet.

Wall insulation, Double Glazing and and airtight seal around the windows will suffice for most external noises such as children, lawn trimmers and light road traffic.

Carpeting (particularly with a good heavy underlay) does help deaden a room. But for reducing unwanted noise it would probably be far more effective used on your neighbours floor than your own.

This is because noises *within* the building, such as neighbours, will be difficult to soundproof against given the buildings construction. And, whilst it IS possible to isolate a room from vibrations carried directly by the building itself, it is cost prohibitive for the average joe.

However, for those setting up a home recording or listening area... a room-within-a-room setup is quite effective. In particular, the entire inner space should be built upon a raised flooring. Possibly heavy slab rockwool isolated by neoprene or even (as one DIYer suggests) suspended on tightly packed rubber hemispheres made from halved superballs. My home-brew studio is within a concrete garage containing a sand-suspended poured-concrete base with neoprene, rockwool then two opposing layers of hardwood flooring with a heavy rug.

The walls are heavy rockwool panelled walling of 'inside-out' construction with silicone gaskets between each joint and this sufficiently removes unwanted external mid-high range frequencies. This is surrounded with heavy block resonators suspended vertically from the garage beams (Thus isolated from transferring their vibrations to the recording enclusure) which were designed to soak up traffic rumble and aircraft noise which were a particular problem. Each block is graded to soak up a particular problem frequency and produce a kill effect over a wide range of low-end frequencies.

Doors are a particular problem. They need to be heavy! Solid doors are not always best - a sandwich constructed door filled with sand is better but hanging them presents fresh problems ... and the seals around doors are a major culprit, so these need special attention, even at the hinge side. They should be airtight when closed.

As you see, soundproofing is no easy task.

Eggboxes and carpeted walls indeed : )

-GC