Hey guys, I just wanted to drop this link here and see what you all think about sound proofing the studio
Super thorough read on bass traps and other type of sound treatment.
I’m thinking rounded rock wool bass traps a foot and a half or so off the corners to start.
Input?
Where are the towels?
Reference: @thespacemaker
https://talk.dallasmakerspace.org/t/sound-panels-in-digital-media-room/14285
The Certificate of Occupancy needs to be updated to include a recording studio.
@Kriskat30
Why? What’s unique about that that will require a special deviation from our CO?
Didn’t we run into an issue with the soundproofing in the lecture hall such that the fire marshal made us take it out!
We had stuff hanging on the walls that didn’t meet the fire code. It wasn’t an issue with soundproofing in a generic sense.
Is the new space big enough for an effective “Studio”?
Define “effective”?
Oh, also define “studio” ?
There was also such moving blankets I believe in DM that were taken down at some point.
Anything used for soundproofing has to be UL listed and meet fire code requirements.
Yes and no. In the expansion meeting @tombakerftw and I pushed for a vocal studio. This will be added on to what is now Electronics and expand halfway into what is currently the lobby. It is big enough to do things like voice overs, but not designed for a full band recording together.
So an audio booth. Not a production room looking into the main room? that was some discussion I had overhead.
Our broadcast facility orders lots of stuff from Broadcasters General Store if anyone is interested in looking at pro grade studio equipment and accessories, check out https://www.bgs.cc/shop
Also check out Auralex sound control products at https://www.sweetwater.com/store/manufacturer/Auralex
Before we redid our voice tracking studios to have rock wool panels covered in acoustic fabric we used to have the walls covered in 2’ x 2’ x 2" foam wedge squares. https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/SF2in22CHA--auralex-2-inch-studiofoam-wedges-2-foot-by-2-foot-acoustic-panel-12-pack-charcoal
If insulation is planned within the wall or on top of the ceiling grid a rock wool blanket insulation will do a good job of deadening the sound transfer between rooms. Fiberglass insulation does next to nothing for sound control…
Cool @Shawn_Christian I’ll look into it.
I like rock wool because it’s compliant with firecode and it comes in varying densities so we can attack the broad spectrum of sound with it
I was speaking in purely acoustic performance terms, soundproofing the room with rock wall would be a much larger endeavor and honestly…
We won’t have entire bands jamming in there, I don’t think that soundproofing will be as important as people think, I think acoustic performance is the key here.
If we got drums they’d probably be electric
I think packing the denser rockwool into a pattern that also disperses (the dense foam absorbs base but reflects highs) we can get both bass trapping and sound dispersion in the most important corners (the article talks extensively about this)
We can then use less dense rock wall and build the typical sound panels.
As for deadening the sound of the room to the outside, that would require a second wall with an air gapped or insulated layer as well as a fake floor, fake ceiling and some sealant around the door.
Basically all of the surfaces would have to have minimum contact to the actual walls floor and ceiling. That seems a bit overkill to me in a room that will only record a few people at a time.
We should focus on acoustic performance. Just my opinion
If you are interested in seeing how we converted some regular offices into voice tracking studios I can probably arrange for a few people to see our studios. We faced many of the same challenges in trying to deaden a standard office with uninsulated walls that stopped at the drop ceiling grid. They are not perfect but block out enough outside noise that they do the job. We have double pane glass windows in the doors and a metal drop threshold retrofit on the office doors that seals the gap at the floor when the door is closed.
Most of our rooms are for recording DJ breaks for radio formats. In all of the voice tracking rooms we use Electro-voice RE20 microphones and have Symetrix 528E voice processors that help take out the background hum and other unwanted acoustics.
Here are some construction photos of the acoustic panel treatment we did in one of the newer voice tracking rooms that was in a converted office. Furring strips were attached to the wall to build out for the thickness of the acoustic panels. There are plastic trim strips around the peremiter that the acoustic fabric was tucked into when it was all trimmed out. The drop threshold on the door along with 12 inches of heavy insulation above the room and several feet beyond over surrounding hallways or rooms it blocks most outside noise.
And for a little humor I found this hidden in one of the preliminary blueprint drawing sets for our 2500 sq ft main recording studio where we do most of our radio jingles and high end production work. It was on a page detailing ductwork and other room penetrations. Well known studio designer Russ Berger designed the studio in 1994 and was known to slip in a few funny drawings in the early design drawings before they were removed for the final construction drawings.
Agree, I thought it was a booth with a window into the other room. But not my decision the figuration looks like that was the intent otherwise no reason to leave the wall and create two small rooms eludes.
It is a booth with a door into the other room. We have been led to believe that “normal” windows are acoustical problems and unless DM has the funds to install whatever magic special-purpose glass is required to mitigate the sound issues, the wall isn’t going to have a window.
A window would be nice, but I’ve been led to believe that sound control is more important.
