Hi, I have to create a room from scratch to play/record. Being a condominium apartment I have to isolate as much as possible. Which panels do you recommend? A thousand thanks

 

If you want to isolate sound, panels won't help you, as sound is transmitted to the structure of the building and transmitted there via vibration.

 

a good pair of headphones.

 

forget about it,
you would need to build an actual room in a room, would probably cost around 10 000 $ to make properly, and it would waste lots of room space,
either get decent headphones, or get well with neighbors in order to use monitors without room isolation

 

sand?

 

I negotiated with my neighbours, we came to an agreement that if I didn't STFU they would shut me up.

 

You can not isolate from outside noises other than doubling your walls from the inside.

 

well that explains your profile pic

 

Sound will find a way of the least resistance. A weak point are doorways. You could install two thick doors in a frame, but they have to be basically airtight or the sound goes through that. Like it's been said, it's going to be expensive and requires modification of the room. Not worth it imho. Maybe rent a basement or remote place if thats possible. I was in this position once and asked my neighbors if they can hear music from my place and dialed in the volume which was about speaking volume. Anything over that I used headphones and then moved out when I could.

 

The approach can vary, though I highly recommend building your own panels, if possible. This will help absorb the frequencies, and keep them traveling as much into other spaces. You'll save a ton of $ doing it yourself. Otherwise, look into brands like GIK acoustics, etc. GIK Acoustics will give you a free consultation on your space to recommend the most effective solution.

If you go DIY, the tried and true approach of using rockwool safe n' sound insulation sheets in simple frames is very effective. I'd recommend going 6 inch, by doubling the insulation pieces if you can.

Good luck! Room treatment is key if using monitors for mixing or sound design. Otherwise, as others have mentioned headphones will do the trick, and is the easiest approach to getting a good mix and keeping your neighbors happy.

 

You'll never sound proof an apartment property without owning the place. But treating a room? I can get on board w/that... Since you're using it for both recording/mixing I suggest making it dead AF. Buy OWC 703 2" & 4" ridged panels. Frame them, Cover with linen. & go to town making the place dead. Dont forget the ceiling.... I also suggest mixing 90% in headphones.

 

Cheapest rockwool slaps, linen and transfer paper for fabrics to make cool pictures on them, heavy curtains help a lot also, I know Thomann sells these theather curtains, which are also fireproof

 

this forum will be help to you - https://www.johnlsayersarchive.com/

It probably won't cost "10000$" but that's some amount of sophisticated work needs to be put into for sure. As previous posters said, panels aren't meant for isolation - they are meant for absorption, which probably can lower dB's a bit, when we're talking about basstraps, but don't expect more than 20% rejection that way. Isolation is based on double-walls with air gap in between. These layers of walls are called "leafs", and I think it's a known fact that two-leaf wall is better than a three-leaf.

Just check the forum; construction, design and acoustics subs.

 

Sand, as mentioned above. Build a room within a room (with floating floor). Could (most likely) be rather costly.

 

Floating floor is not as efficient and necessary as people often think. You seriously should check John Sayers forum, he was a legend... and gathered really dedicated enthusiasts around that place

P.S. All I wanna say - it's "expensive" when we talk about hiring someone who will do all the work for us, without making a headache. "Turnkey", as they say it. But when one has access both to knowledge and to materials, what could stop him if not from Doing It all Yourself, but at least from hiring some kids who could hold a trowel? :D

 

Floating floors are actually quite effective! They are just not always sensible to implement. And of course it is not possible to outwit physics. Two 703s with a plywood middle layer on neoprene flooring stands floating in an apartment with a ceiling height of 2.40 m, isolating infrasound transmission on a high sound pressure level? Impossible. But it is very effective for damping walking noises.

 

Last edited: Nov 28, 2023

I've been to studios with sand as foundation and having rooms within rooms and they are amazing. Pretty much no sound to nearby places. And likewise, little noise getting in (trapping and isolating energy, which is the "opposite" of acoustic treatment). One studio was built in a barn near a freeway here in Sweden (Fascination Street Studios' previous location). Great place!

Exactly! Why I said "expensive" is that if you hire someone to do it, it will cost you a lot more than doing it youself (duh!). Big project, indeed.

 

This is probably the most down to earth answer so far. doors and windows would be a good place to start from, and you can do a lot of that in an apartment building (depending on where you live and how much you care about the condominium rules), that might be enough depending on what you're doing on that room, the rest is kind of impossible from a practical and maybe even legal perspective.

Acoustic pannels will help a little but they are not designed to soundproof anything, and you should not buy or make them thinking that they will. However, you can make or buy some sort of removable acoustic barrier that may help more with isolation without literally making another wall, think something like a folding screen, or a giant removable window plug (yes, i'm serious). It'll not solve all your problems but unless you can do some radical changes on the room's structure there's not a lot more you can do.

Also, holes. Seal every hole you find. ON THE ROOM.

 

I bought a small condo apartment in a +40 building 21 years ago.
Most of my neighbors are over 80 and stone deaf.
I run my Tonex pedal through an EV 1500 watt 15" PA system with no complaints.
I have to wear Db earplugs at full attenuation.
One elderly lady didn't the vibration because she was too deaf to hear it but she went to the nursing home
Besides, after 21 years most of my neighbors know I'm crazy enough to be dangerous and don't mess with me

 

You could get a little portable isolation booth for tracking vocals and acoustic guitars and other than that better get an e-drum kit to trigger Superior with...