Room help

[epic problem]

Hey guys, just looking for some quick input/opinions here.

I live in an apartment, which is actually in a 160 year old building that used to be a sewing machine factory (but not a loft). I'm in a corner unit, so there is no one on our right side, and on the left side of us is the hydro room. This therefore means we only have one neighbour, directly above us.

I've been recording some drum tracks in our living room (hardwood floors, 8 foot (or so) ceiling), but playing with brushes so as not to disturb the people above us.

I've done some rudimentary reading on containing the sound, but I'm looking for any suggestions anyone might have as far as keeping as much sound as possible from travelling upwards, so that maybe someday I can play a little louder.

The ceiling is stucco, and I'm thinking the building is pretty solid; but I'm too worried to even play with drumsticks in fear of making a new enemy.

Any help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

[TapeOpLarry]

Without building a room in a room you'll have a really hard time keeping the neighbors happy. The low end, even within a totally mechanically/physically isolated room, will transmit through the walls, ceiling and floor pretty easy. Better would be to find out when the neighbor isn't there...

[epic problem]

Better would be to find out when the neighbor isn't there...

This has actually been my most logical train of thought, so I've been trying to keep the playing to mid-afternoons on the weekends, or weekdays before dinner time when possible.
More than likely anything I try to do to try to isolate the sound from getting out will just make what I'm recording sound worse. Thanks for the input though, Larry.

[mjau]

I had a similar issue in my last place (thankfully in a house now), and my compromise was just what's been suggested - I tried to figure out when the neighbors weren't there and went with that. It can be really costly to build a "room within a room".

[drumsound]

Get to know the neighbor. See what they might deal with and when.

You might consider a riser of sorts, though it will only take the drums off the floor, but the walls and ceiling will still resonate...

[epic problem]

Get to know the neighbor. See what they might deal with and when.

You might consider a riser of sorts, though it will only take the drums off the floor, but the walls and ceiling will still resonate...

Well, we're actually on the ground floor, and we've got no one anywhere near us but directly above, so you're right that a riser wouldn't do a lot of good. I'm going to have to meter my playing to the time of day/when people are home, I'm afraid. At least for another few years when we're in a house of our own, anyway.

Thanks for the input though, guys.

[Rufer]

A riser could help even in your situation. If the riser is floated on neoprene, the kit will be decoupled from the floor causing less mechanical resonation through the floor, transmitting up through the wall, to the ceiling above.

How much it would help, I don't know. But some.

[Mark Alan Miller]

Didn't I read somewhere that in order for Neoprene to really work, it has to be compressed 12% of the uncompressed thickness... too little or too much and it's not any where near as effective an insulator?
Or did I not read that somewhere?

Sorry, a little tangental-topic perhaps...

[TapeOpLarry]

Another vote for riser! Removing the contact to floor will help. I hear they're working on an anti-gravity riser soon.

[r0ck1r0ck2]

i've been waiting all my silly life for anti-grav....
this better not be some sick joke

[epic problem]

Another vote for riser! Removing the contact to floor will help. I hear they're working on an anti-gravity riser soon.

I would imagine floating mid-air while playing drums would be a pretty great feeling.
Wouldn't this make shockmounts obsolete?

[goldstar]

All we need is one a bit larger...

www.tnt-audio.com/accessories/relaxa1_e.html

Seriously though, I'd guess a decoupled riser will help, but whether that's enough I'm doubtful. Mark's point about how much to compress neoprene is good; if done wrong, (compressed too much or too little), it won't do anything but cost some money. You might have better luck, if you go this route, to use these:

www.auralex.com/sound_isolation_uboat/s ... _uboat.asp

and see if Auralex can tell you how many to use to get your platform, however you build it, to "float".

I'd still bet that playing while the neighbor is gone is the cheapest solution, since it doesn't sound like you can get enough layers of drywall (that is, more mass to stop those low frequencies) between you and he. Good luck.

Frank

[drumsound]

Auralex also makes a product called "Platfoam" that is dense foam 2x4 that you can put plywood on top of to creat a short isolated platform.