how can I "good enough" sound isolation for this room?

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Manhattan Glutton
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how can I "good enough" sound isolation for this room?

Post by Manhattan Glutton »

Situation: I have a practice space that is mostly isolated from the rest of the house, but it leaks noise in the following ways:
* ceiling - need insight
* door - I plan on getting a heavier door and managing the cracks with weather stripping and a door sweep.
* vents - I plan on using radiant barrier in as much stretch as I can reach.

Note that I don't care about the walls so much.

If you have experience with this, would adding a drop ceiling to the existing ceiling be sufficient? Would adding weight to the existing drywall (eg adhesive barrier) be better? Are there other options to avoid ceiling sound leakage? If I do start ripping things up, what would be the max return for the least ripping things up?
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ken
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Re: how can I "good enough" sound isolation for this room?

Post by ken »

Good ideas. My first thought is that you first need to make sure any gaps in your ceiling are filled. Any crack, no matter how small, will let sound travel through. The next thing I thought of is just to add a layer of drywall. Mass is your friend, so you should see a reduction just by putting up more drywall. They make special drywall for sound dampening, so you can decide if the added expense is worthwhile. My final thought is are you sure it is the ceiling that is the problem? Could it be that whatever is on the floor is just transmitting sound throughout the house?
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