Soundproofing a Home Recording Studio

The most important thing to know about soundproofing a home recording studio is that it's impossible to do it perfectly. What you can do is decrease the amount of sound leakage to a certain degree. And the more soundproof you want your room to be, the more it will cost of course. Below I'm going to tell you about some techniques for soundproofing on a budget.


Location
It's important where your studio is in your home. It should be a place that is far from your family members (like the children's room or your bedroom) and also far from your neighbors. I know that it's usually something you can't control but I'm just saying that if you have a choice, carefully consider where your home studio should be.

When soundproofing a home recording studio, you'll need a place with heavy, thick walls, floor and ceiling. Or if possible, instead of very thick walls, you should have two layers of walls with some air gap in between them.

Floor

The best place for your studio is downstairs. That way you don't have to worry about disturbing your neighbors who live under your apartment. However, if there is a subway or railway line close by, you'll still need to soundproof your floor so that no noise can come in. If you can't afford to call an expert to help you soundproof your floor, the next best thing you can do is have a carpet or even more than one layer of carpet.

Walls

If you're lucky enough to have a family who don't mind listening to your music, the only wall you'll need to soundproof is the one you share with your neighbors. Professional studios use a plasterboard that is supported by a wooden frame. For soundproofing a home recording studio, you might be able to build one yourself or there are some experts who can do it for you. It's much less expensive than soundproofing floors.

Ceiling

If your recording studio is at the top of the building, you don't have to deal with soundproofing the ceiling much. If you want, you could lay one layer of chipboard on the top of the joists and that should be enough. If your studio is downstairs, however, you'll have more to do. Since you can soundproof only from "your side", you'll need to add insulation to your ceiling from below. You can use suspended plaster tiles and/or layers of plasterboard. Since it's not an easy job, you'd better find a expert to do it for you.

Windows

The simplest thing you can do is have double glazing fitted. You can even double or triple this layer. Of course, you must be sure about this, as you won't open that window again. Then cover the glazing with paint. And the last thing to do is cover the window with carpet. Then glue the carpet to it.

Doors

Since domestic doors are light and thin, they aren't effective for soundproofing a home recording studio at all. What you can do is buy a fire door. These doors are heavy so they need a heavy frame too. Sound doesn't only leak through the door but the frame as well. So make sure that your new, heavy frame is fixed to the wall very well.

Ventilation
Don't forget that although now you have a great, soundproof room, you'll still need air every now and then. Although fans and air conditioning are generally noisy, they are your only option. At least I don't know anything better for ventilation. When you're recording, your might turn the fan or air conditioning off for a while.

More about Building a Home Recording Studio