DIY Music Studio Sound Isolation (done by two professional pianists)
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- Опубліковано 22 сер 2024
- So many people dream about sound isolation of their music studio. Especially in our time it's so important for every musician to have a possibility to work at home, not spending energy on fights with angry neighbours.
When I decided to build a home studio of my dream in July 2020, the only ‘building’ experience I’ve had was assembling some IKEA furniture and hanging frames on walls. It took me dozens of hours of research in order to understand what could really work, and how to do it. Although this project is quite far from being executed professionally, I am quite happy with the result. I hope it will bring you some fun and possibly some ideas/inspiration to build or improve your own studio!
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The wall that leads to our own bedroom was covered with just one layer of Uficell, rockwool and one layer of a plasterboard, no Wolf PhoneStar panels. Nevertheless, when the piano is open and played loudly in the studio, it sounds as an ambient background music in the bedroom.
Since the wall that leads to the neighbours was covered with a complex sandwich consisting of 15 mm PhoneStar panels (with a sealant tape to minimise contact with the wall), rock-wool, a double-layer of Uficell, plasterboard, and foam panels, I assume that the sound isolation in that direction is even better. In fact, I don't hear neighbour's loud chats anymore at all, although I could clearly hear their voices before the start of the project.
The floor was covered with a sandwich of: a double-layer of Uficell + Wolf PhoneStar Panels + another double-layer of Uficell + a thick carpet on top.
The weakest point is the door to the studio, although it is much more sound resilient than before. If I'd have a choice, I'd consider installing a second door into the studio.
Materials that I used:
Wolf PhoneStar Tri 15mm sound isolating panels bit.ly/3tSyJmq
These panels are quite expensive and costed almost 50% of the budget, although I applied them only to those two surfaces that lead to the neighbours directly. A thick MLV (starting from 1/4 inch) would cost around the same and might work as good or slightly better.
Uficell Vinosound FIX, a cheaper alternative (possibly also less effective) to MLV that I found amzn.to/3rEP78a
RockWool Sonorock 40mm amzn.to/3cYOHFB
UW-Profil 50mm bit.ly/36YewSe
CW-Profil 50mm bit.ly/3tKKbjE
Plasterboard 12,5mm bit.ly/3tDbcpv
Acoustic Sealant amzn.to/3q9LkPA
Sealing tape amzn.to/3jBRl59
Foam panels amzn.to/3q9PXJw
A one-piece thick carpet for reverb reducing amzn.to/3tLGLNS
Medium-density curtains for additional reverb control and low-light studio recordings amzn.to/2OgKvGI
Sealing tape for doors/windows - reduces a surprising amount of sound leakage if all gaps are sealed hermetically amzn.to/3cVeD4V
Tools that I used:
Yato Profile Composite Pliers amzn.to/3a40VL9
Cutter sheet metal, metal profile amzn.to/3cTtuwG
Hammer Drill amzn.to/3cY5OXW
Cordless screw driver amzn.to/3q9j9k3
Trotec Multifunction Tool amzn.to/2Z2Fa83
Everbuild SG9 Jumbo Sealant Gun 900 ml amzn.to/3q9jnrp
To follow me or 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻-𝘂𝗽 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗮𝗻 𝗼𝗻𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗽𝗶𝗮𝗻𝗼 𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗼𝗻 please use any of these links:
/ deniszhdanovpianist
/ deniszhdanovpianist
deniszhdanov.com
Credits:
www.bensound.com/
• Video
• 3d violin green screen
#DIY #soundisolation #musicstudio
![L.V. Beethoven - Sonata op. 57 'Appassionata' [Denis Zhdanov]](/img/n.gif)
I'm having issues with one neighbor in my condo even though building itself is decently insulate with concrete between apartments including floors. But she claims she's losing her sanity and posted in our building group my practicing the Rach 3rd cadenza as if I'm doing that all day... But I really can't go through all this, especially in a rental but once I buy my own place soon this was very informative as to options available. I don't have any a clue about doing any building, construction etc. so this looks quite intimidating and I find it amazing you were able to learn all this and then do it yourself. Also, my Kawai GX-2 sounds too loud even for me with the lid closed, stuffed with a duvet over strings, acoustic foam under the soundboard, piano covered with a blanket and large rug and rug pad under it covering most the room.
Would covering walls with even more of these black foam panels make the piano/room not as loud or it's useless?
As I mentioned in the video, foam panels don’t stop low frequencies and won’t fundamentally resolve the issue. When listening from the next room, you might reduce the loudness by 10-20%, primarily because higher frequencies will be partially blocked, and the sound will bounce less within the room. However, inside the room, it will sound much softer because most of the reverberation will be eliminated. To notice a real difference, you need to cover about 80% of the surfaces-basically everything except the ceiling, perhaps. It sounds unpleasant when it’s that dry, but it really helps protect your hearing, especially if you’re playing Rachmaninoff’s 3rd in a small room. I also noticed it affected the air quality, and I’m not sure it’s healthy to have so much foam around.
Even this solution, or any similar one involving heavy, multi-layered materials, will significantly soften the sound in the next room but won’t make it disappear entirely, reducing the sound by 50-80%. If she already has a grudge, even an expensive solution might not help-irritated people can remain irritated even when your Rach sounds as quiet as a kitten’s purr. In my opinion, this works best as a precaution, when the neighbors barely hear your piano from the start, so the irritation doesn’t build up so much over time. And also if you say from the very beginning how much you value their comfort and therefore have invested into this project, they might be kinder from the start.
On a positive note, in every country, there are regulations regarding when you can practice. If you clarify this with the authorities and strictly adhere to these hours, she can’t really do anything against you.
Recently, when I moved out, I had to dismantle all of this. I ended up paying an additional 800 euros for moving help and recycling, as it amounted to 1000 kg of material. I managed to fix the holes in the walls, and the owner didn’t notice anything had happened in the room, but I was slightly worried about the repairs and returning the property. So yes, such a project requires a lot of effort, and I don’t think I’d do it again.
Thank you very much! I have a similar situation and your video gave me several ideas.
Truly excellent build. This is incredible for a temporary setup.
I had to dismantle all this recently when moving to a new place, and to my own surprise, after repairing a few holes in the walls, the room looks as nothing has happened there 🤣
@@DenZhdanovPianist Glad to hear it! I really respect the build because anything less wouldn't have been effective for heavy practicing. I'm currently dealing with room mode issues with my upright piano - certain notes are 6-8 dB louder depending on placement. When I move, I would like to upgrade to a nice grand where the sound would be projected away from the face, but until then I'm working to dampen the inside of the instrument. It's proving to be a lot more difficult than it seems! 85+ dB average while playing is dangerous..
Yes, hearing damage is a common issue among musicians. I myself practice with a closed piano mostly, opening it only when recording. However, if your room is very dry with lots of acoustic absorbers, the sound won’t bounce off surfaces, so it will be much softer. The only problem is that it's not very pleasant to play and very difficult to record when the piano sounds so dry.
Wow - many thanks for this valuable information and documentation - great job Elina und Denis! Best regards from germany!
This is amazing ! After saving for years, I have just bought a small 2 bedrooms flat, and I am planning to transform one of the rooms into a piano room, just like you did. If I may ask a few follow up questions to the video...
1 - What is the size of your room ? It looks quite small. My room will be 14m², and I have been told it wouldnt be enough for a grand... I am planning on a somewhat entry level Kawai grand (still a year away at least...)
2 - What model / length is your grand piano ?
3 - No complaints from neighbours yet ? I have both up and down neighbours to think about, I don't know what to do with the ceiling...
4 - How are the accoustics ? Is it worth it to have a grand with such accoustics ? Don't you think we would be better served by a smaller quality upright ? On your videos (which I assume are from this room), the sound is pretty good !
5 - Was it worth all the effort and money ? Is a grand piano with a few carpets and bookcases really too much dB for the neighbours ?
Thank you in advance, and thanks for touching on the subject of a piano room, that is so important yet so rarely mentionned !
Hi thanks for your interest!
1.-2.
slightly less than 12m2, piano is 197cm long Kawai RX5. As you might see, I can squeeze along the piano to the window only if breathing out lol 🤣
I was worrying about this proportion also, but if you’ll cover floor and walls with materials that absorb the reverb (foam panels, thick carpet, thick curtains), you may comfortably practice even with an opened piano, it won’t sound too overwhelming.
3.
No complains until now. We don’t mess after 10pm (I still have an E-Piano for that). I have also left a detailed letter to my neighbours explaining the situation and describing how many efforts we have invested in making their life a bit more comfortable. Human relations decide everything in this matter. Also, I am pretty sure that they hear my playing as a distant background music. Your primary task is not to make a room 100% soundproof (that’s barely possible within this budget), but to lower a noise till that extent when it doesn’t irritate others.
4. Same as 1., it’s so much better to work on a grand, and please don’t be afraid that it would be too loud - it depends solely on how you’d manage a reverberation issue.
5. I don’t know how the situation would develop if I’d do nothing of that. I have had mostly terrible experience from the past and I’m quite sick from it. Because piano sound spreads much further than just to the next apartment. If you’re on the first floor and have cool neighbours on the second, those ones on the third one might drink all your blood. And since we’re two professional pianists, and piano is being used heavily most of the day... and since the guy right next to us rents just one room and stays there all the time when he is not out... I didn’t want to find out. Furthermore, when you have got a grand piano in the room already (especially in such a small room), you can’t really do smth like that anymore, there is no space to build.
PS Ceiling isolation is also a doable task, and you may learn about that on UA-cam also.
@@DenZhdanovPianist Thank you for the details ! It's funny how the piano almost touches the walls of your room... The RX5 is such a nice instrument.
I have never had a grand piano at home, and I would so love to avoid the "terrible experiences" you mention (maybe you could tell us about it in another video...) ; I have even heard of students being sued and losing for overpracticing during the day...
The hardest part for me is having your "piano" and "accoustics" budget be only one, so what I spend on the room is coming out of the piano's...
I do admire the courage you had to do all that work in a rented appartment, I would never dare. Just moving my e-piano in and out of flats was always a nightmare...
Amazing info....
Impressive. How'd you learn how to do all that?
UA-cam😹
Ребят подскажите у моей ученицы во всем доме tiles , это жесть а не звук, им не нужно изолироваться от соседей у них свой дом. Будет ли достаточно просто покрыть ковролин эту комнату или под ковролин нужно что то ещё положить ? И вообще как лучше покрыть эту плитку потому что звук будто играешь в ванной комнате , разлетается повсюду ...🤦♀️
Ой это должно быть жесть. Но в этом случае проблема исключительно в реверберации, и достаточно покрыть как можно больше поверхностей коврами/мягкой мебелью/книжными полками/foam acoustic panels - самые простенькие вполне справляются, и они недорогие. В общем, любые мягкие пористые материалы. Если стены «голые» - ковролина только на пол может быть недостаточно. Желательно покрыть/заставить мягкой мебелью или книгами хотя бы пару стен, или купить несколько кв.метров пенковых панелей
How much decibels was reduced?
I wish I could measure it. However this would mean an intrusion into private neighbor property😬 furthermore, the grand piano has arrived after the sound protection was installed, so there was no opportunity to make before/after test with it. The only thing I can say that before I was hearing neighbor’s talks and laughter very clearly through the wall, sometimes recognizing words they say as well, while now I hear some very distant voice frequencies only if I lean with my ear towards the wall, without the slightest chance to understand the words. I know it’s not very specific but that’s all I can tell.
а как вы занесли рояль в комнату?
Через дверь!😉 (если б был немного длиннее - наверное не прошел бы)
Мало того, про это есть отдельное видео ua-cam.com/video/hXiQeGXp1qk/v-deo.html
@@DenZhdanovPianist спасибо, посмотрю)
Why not jut get a silent piano? Just 2k dollars more
It’s great if you’re an amateur player, if you’re a concert pianist you’d need a real thing. I actually do have one, but it’s not enough for my purposes.
@@DenZhdanovPianist i think the only bad thing about a good silent piano is the una corda. Besides that the touch is the same, the dynamic is 95% the same, so it can meet most practice requirements. BTW to clarify, I mean something like Yamaha’s SH2 or Kawai’s ATX, not the digital pianos
@@joshuatsuiyea let's have you lecture professional pianists on what's what...