I was wondering what is the best way to soundproof the ceiling in my townhouse basement, drop ceiling or seperate ceiling joists. Also I was wondering if anyone can spot any flaws with me plans. I am building a HT in a 17' x 11' basement with concrete walls on three sides. I am planning on staggering the one wall that does not have concrete. I have figured on doing all the studs 24 in center with rock wool insulation, 5/8 drywall, Still not sure about Green Glue because of cost, and another layer of 5/8 drywall. The ceiling I plan on putting R-30 9.5 inch thick insullation but not sure what else. RC-1, drop ceiling, decopled ceiling etc. I have ont purchased anything yet so any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks
I may be overdoing it or not. I plan on using AR 910a Front Speakers, AR 110 Surrounds (4) and a yet to be determined center and sub powered by, still not sure, but Onkyo txsr803 and an older Harman Kardon to power the fronts.
Two layers of 5/8 with GG should be sufficient. My main question is why do you need isolation on the concrete wall side? You could maybe ditch the GG on that wall and spend the money on decoupling clips and GG for the ceiling and possibly the 4th wall. Also, stick with 16" on center. It will make the walls more rigid which helps isolation and frequency response of the room. The AVS forum has a lot of great info on this. AVSForum.com
Take a mirror and slowly position it across your ceiling. Anywhere you see your monitors put your absorbent material. You can also do this on the sides of the control room. I haven't done it this way but, at AES this weekend it was how Roger Nicholls recommended as a fast quality way to give yourself decent acoustics in a room. But I think that this is best in a stereo monitoring environment but the principle should ring true for a surround environment as well.
As for soundproofing I think 5/8ths may be a little thin for any lowend absorption. I understand wanting to insulate the concrete side but you can do that with 1/4' plywood drilled into it with rubber grommets between the wall and plywood on your studs. 5/8" drywall and you should be pretty good.
"There are two kinds of fool. One says, 'This is old, and therefore good.' And one says, 'This is new, and therefore better.'"
Posts: 129 | Location: Seattle WA | Registered:: 08-18-06
Most acoustical drop ceilings, unless they have a high CAC rating, do very little to block sound going through the ceiling. They are more geared at in room acoustics. Most that have high CAC ratings are Gypsum based products, and are quite expensive compared to what you will find at Lowe's or Home Depot. Another common myth is the amount of sound that insulation blocks. It is designed for thermal purposes, and is very effective at that, but does very little for sound isolation. I would recommend using a Mass Loaded Vinyl. AMI offers an economical version called Econo Barrier.
The RC-1 channel is not a bad idea either. It helps with structural vibration noise, which is what majority of the subwoofer noise will be, as well as the people walking on the floor above ou while you are trying to enjoy a movie.
What Lowrent mentioned is geared at in-room acoustics, and if that is also a concern, it is a good piece of advice, but will not help you with your soundproofing.
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