[cporro]

i'm in the process of gutting my basement room (about 17' x 17' x
7.6'). i'm wondering if its worth the money to do some insulation in
the ceiling. from my understanding this is what the floor/ceiling is
from top to bottom. hardwood - wood subfloor - joists - drywall. there
is no insulation. the house is about 80 years old. also, 12 recessed
lights are being installed.

my goal:
1) reduce the sound of people/dogs walking above.
2) kill the drywall ping of the room without making it dead sounding.

should i stuff it with insulation? use a different material beside
drywall on the ceiling? or maybe you guys have other solutions.

please include a cost estimate for your solution if possible. i'm
trying to balance benefits with cost.

much thanks

[Scott Dorsey]

cporro wrote:
i'm in the process of gutting my basement room (about 17' x 17' x
7.6'). i'm wondering if its worth the money to do some insulation in
the ceiling. from my understanding this is what the floor/ceiling is
from top to bottom. hardwood - wood subfloor - joists - drywall. there
is no insulation. the house is about 80 years old. also, 12 recessed
lights are being installed.

my goal:
1) reduce the sound of people/dogs walking above.
2) kill the drywall ping of the room without making it dead sounding.

Putting insulation behind the drywall won't do either of these. It won't do
the first, because you still have the drywall below mechanically coupled to
the joists above. If you want isolation, you need to float the ceiling and
possibly the walls.

Killing the pingy sound is something that you need to do in _front_ of the
drywall. I'd suggest diffusion as much as anything... intricately molded
plaster patterns are probably as good diffusion as anything for the buck.
--scott

--
"C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."

[cporro]

well fudge. i'm not going to drop a 7.5ft ceiling. good point with the
coupling. i should've thought about that.

so plaster diffusion then. good idea i haven't heard of.

btw, liked your article on unique affordable mics a few months back in
recording mag.

[Scott Dorsey]

cporro wrote:
well fudge. i'm not going to drop a 7.5ft ceiling. good point with the
coupling. i should've thought about that.

You don't get low frequency isolation without lots of mass and lots of
decoupling.

so plaster diffusion then. good idea i haven't heard of.

Or vaulted ceilings. That's another personal favorite. The idea is that
you don't want a big flat surface that reflects sound all in one direction,
you want a lot of little fiddly stuff that reflects it out in different
directions.

btw, liked your article on unique affordable mics a few months back in
recording mag.

Thanks! Tell the editor you want more DIY articles... well, maybe not...
--scott
--
"C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."

[Doc Weaver]

Scott Dorsey wrote:
cporro wrote:
i'm in the process of gutting my basement room (about 17' x 17' x
7.6'). i'm wondering if its worth the money to do some insulation in
the ceiling. from my understanding this is what the floor/ceiling is
from top to bottom. hardwood - wood subfloor - joists - drywall. there
is no insulation. the house is about 80 years old. also, 12 recessed
lights are being installed.

my goal:
1) reduce the sound of people/dogs walking above.
2) kill the drywall ping of the room without making it dead sounding.

Putting insulation behind the drywall won't do either of these. It won't do
the first, because you still have the drywall below mechanically coupled to
the joists above. If you want isolation, you need to float the ceiling and
possibly the walls.

Killing the pingy sound is something that you need to do in _front_ of the
drywall. I'd suggest diffusion as much as anything... intricately molded
plaster patterns are probably as good diffusion as anything for the buck.
--scott

--
"C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."

He's right about te tranfer of sound through the joists. There is a
few products that can help (not completely fix). If you use basement
insulation (with oil paper) between the joists that will help ambient
mid and hi tones. Be sure not to pack it too tight. It will actually
work better loosly, but completly packed. Now for the clomping feet
you need to put a soft barrier underneath the joist before you afix the
drywall. I believe Acoustics First makes products for this. I have
used a vinyl barrier before and that worked OK. Keep in mind, Scott's
right about a drop ceiling being the best bet, but I understand if you
have to compromise.

Good Luck,
Doc Weaver