'soundproofing' your room

[axlisbak]

sorry if this has been done as im a newbie but im looking to record some guitar stuff in my room tonight (friday night here) and it seems nigh impossible with all the noise from neighbours (kids screaming, dogs yapping, drunk people yelling) are there any quick fixes to deaden the sounds? and yeah, i know im not gonna block the noise out entirely, just enough so itll barely register in the recording.

[Usernamemyarse]

I usually hang up some blankets to soundproof abit, But this is not the best idea, try hanging up matrasses instead, they absorb a lot more sound.

[axlisbak]

ill have to give that a try. cheers. only two mattresses in the house so itd be better to put one against my door and one against the window?

[eatmeatleet]

using closed headphones is the the only solution to me

[Usernamemyarse]

At 1/15/10 06:46 AM, axlisbak wrote: ill have to give that a try. cheers. only two mattresses in the house so itd be better to put one against my door and one against the window?

yeah, but headphones are a good idea unless you use a mic to record.

[axlisbak]

im wondering if itd work if i hook a jack from my amps headphone output to my laptops mic input? of course i gota rummage around and find the adapters first...

[Usernamemyarse]

At 1/15/10 07:26 AM, axlisbak wrote: im wondering if itd work if i hook a jack from my amps headphone output to my laptops mic input? of course i gota rummage around and find the adapters first...

good idea, thats what i use on some of my songs :D

[nlz]

It would probably sound ok with the phones-out but it'll sound way better with a mic.
Try putting your amp in a closet, all the clothes and stuff usually does the trick.

[axlisbak]

ill have to try it then, as for the other suggestion, ill try that too once i get a decent mike. cheers guys

[loansindi]

Ultimately a noisy environment is a noisy environment. It might be a good idea to see if there's ever times that are more quiet (during the day when folks are at school and work) and trying to set some time aside then.

[sorohanro]

AYE !!!
So many answers having nothing to do with soundproofing.
Would be nice to tell us what you want to record and what microphone you use.
There are some "quick fixes" for recording. You can build a cheap recording booth.
Just get a big carton box used to pack a refrigerator. I found a big one 70cm/2m. Put some foam LIKE THIS inside.
I it's too much, make a portable vocal booth.
Blankets and curtains help. First you should dampen parallel surfaces.
Also THIS VID might help you.

[loansindi]

At 1/15/10 09:35 AM, sorohanro wrote: AYE !!!
So many answers having nothing to do with soundproofing.

Because 'soundproofing' is a process that pretty much has to happen at time of construction. Isolation is key, and in an apartment building there's no isolation.

[sorohanro]

At 1/15/10 09:42 AM, loansindi wrote:

At 1/15/10 09:35 AM, sorohanro wrote: AYE !!!
So many answers having nothing to do with soundproofing.

Because 'soundproofing' is a process that pretty much has to happen at time of construction. Isolation is key, and in an apartment building there's no isolation.

Can be made easy and cheap.

[Back-From-Purgatory]

Record like All Shall Perish... Apparently, on one of their albums, there is at least one car horn in every song because their studio had a window in it looking over a busy street.

[IKONiC]

At 1/15/10 05:58 AM, axlisbak wrote: sorry if this has been done as im a newbie but im looking to record some guitar stuff in my room tonight (friday night here) and it seems nigh impossible with all the noise from neighbours (kids screaming, dogs yapping, drunk people yelling) are there any quick fixes to deaden the sounds? and yeah, i know im not gonna block the noise out entirely, just enough so itll barely register in the recording.

Buy some cork or Dynamat or something. They're very soundproof and you could essentially start turnging your room into a studio with that stuff.

[axlisbak]

i usually use either my laptops mic or the the mic on my mp3 player (which records incredibly clear audio) for my songs but i reckon ill give the direct input a try cause ive got a line 6 spider III and its solid state. is reaper free? kind of broke at the moment. seeing that the spiders an multi fx amp, would those effects come through clearly?

[WeHaveFreshCookies]

A quick and easy way to dampen the sounds is a very thick blanket around the windows, secured with duct tape. The windows are the main source of 'acoustic leaking'

[Mystery-Moon-Pie-Aud]

At 1/15/10 04:56 PM, IKONiC wrote:
Buy some cork or Dynamat or something. They're very soundproof and you could essentially start turnging your room into a studio with that stuff.

Where would I find cork? Like, a cork sheet or something? How expensive is that?

[WeHaveFreshCookies]

At 1/15/10 11:17 PM, Mystery-Moon-Pie-Aud wrote:

At 1/15/10 04:56 PM, IKONiC wrote:
Buy some cork or Dynamat or something. They're very soundproof and you could essentially start turnging your room into a studio with that stuff.

Where would I find cork? Like, a cork sheet or something? How expensive is that?

Better solution. Take a bunch of blocks of styrofoam. Cut them into uneven shapes (the key is to have as much surface area as possible) and randomly tape them to your wall. It's not pretty, but it's incredibly cheap and effective.

[axlisbak]

was talking to a mate today and he lent me a bunch of guitar mags in which these producers give all sorts of cheap and effective tips on home recording, he suggests if youre on a budget, buying heaps of small/medium/large blank art canvasses to line your walls with acts as a way to deaden the echo reverb or whatever, might give that a try unless corkboards cheaper

[jarrydn]

At 1/15/10 11:41 PM, WeHaveFreshCookies wrote: Better solution. Take a bunch of blocks of styrofoam. Cut them into uneven shapes (the key is to have as much surface area as possible) and randomly tape them to your wall. It's not pretty, but it's incredibly cheap and effective.

Diffusion and soundproofing are two different things.

[Mystery-Moon-Pie-Aud]

At 1/16/10 04:06 AM, jarrydn wrote:
Diffusion and soundproofing are two different things.

Could you do both at once? An open and soundproof room?

[loansindi]

At 1/16/10 01:44 PM, Mystery-Moon-Pie-Aud wrote:

At 1/16/10 04:06 AM, jarrydn wrote:
Diffusion and soundproofing are two different things.

Could you do both at once? An open and soundproof room?

What?

Soundproofing is the process by which external noise is eliminated.

Diffusion is the process by which standing waves, acoustic oddities, and dead notes are eliminated.

[Mystery-Moon-Pie-Aud]

At 1/16/10 01:49 PM, loansindi wrote:

At 1/16/10 01:44 PM, Mystery-Moon-Pie-Aud wrote:

At 1/16/10 04:06 AM, jarrydn wrote:
Diffusion and soundproofing are two different things.

Could you do both at once? An open and soundproof room?

What?

Soundproofing is the process by which external noise is eliminated.

Diffusion is the process by which standing waves, acoustic oddities, and dead notes are eliminated.

Yeah, could both be done at once? Or is it just a matter of how you locate yourself?

[jarrydn]

At 1/16/10 02:11 PM, Mystery-Moon-Pie-Aud wrote: Yeah, could both be done at once? Or is it just a matter of how you locate yourself?

Both can, and are done, at most high budget, professional studios. Diffusers are usually of wood, but Styrofoam does a surprisingly good job as well.

[btriangle]

Im very lucky to live in an apartment with already amazingly well built walls, which blocks out a tremendous amount of sound.

However Im thinking of possibly soundproofing it more than it already is naturally, since I can hear people outside of my room, and they can still hear me.

I have this door that I think is causing more sound to get out than it should. Should I soundproof on the door? Or what? Theres a tiny crack under it as well like most doors. Not sure how I should go about doing this one.

The room is very large too.

[Chris-V2]

Play louder, prevent bleeding through sheer force!

[Khuskan]

You would be surprised how much a heavy curtain can help reduce outside noise and aid sound diffusion, but making a bedroom studio-quality soundproof is pretty much impossible without serious investment and a loss of quite a bit of usable space.

[axlisbak]

At 1/17/10 04:18 PM, Chris-V2 wrote: Play louder, prevent bleeding through sheer force!

ha, thats why ive got a 120 watt amp, though the louder i go the more fucked up the sound gets in audacity

[jarrydn]

At 1/18/10 06:45 AM, axlisbak wrote: though the louder i go the more fucked up the sound gets in audacity

Get a real mic. Will be cheaper than sound proofing :P