SOUND STUDIO DOORS WINDOWS

This doesn't take up any more space than aВ single door, and aВ typical wall will leave room for an air gap several inches across. As with walls, the larger the air gap, the better the sound isolation, but where space is limited, it is quite acceptable to use two outward opening doors each side of aВ single wall. Double-door fitting.Even the best fitting, heavilyвЂ‘built double door is unlikely to be as effective as aВ solid wall in keeping sound in or out aВ double door structure fares better. These work using aВ tapered plastic wedge screwed to the door frame - as the handle is turned, the door is forced against the seal. Rather than using commercial draught excluders, the most effective way to seal aВ door is to use aВ halfвЂ‘round neoprene gasket fitted to the door frame (including the bottom), in conjunction with aВ pressure latch. Once the door has been hung, ensure that the seal is airtight all the way round by fitting aВ proper sealing gasket.

FigureВ 1 shows two approaches to building your own door. Chipboard is not aВ structurally strong material so ply is aВ better choice, but chipboard is viable so long as hardwood inserts are used to take the hinges and the latch mechanism. Door cross-section.Alternatively, you can make your own doors from scratch, using two or more layers of thick ply or chipboard separated by aВ small gap, which may be filled with Rockwool, fibreglass or softboard to help deaden any vibration of the panels. Two layers of threeвЂ‘quarterвЂ‘inch ply, chipboard or plasterboard fixed to one side of the door will help, but ensure that the frame and hinges will stand the additional weight.ДЇigure 1. The solution is to replace the door with aВ heavier one or add aВ heavy layer to the existing door. Even offвЂ‘the shelf fire doors are disappointing from the sound isolation point of view unless used in pairs. Internal doors are often very light and offer something like 15dB of sound isolation, which makes them around 30dB worse than aВ typical wall. Some form of modification is invariably required to bring about aВ significant increase in sound isolation. And as we know, aВ vibrating solid object radiates sound.

SOUND STUDIO DOORS WINDOWS

Using proper seals to eliminate gaps is aВ help in reducing airborne sound, but is still only aВ partial solution the mass of doors and windows tends to be much lower than that of the walls, which means that sound generated inside the room will cause them to vibrate.

In the case of windows, you can usually spot the leaks by feeling for draughts. Doors can be checked by shining aВ torch around the edge of the door to see if light leaks through anywhere. They need to be airtight - it only takes aВ small gap to allow sound to leak through. Doors And WindowsДЇirstly, check to see how well the doors and windows fit when closed. When all the weak spots have been identified, start by tackling the worst leaks first so that you can get some idea of the degree of improvement as each stage is completed. The weakest points in aВ typical room are always the doors and windows, so check these first to see which pose the greatest leakage problems. In this case, uprating the existing structure should be adequate.

But most private studios don't operate 24 hours aВ day and tend not to use live drums on aВ regular basis. Of course, this must be coupled with realistic expectations if you live in aВ residential area and want to be able to record live music at all hours of the day and night, 'room within aВ room' construction is pretty essential. In this case, the only option is to 'uprate' the existing walls, floors, ceilings, doors and windows to achieve an acceptable degree of soundproofing. In the case of the home studio, or even aВ small commercial studio, aВ 'room within aВ room' style of construction is generally out of the question, either on the basis of space or of cost. This month, we examine doors and windows, the most vulnerable areas when it comes to sound leakage.

Sound studio doors