I have attached a crude sketch of my proposed basement theater area. My main concerns/questions are dealing with my ability and options to sound proof this area as best I can. This room is not an enclosed area and as you will see the stairway opens up into the room, as well, the room will be connected via french doors to the rest of the basement. I have made a couple of notes on the sketch and my questions are:

1. Will a solid core door at the top of the stairs help lessen the sound leaving and coming into the basement?

2. Will double drywall and GG make a difference on the stairwell wall (see where I'm proposing to do this).

3. Are there any other suggestions to best help me keep the sound from bothering those upstairs and as well, keeping the sound from upstairs from coming down.

Perhaps the majority of my sound proofing should be spent on the ceiling...I don't have any notes on what I was planning to do here, but at this point I'm thinking of going the cheaper route and running 2x4 perpendicular to the joists, to help couple the sound from the joists, but also to get the drywall past some pipes/wires mounted flush across the joists. Thanks guys for any help/advice you can give. Sorry if the sketch isn't the greatest, I can provide any more info you need to help me out.

1. Yes, a solid core door at the top of the stairs can help, but only if you add full gasket seals. An additional similar door at the bottom of the stairs can further improve your situation, subject to 3 below.

2. Possibly, but only if you do the bar area wall as well. Also subject to 3.

3. I know this is a big deal, but you really should double drywall & Green Glue all the walls in the basement. Otherwise, sound will simply find the weakest area and travel right through. The ceiling should also be double drywalled, and isolated with RSIC-1 or similar clips. You need to create a completely sealed volume, with approximately equal isolation measures taken at all boundaries.

If you can't do 3, then I'm afraid your investments in 1 and 2 are likely be wasted money. :(

Regards,
Terry

Thanks for the reply. I probably won't go the extra expense and DD and GG the whole basement, so that is why I was wondering if any smaller steps could be taken to help with sound isolation. It sounds like even the small steps will most likely not make a difference if I don't isolate the entire area. I will still go with the solid core door (I don't like cheap doors anyway). Once I am at the Drywall stage I may change my mind on the DD and GG. Well see how much the wife complains about the construction noise from below :)

Thanks for the reply. I probably won't go the extra expense and DD and GG the whole basement, so that is why I was wondering if any smaller steps could be taken to help with sound isolation. It sounds like even the small steps will most likely not make a difference if I don't isolate the entire area. I will still go with the solid core door (I don't like cheap doors anyway). Once I am at the Drywall stage I may change my mind on the DD and GG. Well see how much the wife complains about the construction noise from below :)
Doing just the area you had planned may improve the sound transmission loss right at the top of the stairs, but nowhere else. Use a Zero gasket seal kit on the doors. The lower performance ones (anything else with an ordinary solid core wood door is wasted money for sure) are just a couple hundred bucks. So it could be a worthwhile measure, at least psychologically, to demonstrate to a wife who is walking upstairs right past this door. :)

Regards,
Terry

Thaks for the advice Terry...in the end, the area I would be most worried about is the living room directly above my proposed theater area. Do you think DD and GG on the ceiling in just my theater area, along with the proposed stairwell measures would help lessen the sound transmission to the livng room above? I don't need this to be a sound proof vault, just want to watch movies/football, etc. without worrying about disturbing the floor above.

Thaks for the advice Terry...in the end, the area I would be most worried about is the living room directly above my proposed theater area. Do you think DD and GG on the ceiling in just my theater area, along with the proposed stairwell measures would help lessen the sound transmission to the livng room above?
No, I don't. :(

- Terry

Thaks for the advice Terry...in the end, the area I would be most worried about is the living room directly above my proposed theater area. Do you think DD and GG on the ceiling in just my theater area, along with the proposed stairwell measures would help lessen the sound transmission to the livng room above? I don't need this to be a sound proof vault, just want to watch movies/football, etc. without worrying about disturbing the floor above.


while not an expert i can speak of my recent experience. in my build, simply stuffing the HT ceiling cavaties with r-25, wrapping the HVAC duct and replacing a couple runs with flexible duct have resulted in 99% of the sound staying in the basement.

my daughter's room is on the second floor, straight up from the basement HT. the duct work for her room runs in the HT. i was concerned that the sound would travel directly into her room and limit night time use.

it doesnt. i should have done double drywall and green glue on the ceiling too, but what i did do works.

later.