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do these acoustic tricks we do really work?

post #1 of 32
12/23/06 at 9:32pm
Thread Starter 
i don't mean to be negative here. this question is asked in earnest. a lot of the lengths that we go to for sound isolation, etc are kind of extreme and they all make logical sense but i wonder if there is any evidence that some of these things make a noticable difference. many of the techniques we use are not easy to A/B compare. it is not like anyone has built 2 identical theaters and only done sealed lightboxes around their ceiling cans on one of them to see what the impact is for example.

i am in the midst of framing on my theater and i am faced with decisions and while i can't argue with the logic of any of these ideas i have to wonder if some of them are worth it. has anyone actually built a stage that was not full of sand then later filled it and found a noticable difference? when i sit upstairs i wonder how noticable the impact on sound isolation is from green glue or light boxes compared to simply double sheet rocking or using common construction adhesive? i have read the tests on the green glue web site for example and there is no doubt it is measurable but in the context of a real theater in a real house with doorways and other things inhibiting sound isolation i wonder if it really makes an impact. lugging thousands of pounds of sand to the basement is non-trivial so i have to wonder if i would know the difference. on the other hand i am sure that if i did i would feel like it made a difference whether it did or not so maybe some of these things are just piece of mind and knowing the job is done right?

i will come clean and admit that i don't believe in magic speaker wire that keeps my electrons in phase either. i guess i am a bit of a cynic after all

greg
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post #2 of 32
12/24/06 at 12:26am
Here's an answer from someone who just built 9 home-theatre sized film rooms over the past few months.
I used double stud walls and green glue. In other places I used single-stud walls. The guys that were doing the constructing sometimes skimped and sometimes I watched over them and made sure they did a good job. So I saw all sorts of variables. I found that green glue did do a good job. I also found that it gets wasted if you don't handle all surfaces (floors and ceilings) on heavy bass, and don't make really sure that the wall is constructed properly. E.g., one wall I didn't watch carefully and then I found out the construction guys had confusions. So it didn't come out as good as other walls.
I also put in all sorts of bass traps and diffusing elements, etc. I was in the room throughout, and could tell how the room changed in character as each element was added. I didn't test beyond this though. I also thought it would be great to do tests like you mention.
Hope this helped. If you have questions, let me know.
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post #3 of 32
12/24/06 at 12:31am
I'm certainly no expert, especially not compared to the gurus who will undoubtedly respond to your post in earnest.

But I do want to post that the stuff discussed in this forum is based on science and real world application, the likes of which can be found in professional recording studios, commercial theaters, and other sound controlled environments. It is not junk science. It's real. No one in this forum is wasting time talking about magic sound beads or the magic little clock.

Secondly, when it comes to sound isolation, I've heard several experts use the aquarium analogy. In other words, it doesn't do any good to build a 3 sided aquarium, no matter how good those 3 sides are, because it will never hold water. I don't know if this analogy is completely applicable, but it does seem to me that two things are true when it comes to isolation:

1) All of the stuff discussed around here (green glue, double sheet rock, staggered studs, solid core doors, etc.) does indeed make a difference, sometimes a REMARKABLE one.

2) It's relatively easy to short circuit your sound isolation strategy with a couple of bad decisions.

While no room is completely sound proof, a properly designed and built room can indeed be like a vault when it comes to sound isolation

From personal experience, I can tell you that acoustic treatments on the inside of the room make a tremendous difference in the sound of your system. My general feeling is that it's a lot easier for the hobbyist to make real, tangible improvements without screwing up the works when it comes to acoustic treatments, as opposed to the more difficult isolation strategy. If you want an example of the sonic difference between a treated room, just walk into a room treated with acoustic panels and listen to the difference in the sound of your own voice.
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post #4 of 32
12/24/06 at 6:06am
I built a listening room (15 x13 x 10). The room has coffered ceilings, insulated single sheet rock walls. The first piece of furniture was a chair placed in the sweet spot. I also had the audio equipment on a three tier stand. At first I had the Totem Signature Ones on speaker stands, but, my bass & mid-tones were less than desirable. So, I filled the stands with #9 bird shot; This would be the equivalent of a sand filled stage.
Did it improve the sound? Yes. So much so, people have asked if the Richard Gray Power Station is a subwoofer.

Each time I added another chair, even the heavy wool drape panels, the quality of sound noticeably improved. This would be like adding acoustic panels. The problem I have with several theaters I've been in is the deadness of the room. Don't over treat the room first. Do get the walls right. Once you add seats and fill those seats with people... tweak.

Next, I added bookshelves to the rear wall. I made certain they were solidly built. These act like diffusors, the more books I add, the more they absorb.

Now, don't think for a minute that if sound can be significantly affected by adding a treatment here or there, cables play no role in the quality of reproduction.
With my Cary tube amp I used Kimber gold connects & silver inner connects to the Ayre CX-7e. To the speakers I ran DH Labs Silver Sonic 10 gage speaker wire.
I couldn't tell you how the sound improved since I've never compared them with other cables, but they sure look cool.

In closing, I have a THD guitar amp that I don't have to re-bias whenever I switch tubes; changing one tube alone is enough to completely change the tone.
And if by simply removing the speaker grill, the sound changes. It only stands to reason, what you do on the front end, will affect how you pay through the back end.
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post #5 of 32
12/24/06 at 7:59am
I've had two theaters in the past five years. They occupied the same space in my home. One was not acoustically treated one is. The difference is dramatic. Do yourself a favor, if you have not been in a treated room do it. Also do yourself another favor build it right. The facility is probably the key top performance. Equipment can be upgraded and swaped out as experience and budget allow ,the room is another story.

Art
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post #6 of 32
12/24/06 at 8:28am
Thread Starter 
i did not mention in my original post that i understand the science. i have worked in recording studios for years, used to run pro audio sound, had a minor in physics, etc. that is why i said i know it is all sound theory (pun intended). i also would never doubt the value of proper absorption and diffusion to treat a room. things that make me wonder:

- since sound works like water and goes to any hole, how big an impact will boxes behind my light cans make when i have a 48" wide door in the room? sure i could get a sound isolating door and keep it closed but that is not likely.

- slowing down sound is largely about mass and transmission paths so clearly double sheet rock makes sense. on the other hand, with the kind of bass we make at the freqencies we make it i wonder if tweeks like green glue make a big difference. when a boom boom car drives down the street i can feel it inside my house through solid stone walls, sheet rock, etc. the boom boom car is isolated from the ground through rubber tires and is outdoors and my house is mostly airtight. you can't get much better yet i can hear it like i am sitting on his sub. serious low bass goes through must about everything.

- staggered studs work in lab tests but in a real house where there are so many other transmission paths i wonder what the impact is. if i did staggered studs without floating the floor and suspending the drywall ceiling on spring hangers and using a couple sound doors in an airlock config does it really make a difference?

again, these are questions not statements. perhaps thse techniques make sense but i kind of feel like it has never been A/B tested in a real environment.

greg
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post #7 of 32
12/24/06 at 8:45am
I think you are answering a lot of your own questions as you go. It sounds like you have an understanding and in my case no, the LFE with the power I have still shakes the entire structure. You can sit on the front porch and feel the house shake. I can knock pictures off walls and my wife's rubber stamps off her shelves on the other side oif the house with LFE at reference level. High frequency is barely audible in the kitchen just below the theater.

I think you are correct that there are limits unless you get into some extremely expensive techniques and perhaps even they will not totally isolate reference level bass in a theater that is part of the structure but they help.

I think if you have made the decision to compromise the isolation at the start with some design choices then you are probably correct that the other standard techniques would be wasted time and money.

I do know,however, from experience, that acoustic treatments within the room improve the experience dramatically even if isolation isn't a concern.

Art
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post #8 of 32
12/24/06 at 1:48pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by indygreg View Post

i did not mention in my original post that i understand the science. i have worked in recording studios for years, used to run pro audio sound, had a minor in physics, etc. that is why i said i know it is all sound theory (pun intended). i also would never doubt the value of proper absorption and diffusion to treat a room. things that make me wonder:

- since sound works like water and goes to any hole, how big an impact will boxes behind my light cans make when i have a 48" wide door in the room? sure i could get a sound isolating door and keep it closed but that is not likely.

- slowing down sound is largely about mass and transmission paths so clearly double sheet rock makes sense. on the other hand, with the kind of bass we make at the freqencies we make it i wonder if tweeks like green glue make a big difference. when a boom boom car drives down the street i can feel it inside my house through solid stone walls, sheet rock, etc. the boom boom car is isolated from the ground through rubber tires and is outdoors and my house is mostly airtight. you can't get much better yet i can hear it like i am sitting on his sub. serious low bass goes through must about everything.

- staggered studs work in lab tests but in a real house where there are so many other transmission paths i wonder what the impact is. if i did staggered studs without floating the floor and suspending the drywall ceiling on spring hangers and using a couple sound doors in an airlock config does it really make a difference?

again, these are questions not statements. perhaps thse techniques make sense but i kind of feel like it has never been A/B tested in a real environment.

greg


You sound confused.

First question to ask yourself: do you care about isolation?

You mention that you're going to have a door and leave it open, so it seems to be that isolating the theater from other parts of the home is not a concern for you. If you don't care about isolating the room, then there's little reason to do so. Doing so adds significantly to cost, and can actually make in-room acoustics worse because your room boundaries will block much more sound and may be more reflective especially with regards to bass. Implementing successful room isolation should be done from the ground up, and sealing up the room really good is paramount. Very small openings in a solid surface allow sound to get through a very surprising amount. You ever wonder why perforated screens can be pretty acoustically "transparent" despite the fact that the area of the holes is miniscule compared to the solid surface? The same goes with a room. You can have a really solid wall or ceiling, but cut a couple small holes for light switches or outlets and the STC of that will decrease substantially. So if you are interested in isolating the room, YES all those little details are very very significant. But again, it sounds to me as if isolation is not a goal for you, so why bother?

Of course to be very clear, your thread title describes "acoustical tricks" and isolation has nothing to do with in-room acoustics. Properly treating the acoustics of the space is fundamental, but room isolation is only a concern if you care about isolating the room. If you don't, then don't. But you always need to achieve good in-room acoustical performance, and that is a completely different question.
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post #9 of 32
12/24/06 at 2:47pm
No, the tricks don't work, but the proven techniques used in studios and theaters around the world certainly do. There has been a lot of testing done with these techniques. If you're interested, most of the work has been done in recording spaces - as these are often money-making concerns with high interest in investment vs. payoff ratios. Check out the forums at recording.org, johnlsayers.com, and studiotips.com for lots of information.

The real question you should be asking is what do you want from sound control?

1. Isolate sound from escaping from the room into other areas (egress) - thus bothering other people?

2. Isolate sound from entering from outside into the room (ingress) - thus bothering you when you are enjoying your a/v?

3. Manage the room response for best possible audio reproduction?

For myself, I am most interested in #3. I have a project recording studio and a home theater in my basement. I took measures to get good isolation including sealing doors (they work VERY well), but at this point I don't care about isolation anymore - from here on out it's bass traps and diffusion and proper placement.

If you leave a door open, then why bother with isolating a light switch? The isolation loss AND the distortion of room response with an open door will outweigh all those kinds of efforts.

Not directed at the original poster, but I have noticed that a lot of home theater owners will spend mid five figures and up on equipment and room construction to achieve isolation, but then minimize the importance of room treatment.
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post #10 of 32
12/24/06 at 3:09pm
You don't sound like you care about sound isolation or you would use the appropriate doors and close them. That is certainly part of the package. Not everyone needs isolation, some only need the room treatment itself.

Does it make a difference, Yes in my room it certainly did and that in the end is all that matters.
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post #11 of 32
12/26/06 at 10:15am
Quote:
Originally Posted by McCall View Post

You don't sound like you care about sound isolation or you would use the appropriate doors and close them. That is certainly part of the package. Not everyone needs isolation, some only need the room treatment itself.

Does it make a difference, Yes in my room it certainly did and that in the end is all that matters.

I don't post very often, but I do read a lot of the posts here. I agree, if you don't care about sound isolation then just ignore all that stuff. But atleast do the treatments right and proper placement of speakers will help too. I have just started construction of my HT/General Purpose room. I have come to the conclusion that, for me, going all out and isolating the room is just to much overkill. This is my first room, likely not to be the last, and I am going to make it "as good as I(me and my cousin) can" and use this one as a learning experience. If at a later date, I will close the room up into a dedicated HT and then I will really start thinking about isolating sound ingress/egress. But since I am the only one at my house at the moment if I have the bass being heard through the whole house....I don't care. What I do care about is the reflective properties of my room and be taking steps to make sure I set that bit up right. Still need to do lots of reading on that aspect.

Joey

PS: Will be posting pics soon. I hope to have it all done by the end of March. Oh and the room is 22' by 20' after rough in.
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post #12 of 32
12/26/06 at 1:10pm
Thread Starter 
acoustic treatments are never a question here. i certainly plan to do that. i think chris makes a good point - do i care about sound isolation. it is not as high a priority for me. i want to watch movies at night after the kids go to bed but the theater is in the basement and the bedrooms are on the second floor. the basement has a door at the top of the stairs and i think i will leave that. i guess that means i care about isolation to some extent but with double rock in the theater and a floor inbetween i probably am good enough.

"in my room it makes a difference".

mcall - are you saying you know somehow that there was a noticable difference between using some of the techniques described above and not using them?

"You can have a really solid wall or ceiling, but cut a couple small holes for light switches or outlets and the STC of that will decrease substantially."

chris - i have made statements like this to others. i often use the example of someone opening the door at a bar and the music comes blasting out. problem is that i am kind of replaying what i had heard others say. i have never built a theater and had a sound transmission problem which i fixed by sealing an outlet box sized hole or read any white papers where this type of scenario was tested. i thought maybe one of the pro installers here might have that type of evidence.

let me give you a specific example. if i have a room that is properly sealed with double rock, green glue, etc and i cut some 6" ceiling cans into the ceiling, i believe it is possible that the combination of the IC can plus the insulation between the joists plus the flooring above plus the pad and carpet would suppress as much sound as is reasonably possible. perhaps most of the sound transmission that is left is coming through the joist anyway. building an mdf box behind the can might improve the stc at some higher frequencies that are blocked by the flooring anyway where the lower frequencies simply come through another path. there are always tradeoffs building in real houses and i wonder if they overcome some of the techniques we use.

similar question for green glue. i read the test results on their web site which show sheets of drywall propped up with a transducer on them. clearly two sheets of drywall with GG between works better than a single sheet of drywall but in a real install where "flanking noise paths" are potentially a factor i wonder how it compares to 2 layers of drywall mounted on studs that are 16" on center. does the second sheet of drywall make a big difference? does the fact that it is on studs every 16" rather than propped up on sawhorses to resonate freely change the equation? did the sheets as tested on supports have screws going through both sheets? what if it is 2 sheets with standard construction adhesive between? in other words, GG clearly damps the drywall but is the drywall itself the issue?

again, i really don't mean to be negative here. i just don't know of any evidence to support these things and some of them are non-trivial to implement.

greg
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post #13 of 32
12/26/06 at 1:34pm
Quote:
again, i really don't mean to be negative here. i just don't know of any evidence to support these things and some of them are non-trivial to implement.

A quick survey of acoustical texts and studies will quickly illustrate just how significant the small details are. If you are going to do a half-way job in attempting to isolate a room, you're really just going to end up wasting money. Why bother doing double-walls or double-sheetrok if you're just going to defeat that all by ignoring the details?



There are many papers out there that look at things like sealing electrical outlets and switches etc. If you do some quick searches you will find them.

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post #14 of 32
12/26/06 at 5:24pm
IF ISOLATION IS OF no concern then don't do the extra work.

In the basement theater of my construction i did not green glue2 sheets of drywall on 3 walls but did double drywall and green glue the walk out wall where the sliding door is(sliding door in gameroom). It does help with outside noise from coming into the room. The game room has one layer and the theater has 2 and there is a difference with outdoor sounds. I plan on putting up sound/video panels later on. video/sound panels for light reflexing off the screen.
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post #15 of 32
12/27/06 at 9:39am
Hi,

When I started my theater I had the same question about double wall's, green glue, etc. Once I had decided that I only needed a moderate amount of sound rejection, and didn't care too much about emission, I opted away from full sound isolation.

I used standard 2x4 construction with single sheet drywall, and insulation. Also a solid core door. (see my construction web if interested)

Event though I have more sound treatments to go, the room sounds great. Sound is barely noticeable in the rest of the house, and I can not hear the phone ring when in the theater. Ok, I have to get one of those "Please silence your cell phone" trailers for my daughter....

Hope that this is useful...

Richard
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post #16 of 32
12/27/06 at 10:06am
you ask if I am saying there was a noticible difference between using the techniques and not using them.
I have been rebuilding a room that was previously my bedroom, into my home theater. Once the basic changes to the room were done we set up the electronics in the room and have been listening to music and watching movies in the unfinished theater all along. As we completed various sound proofing and then acoustic treatments in the room there was a very clear audible difference in the quality of the sound, it is not quite finished yet but continues to improve as we go. Also the room before was quite noisy in and of itself from outside sounds, this is an almost totally detatched building from the main house. it is now virtually silent when you sit out there with no equipment going at all.
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post #17 of 32
12/28/06 at 5:20am
the biggest contribution for sound with my construction is the carpet going in, man this made a very noticeable difference. The surround sound became more surrounding and descrete!
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post #18 of 32
12/28/06 at 6:55am
Just remember that from a performance standpoint, the isolation is more for keeping sound OUT of the theater than it is to keep it from spreading through the house. The more sound you can keep out, the lower the noise floor and the more apparent dynamic range the system will provide - all other things equal.

Also, when looking purely at STC numbers, remember that they're averages. Look at the graph of the outlets that has been provided by Chris. In the bottom end below 100Hz, there is a big difference with them sealed or not. This is more important for the 'getting out' side fo the equation.

Up from about 500 to 1500 Hz, there is up to about 15db of difference. This range is where a lot of the noise getting in to the room will happen and where it can really muck with dialog.

Just some things to think about.

Bryan
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post #19 of 32
1/11/07 at 8:27pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Qsilverrdc View Post

Hi,

When I started my theater I had the same question about double wall's, green glue, etc. Once I had decided that I only needed a moderate amount of sound rejection, and didn't care too much about emission, I opted away from full sound isolation.

I used standard 2x4 construction with single sheet drywall, and insulation. Also a solid core door. (see my construction web if interested)

Event though I have more sound treatments to go, the room sounds great. Sound is barely noticeable in the rest of the house, and I can not hear the phone ring when in the theater. Ok, I have to get one of those "Please silence your cell phone" trailers for my daughter....

Hope that this is useful...

Richard

Cool! Your situation fits mine exactly. I'm single and could care less about sound going to other rooms. Concerning sound coming IN my HT. I'll just have to see what is around it and maybe use green glue there.
Thought I had a lot more work to do than I really do!

Gary
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post #20 of 32
1/12/07 at 9:36am
Quote:
Originally Posted by indygreg View Post

many of the techniques we use are not easy to A/B compare. it is not like anyone has built 2 identical theaters and only done sealed lightboxes around their ceiling cans on one of them to see what the impact is for example.

Some of these tests have been done individually on lots of the products and techniques that have been shared here.

Here's a test done by Integrity Gaskets (link to archived AVS thread):
http://www.integritygasket.com/libra...st_1-28-00.pdf
Quote:


A series of real-world tests were conducted on December 5, 1998, to evaluate the sound attenuation performance of the Integrity Gasket between the floors of a house and through the walls between rooms. With the cooperation of the homeowner, M.J. Huff of Mansfield, Ohio (USA). Hudson Construction, built portions of the residence specifically for these tests, constructing floors and walls with and without IntegrityTM Gasket....

Two identical rooms approximately twelve feet square, were used for these tests. One of the rooms was constructed with the floor anchored to the TJI joists with glue and screws. The other had Integrity Gaskets installed...

The same tests were replicated in a steel-framed house...
Two identical rooms approximately twelve feet square, one of the rooms was constructed with the sub-floor anchored to the heavy gauge steel C joists with screws. The other had Integrity Gaskets...

Test Results:
Beethoven... 80db without IG, 74 db with IG
Ace Freeley Rock... 83db without IG, 79db with IG

I used these rolls of foam tape between my studs and drywall, and I think it made an improvement.



It only cost $120 to do the whole room, so even if it only helped reduce 4-6 db. By itself it wouldn't be sufficient, but every little bit helps. But when all was sid and done, for the last couple of years I've been able to stay in my HT at 2am and crank up any concert DVD with two 15" subs as loud as I want while my wife and kids sleep.

Is that due solely to the IG? Certasound insulation? Linacoustic? Air-tight recessed lights? 10 tubes of USG Acoustic Sealant? Solid core door? Nope... no single product or technique can be creditted with the end result, but combined, I think they're very effective.

I don't like the 3-walled aquarium analogy. I preferred to think of my HT as a 55-gallon drum being continually filled with a garden hose (i.e., sound)... but the barrel initially contains hundreds of holes of different sizes. Our goal is to fill as many holes as possible. Bubble gum and duct tape won't completely stop the leaks, especially for a 6" hole (like an open door), but every little bit will help.
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post #21 of 32
1/12/07 at 10:07am
Clarance - I like the analogy. Probably best to look at things in the form of using x+x+x+x vs nothing at all.

Just like anything, the end result is the sum of all the pieces.
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post #22 of 32
1/12/07 at 11:02am
IndyGreg:

You are thinking like a scientist, and I applaud that. Don't accept anything until it's proved. When you think of all the people out there who believe in ESP, horoscopes, extraterrestrials, the shroud of Turin, and psychics (you know who you are), it's obvious that we don't always operate according to logic and proof. If you look at nutritional and medical information, the best ideas as to what's good for us today are not even close to the same as they were five years ago. Experts make their best estimate, and that gets accepted as gospel until somebody else comes along with some new studies and then there's a new conventional wisdom, until that's shown to be wrong. So skepticism is good.

I have a sound treated theater. It's pretty isolated from the rest of the house, and the sonics inside the room are great. No question in my mind that using sound deadening material on the walls was the biggest factor. I have a stage filled with sand. My impression is that the sand just prevents resonances from the speakers and subwoofer that sits on it and without sand it might or might not have any problem.

The thing that I'm a little skeptical about is how effective bass traps are. But I haven't had any experience with them so they may be.

I know that Floyd Toole has done a lot of studies on this stuff and I'd certainly accept what he says to be true.
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post #23 of 32
1/12/07 at 11:24am
Stages come up a lot in HT discussions. They use up a lot of space in the room and seem to create problems if you don't fill them with sand, and filling them with sand seems like it involves a lot of cost, forces you to ensure that the sand is dry, forces you to ensure that the sand does not leak out somewhere, forces you to ensure that the sand is compacted so it does not just settle later and leave hollows, etc.

Other than making your HT suitable for holding live plays (which most of us won't), and making it look more like old movie theaters that were just converted play theaters, what is the use of a stage? Is it to raise your speakers up higher to account for risers under your seats? Isn't there some better way to do that?

I am not asking this to argue with those who have built a stage, but it seems to me that the most cutting edge HTs I have seen, especially the ones that pay the most attention to room treatments and getting drop dead accurate sound, don't have stages at all. Why add another variable into the room if you don't have to?
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post #24 of 32
1/12/07 at 11:51am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Art Sonneborn View Post

I've had two theaters in the past five years. They occupied the same space in my home. One was not acoustically treated one is. The difference is dramatic. Do yourself a favor, if you have not been in a treated room do it. Also do yourself another favor build it right. The facility is probably the key top performance. Equipment can be upgraded and swaped out as experience and budget allow ,the room is another story.

Art


What he said above I'm on my third theater in the same space. The first one had no treatments, the second had some. The third one is not completed yet, but the construction tech they DE, and all the others post about do make a huge difference so far. I do believe in green glue I used it everywhere, even in my hair and on my close sometimes.

When it comes to sound isolation, it's do or do not there is no try. I completely agree cutting corners just a few small areas like not isolating the lights, can cause major issues.
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post #25 of 32
1/12/07 at 11:54am
There have been threads that debated to stage or not to stage. I don't recall any pro-stage posts talking about improbed acoustics. Most just liked the look of the room better with a stage, particularly since it helps to take up some of the dead space between the screen and the front row.
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post #26 of 32
1/12/07 at 12:16pm
The stage is really just for aesthetics. But that's important if you want the theater experience - as opposed to the movie-watching experience - to be exceptional.
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post #27 of 32
1/12/07 at 12:49pm
Pick up a copy of the latest Home Theater magazine. Within is a nice article called "A Tale of Two Rooms" . Here CEDIA and HAA (read DE and company) demonstrate taking the same space and transforming it with set up and treatments.

Art
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post #28 of 32
1/13/07 at 5:43am
indygreg,

For Isolation I went with double drywall and Green Glue. I wanted to block some sound from leaving and entering the room. It has worked great for me. The bass can be heard outside, but not the dialog/music for my listening preferences.
I also have can lights that are air tight and have insulation around them. That is about all the isolation I had done. The only problem I have is my door which I still have not finished. I have the door there but no isolation and that is my biggest problem with noise coming into my theater when the kids are home. I thought about serveral solutions, but still have not come to a decision on what to do to isolate it.

If I lived in a high noise area I would have definetely done more isolation to prevent sound from entering the room. Since there is not alot of outside noise in my area my room is pretty silent.

As for the Stage, I put mine in for looks.

Randy
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post #29 of 32
1/13/07 at 7:41am
I woulds defer to Dennis regarding the functional aspects of a sand filled stage but it is not just esthetic.

Art
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post #30 of 32
1/13/07 at 7:54am
I would have to agree with Art and the others here I decided a little while ago to do proper sound treament and the difference is astounding you really don,t know what you are missing until you hear before and after in your own environment. I have heard mediocre equipment in a well done room that sounded awesome and I also have also heard very expensive equipment that sounded horrible in a untreated room.
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