NEW STUDIO PRE-BUILD IN LOS ANGELES

we're going to be putting in laminate hardwood flooring in both rooms. the live room (garage) has some cracks in the slab. We were going to grind down some of the high spots and then put the floating floor (laminate floor) over it. Then we decided to do a 3/4" sub floor. I can't remember what he said, some time of OSB i think. someone had mentioned me tracking drums on a riser. my studio is the only thing on this slab. actually, the slab for the control room is separate but was built abutting the garage slab. from what i understand, i don't need a floating floor because of how the slab is isolated already. should i do some type of floated floor? or add insulation? or anything like that? under my sub floor? pad? -------- what do you think is a good size window? how high off of the ground should we install it? ----- suggestions on mic panel and wiring from the live room to the east side of the control room?

what are peoples thoughts on QuietRock or QuietGlue ?

drewallsbrook wrote:

what are peoples thoughts on QuietRock or QuietGlue ?

Over priced.

What about quiet glue pro?

Damping the wall panels can be a very effective method of controlling low frequency. I have no comparison of either GreenGlue or QuietGlue Pro saving what the web pages on the Internet would offer. Many have pushed Green Glue for years, for very specific applications typically the overhead ceiling, and they say this product works. This may not help you with making a decision, but it reads like we are comparing apples to apples...again I cannot speak to either one singularly or collectively.

you might consider the trade off - a layer of a CLD (GG, QG, etc) between 2 5/8" type x drywall layers sitting on a soundboard layer on the inner isolation framing. versus 3x 5/8" drywall on 1/8" felt strips on the isolation framing. one will have less manual costs (possibly) but more material cost (option 1). 5/8" drywall is generally the best price performance ratio for DIY. you would still want the drum riser on the concrete floor to stop the structural transfer of the drums into the floor.

So you're suggesting studs/soundboard/drywall/damping glue/drywall ? As opposed to studs/drywall/damping glue/drywall/damping glue/drywall ? These are for my double wall construction? Does soundboard dampen or decouple? Is it more comparable (in application) to resilient channels or damping glue? I'm considering putting soundboard under my laminate floor. Concrete pad/soundboard/foam (for installation of floor not my doing)/ laminate hardwood floor Do I really need a drum riser if my concrete pad only for my garage? Or will that sound transfer (flank) from the concrete pad to the walls then outward? I'd rather put something under the floor than build something to go on top. What would be good to put under the floor?

if you are compelled to use the sound board: two interior leafs: drywall/drywall/soundboard/stud air stud/soundboard/drywall/drywall exterior to interior: sheathing/drywall/drywall (between stud) air stud/soundboard/drywall/drywall the soundboard acts to dampen and slightly decouple/absorb. quite frankly though, going with 3x 5/8" drywall is your best bet. on the exterior beef up and the inner isolation walls and ceiling. on the floor: 1" rigid insulation, 2x 1/2" plywood, 3/8" flooring. this damped membrane will reduce/eliminate the impact transfer which will flank your isolation walls on the same slab as the exterior.

I'm not compelled to use the soundboard really. It I plan to use 2 layers of 5/8" drywall with quiet glue in between for the live room walls and ceiling. I will do your damped floor idea. Are 2 layers of 1/2" plywood significantly better than one layer of 3/4"? And are those better than soundboard? For the control room, I was thinking soundboard/drywall/quietglue/drywall. Soundboard to slightly decouple since I'm not doing a double wall construction in that room

"I will do your damped floor idea. Are 2 layers of 1/2" plywood significantly better than one layer of 3/4"? And are those better than soundboard? " When you think about what you are trying to do with the plywood as a substrate/sheathing, it is to support the weight of what ever pressure you will apply to it. That could be drums, and cymbal stands, a throne with a person on it, etc. The 1-2 inch rigid insulation is the decoupling component but the sheathing has to be able to support the weigh placed on it so as not to distort or compress the decoupling material. Maybe 1/2 inch X2 is good, and 3/4 inch is not as good, but 5/8 inch, one layer installed with the other layer laid perpendicular to the first would be an even better foundation. OSB is often less costly than plywood, so whatever you decide on, watch the number...and OSB is more rigid than plywood and more dense. But not as dense as MDF....:)

Should there be a framing for this subfloor or just put the materials stacked on top of each other right on the concrete? Concrete/rigid insulation/osb/osb 90 deg turn/foam/laminate floor? Do I want more mass on the floor (more osb) or more insulation? Rigid insulation is better than soundboard? Even better than 2 layers of soundboard?

we actually decided to do double wall construction in the control room as well. mainly for structural support of the ceiling but also to hang a 2nd door in front of the main entrance and also to hide the cabling. we're still not doing a separate ceiling because of the lack of height available. i know that this is a weak point.... we'll see what we can do. gonna do the rigid insulation and 2 layers of 1/2" osb (90 degrees turned) beneath the floating laminate floor in both rooms. i don't think we'll use MDF, but is OSB better than plywood? My contractor said plywood was denser. but the osb is cheaper. HVAC guy came today. Doing a mini split ac system. condenser outside, two wall units with coolant and condensation lines dripping into drywells. 12,000 BTU's each, remote controlled and operable separately for each room. ----- I attached pictures of the construction so far..

more pictures. ceiling joists were put in today HVAC guy came the window and door frame was cut out of the concrete/stucco wall it's starting to come together!

drewallsbrook wrote:

Should there be a framing for this subfloor or just put the materials stacked on top of each other right on the concrete? Concrete/rigid insulation/osb/osb 90 deg turn/foam/laminate floor? Do I want more mass on the floor (more osb) or more insulation? Rigid insulation is better than soundboard? Even better than 2 layers of soundboard?

If it has to be installed, you want the rigid insulation installed directly over a concrete floor that has been verified that there is a vapor barrier beneath the concrete, e.g. the slab does not sweat. And then you instal the OSB sheathing on top of this rigid insulation. It is an attempt to decouple the one panel from the other so that you may reduce the effects of the bass drums from traveling directly across the slab into whatever might get in the way. I like your decisions in this build, I know it was difficult to make, but you will thank yourself later:)

i'm pretty sure that there is not a vapor barrier for this concrete slab. it is most likely 50 years old. it is also cracked in several places. i get what you're saying, if it sweats it will cause mildew and/or mold to grow on the insulation. suggestions?

hey guys, the drywall and quiet glue pro is coming tomorrow. We will be putting in the remaining insulation and then starting the drywall process. suggestions?

do you need any blocking on the joists? if for no other purpose being able to provide a nailing surface for the drywall edges. same on the walls.

drewallsbrook wrote:

i'm pretty sure that there is not a vapor barrier for this concrete slab. it is most likely 50 years old. it is also cracked in several places. i get what you're saying, if it sweats it will cause mildew and/or mold to grow on the insulation. suggestions?

Several. To verify that a vapor break does or does not exist in your space, place a piece of plastic, maybe 2'X2' or larger, usually overnight but if you get any sunlight into this space, that would be the better place to place the plastic. If the plastic has moisture on it after a 24 hour period then you do not have a moisture break underneath the existing slb. To correct this impediment, you place a full sheet of visquen (poly plastic) on the entire floor area that you are wanting to install this decoupling method on.

gullfo wrote:

do you need any blocking on the joists? if for no other purpose being able to provide a nailing surface for the drywall edges. same on the walls.

Not really that important for the edges. More importantly would be to install a strongback or minimal type fractional spacing device that ensures the 16" center to center stays correct from one end to the other.

thanks for the suggestions guys. drywall process is done. i used so much caulking around my 1/4' gap borders. we taped the seams but caulked the borders. alternated the ceiling and wall layers and caulked every border so they're overlapping like the diagrams on this site explained. i will test to see about the vapor barrier. my contractor was curious about installing the subfloor. more specifically how to secure the plywood to the floor since it'll be on top of the insulation. suggestions? i was considering putting damping glue in between the 2 layers of my subfloor. is that a good or bad idea? is that worth the cost? concrete / 1" rigid insulation / 1/2" plywood / damping glue / 1/2" plywood / floating laminate floor thoughts? any suggestions on a good website to get good door drop down seal?

zero international is an excellent source for door seals.

I attached a cad drawing of my current dimensions now that the new walls and drywall are up. I have an idea of what I want to do for room treatments but I would really love some feedback from you guys. If someone is bored and wants to make a 3D sketchup drawing of my rooms I would love them long time. i calculated that my room modes from my length and width dimensions are: 31, 63, 92, 126 and for my height are: 71, 141, 212, 283 how do i go about treating these specifically? My natural instinct is to put wide, deep bass traps in the corners of the rooms from floor to ceiling. Was leaning towards framed 703. would a membrane or helmholtz resonator be better or worse? i was wanting to stagger membrane (panel) absorbers and burlap wrapped insulation absorbers around the room. i obviously don't know the best way to approach this. my control room is a whole 'nother beast. that shallow back wall sucks. i'm only facing the shallow depth because of the slanting ceiling going upwards behind me. thoughts for bass trapping behind me? i was thinking of building a triangular slot resonator under the window and putting a chair on either side of it. I naturally think to put a couch there but I want people to be able to stand in front of that window for live tracking purposes. I was thinking that the triangular slot resonator could double as a end table between the two chairs (not my biggest priority). Thoughts please? cloud array above my mix position on my 6' 11" ceiling? see my attached picture for the live room ceiling as well. this was my idea for ceiling diffusors/absorbers with recessed lighting inside of the 5 pyramids. I think the circles will end up being squares for the sake of construction. please help! thanks!

definitely look for the simpler solutions first - corner trapping, 4" absorbers on first reflection points. and yes, a cloud hung and angled over the mix desk - half your modes are the floor and ceiling. make it a rigid backed - 3/4" ply and 3/4" MDF with 4" cloth absorption on the front and angle it down in the front about 12" above your monitors and just below the ceiling over your seat (since you are mostly sitting at the desk it shouldn't be a problem...)

thanks Glenn, any idea on the horizontal dimensions of the cloud? any thoughts about the live room?

maybe leave a 12" (300mm) gap all around the edge of the cloud and just pas your seating position. in the live room - scattered absorption on the ceiling helps with any reflections and keep things alive. if it turns out to be too dry, adding some suspended panels on angles can help bring up the HF.