Garage loft conversion

I am looking at the feasibility of converting what I like to call the "loft" area above my garage into a studio space. Before I get too far into the process, I think my first step is to determine if the ceiling height is sufficient. Thus, my first post here and my first question! The studio and what I will do in it: I currently use one of the spare bedrooms in my house as the studio space, which has been getting the job done but it's time to move forward. I am not running the studio as a "commercial operation" -- it is primarily for my own music projects in addition to occasionally recording / mixing for friends, etc. The majority of what I do is electronic based (synths, programmed drums, etc), but I do have a full drum kit that I sometimes mic up as well as guitar and bass. But, the main focus of the studio is not on recording live instruments so this is a secondary consideration. I do however regularly record vocals. It does get loud in the studio sometimes. If I'm working on a track destined for a dance floor somewhere I like to get the monitors / sub moving and get a sense of what the experience would be like in a club. Not club volumes by any means, but at least loud enough to get a feel for the track at louder volumes. The proposed space for the studio: The house is located in a somewhat rural setting. I do have neighbours on both sides of me, but luckily they aren't too close... though not so far to not be a consideration when looking at managing the sound escaping from the studio. (see google maps image included, red circle outlines garage area for studio). The "loft" area where I want to build the studio is above the garage. There are stairs from the garage level on one side and I will leave a small area for storage, so eventual studio space will be about 330+ sq.ft. It is currently framed in and there is a basic sub floor down (the area is currently used as storage). It is framed with 2x4 and 2x6 wood studs. I will pull up the subfloor, but obviously the framing will remain as-is. I quickly sketched what it looks like to show how it's framed -- should be self-explanatory, but basically the lowest part of the ceiling is 6' and the highest part is 7' and this is what I am uncertain about. Can I build the space with proper acoustic treatment and still have a reasonable ceiling height (how much will the 7' height be reduced to)? Is the space itself suitable given its shape / layout? Any thoughts / advice on this is greatly appreciated! Once I've determined if the space is suitable, I'll move on to the next steps in the design phase and look at materials, HVAC, etc.

Just to add... when I say "proper acoustic treatment" above, what I really mean to say is that I understand I will need to do a combination of sound isolation and treatment with this space and that this will have an impact on my eventual ceiling height.

Adding a photo of the space (as it is now) in hopes of soliciting help :wink: -- is there any additional info I can provide to determine if it's worth proceeding with this space? Just to state my goals, if they weren't clear from the first post: While I of course want the space to "sound good", I realize that with such a low ceiling height it won't be acoustically awesome. I want to first of all make sure that not too much sound is escaping, then treat the space to get it sounding reasonable. It's a project studio where I'll be recording / mixing my own projects, so for me, it's more about having a good studio space to work in and hope that it is good enough to accurately hear my mixes. I've never worked out of a properly treated space to date, so regardless it will hopefully be a step forward :) Excuse my lack of knowledge / correct terminology on this, but is there any hope that I might be able to fill the space between the joists with rock wool (or whatever), use isolating clips to mount the ceiling and layer the floor to get a suitable amount of isolation? The big question is do I have enough ceiling height to make this work?

Hi "nick303", and welcome! :) Sorry about the delay: lots going on here, and I'm playing "catch-up".

I am looking at the feasibility of converting what I like to call the "loft" area above my garage into a studio space.

That is basically the same as a second-floor studio, which introduces some important factors: it is very hard to isolate a second floor studio, since the amount of mass you need to do so successfully is generally much larger than the structural limits of the rest of the building. So your options are basically: 1) try to move the studio to another room, on the ground floor. 2) realize that you won't be able to isolate it, and just live with the consequences.

It does get loud in the studio sometimes. If I'm working on a track destined for a dance floor somewhere I like to get the monitors / sub moving and get a sense of what the experience would be like in a club. Not club volumes by any means, but at least loud enough to get a feel for the track at louder volumes.

It sounds like you do need isolation, so moving to the ground floor would be your real option here.

I will pull up the subfloor, but obviously the framing will remain as-is.

Why do you want to pull up the sub-floor? Also, what is the rating for the existing floor joists? How much extra load can they handle? That is a major question here: you probably need to call in a structural engineer to analyze what you have, and tell you what load you can put on there safely.

basically the lowest part of the ceiling is 6' and the highest part is 7' and this is what I am uncertain about. Can I build the space with proper acoustic treatment and still have a reasonable ceiling height (how much will the 7' height be reduced to)? Is the space itself suitable given its shape / layout?

That depends on several things, but first and foremost it depends on how much isolation you need. If you decide to go with no isolation at all then you can use the space up there between the trusses for isolation, and not lose any ceiling height. But if you need isolation then you are going to lose several inches, maybe around 4 to 10 inches, depending on your isolation needs and the construction method you choose.

The big question is do I have enough ceiling height to make this work?

In order to answer that question, you need to answer another one first: "How much isolation do you need?" In terms of decibels. That's the starting point. You need to dust off your sound level meter, and take some measurements to determine that. Based on the number you come up with, you can look through the documentation to find all of the construction methods that will give you that much isolation, then choose the one that best meets your needs and your budget. - Stuart -

Hi "nick303", and welcome! Sorry about the delay: lots going on here, and I'm playing "catch-up".

Thanks and not a problem about the delay, really appreciate the response!

So your options are basically: 1) try to move the studio to another room, on the ground floor. 2) realize that you won't be able to isolate it, and just live with the consequences.

Ok. I don't have anywhere on the ground floor that I can use for the studio unfortunately. The room I am using currently for the "studio" is on the second-floor too, so no help there. I think my plan is to give this space above the garage a sufficient amount of investigation to figure out if it makes sense to do or not. If it'll be suitable enough then I'll move forward with it, if it's really not a good idea then I will continue in my current space as-is for now and look at other options for the future.

Why do you want to pull up the sub-floor?

Not that I want to. More that if needs be, I will pull it up.

In order to answer that question, you need to answer another one first: "How much isolation do you need?" In terms of decibels. That's the starting point. You need to dust off your sound level meter, and take some measurements to determine that. Based on the number you come up with, you can look through the documentation to find all of the construction methods that will give you that much isolation, then choose the one that best meets your needs and your budget.

Perfect. That's my next step then. Thanks!