Indiana Home Studio Build

This is excellent stuff. I have been doing my build VERY SLOWLY, but with all the project documenting that you've been doing, you've really given a lot of us some really great pointers. Thanks dooood.

Hey Man, Great job on everything!! That sheetrock is looking sooooo much better and those wall plates are SWEEET man! I just went with snake boxes. I was curious about your door seals. I know that those exterior doors come with that weatherstrip you can pull out of that groove. Did you replace it or beef it up with anything? The entrance into my foyer is a steel exterior door and I'm wondering what to do to get a better seal. I was also curiouse if you were having noise problems like me with your HVAC? My blower is across the house in the attic far away but the air blowing is still pretty loud. Later, Dan

Hey guys... thanks for the comments! Dan: I have not yet removed the door seals, although I will be when I finish framing them out. I will be adding another wood stop and a heavy rubber gasket... Rod recommends a rubber car trunk gasket in his book that I am planning on using. ("trunk" = "boot" for our European cousins!). I have not really noticed any HVAC noise issues, but then again, I am just now at the point where I am trying some critical listening, so I will update you when I have a bit more time to evaluate things. Best!

Merry Christmas folks! Well, I have had a couple of "set-backs" in the last few days... First off, I have been really sick, which is no fun, and certainly slows things down a bit... And secondly, I have decided that I needed to redesign my window stops. (Ouch!) I am thinking that due to the weight of these suckers, it is better to be safe than sorry, so I actually doubled the thickness of the windows stops on the CR side to make sure that they hold the weight of the glass. It makes me feel a lot safer considering that this was probably the heaviest piece of glass I have ever seen in my life, plus the fact that I have angled the glass puts more of the weight on the stops than if I had mounted it parallel to the walls. This meant extra cutting, sanding, staining, polyurethane coats, etc. Several days worth of delays before I can install the second window so that each coat can dry, etc. Add into that my nasty cold, and it has been a tough few days. What I did was actually add a *second* layer of stops to the existing stops on the CR side. It looks OK considering... I really didn't want to take the whole window out and re-do it, so I just added to the existing woodwork. On the LR side however, I made all new stops that are twice the thickness of the old ones... this means that the two sides won't match exactly, but you really shouldn't be able to tell. The first few pics show the new stops in place on the CR side, and the last one is of the new stops for the LR side after their final coat of polyurethane. You can also see my unending quest to make sure that the inside of the glass is clean! I have been scrubbing with Goo-Gone, Windex, and anything I can get my hands on to make sure that there are no smudges or marks on the inside of the glass!

Just so that you know that I have not been totally sitting on my butt waiting for the "paint to dry", I got started on framing out my doors. Since these doors were "pre-hung", they were designed to be hung in walls that have a single-layer of 1/2" drywall on each side, and since I have double layers of 5/8" drywall on each side, I have to extend the door frames to make them fit. Here is a quick shot of the beginnings of this work. I will post a complete set once I get further along in the process.

And finally! Just when I promised you that I was all done with drywall... it has reared it ugly head once again!!! I have a small area underneath the stairs that is adjacent to my iso room. This area is used for storage of "junk" for around the house. Unfortunately, the wall also faces the live room! During some of our initial sound testing, sound was POURING in through this wall, and you could hear it pretty well in the iso room (which means sound will travel *both* ways). So.... I got my son to tackle this job on his own (which is why it is still incomplete!!!). We added a layer of insulation, and now 2 layers of 5/8" drywall to the underside, and than one additional layer on the live room side of this wall. Crap! I hate drywall!!! I will tape/mud and caulk this wall, but not paint it. It can remain unfinished for now (forever?).

Hey D, you can take a break anytime you feel up to it, as far as I am concerned;) I read back thru your build trying to see where that staircase is...didn't see it. It sorta reads like it(staircase) separates a room or two? Is that the case? Is it a "m/a/m" area?

xSpace wrote:

I read back thru your build trying to see where that staircase is...didn't see it. It sorta reads like it(staircase) separates a room or two? Is that the case? Is it a "m/a/m" area?

Actually, it does not show up on any of my drawings or sketches since it really does come into play, or at least I didn't *think* it did! If you look at the drawing I have attached here, the stairs would be at the far left of the live room, basically on the top-left of the drawing. It is separated by a wall from the live room, but sound is leaking from under the stairs into the iso room, so I needed to beef up that area a bit. These plans have changed significantly since I made them... There is no longer a window between the iso room and the live room, and I did not do a room-within-a-room for the iso room, only the control room has isolated, free-standing walls and ceiling. I also did not go with splayed walls in the CR, so basically what I am saying is this drawing is pretty close to worthless!!! ;)

I think I see it. The stairs are on the lefthand side(running top to bottom of the picture) and create a connection between the walls of both the live AND the iso room. I think I am back on track with ya:)

xSpace wrote:

I think I see it. The stairs are on the lefthand side(running top to bottom of the picture) and create a connection between the walls of both the live AND the iso room. I think I am back on track with ya:)

Kinda... the staircase actually does not go all the way down (in the drawing) as far as the iso room, it actually ends at the edge of the live room and the iso room, but it is enough to bleed through. Anyway, the good news is... We got the final piece of glass fitted today!!! Ya-hoo!!! Things still need a bit of cleaning up (window washing, etc.), but at least that part of the job is finally behind me!!!

Hi doublehelix ! i've been following you construction for a while now, great work ! keep it up. I have one question what is the angle of the windows in picture Dsc01536_SM ? thanks, more questions to come....

orangenumerik wrote:

Hi doublehelix ! i've been following you construction for a while now, great work ! keep it up. I have one question what is the angle of the windows in picture Dsc01536_SM ?

Thanks! The windows are angled at 6 degrees each, at least that is the angle of the wood stops that I had to cut!

Thanks for answering so quickly ! From what i can see, your walls are 2X4 framing right ? Your windows seem very high (like mine) how did you manage to get 6 degres out of a 2X4 frame. Don't get me wrong i am sure your windows are at 6 degres i just wonder How you did it. I hope that this is clear enough.

orangenumerik wrote:

Thanks for answering so quickly ! From what i can see, your walls are 2X4 framing right ? Your windows seem very high (like mine) how did you manage to get 6 degres out of a 2X4 frame. Don't get me wrong i am sure your windows are at 6 degres i just wonder How you did it. I hope that this is clear enough.

2x6 frame on the LR side, and 2x4 frame on the CR side. I had about a 6" gap between the walls, and bought 6" wide window frame support planks (5/4" as is described in Rod's book), this gave me (just barely) enough room to make the 6 degree slopes. It was very tight however, especially with the 3/4" pane. I struggled with this as well, and used pretty thin window stops on the bottom inside edge of both pieces of glass. You can barely see them here in the bottom of the picture. If I were to do it again, I would probably not slant the glass...

Ok i get it, So on the 2X4 side, the window is not seated directly over the 2X4 framing, since 5/4 your wndow frame are 6" deep, right ?

If I were to do it again, I would probably not slant the glass...

May i ask why? but i guess it has to do with the time and effort to just do it :wink: Funny thing, i design my windows not slanted and now i'm thinking of slanting them. I know the pros and cons but i'd like to hear your opinion. Regards

orangenumerik wrote:

Ok i get it, So on the 2X4 side, the window is not seated directly over the 2X4 framing, since 5/4 your wndow frame are 6" deep, right ?

Yep! You got it! :)

orangenumerik wrote:

If I were to do it again, I would probably not slant the glass...

May i ask why? but i guess it has to do with the time and effort to just do it :wink: Funny thing, i design my windows not slanted and now i'm thinking of slanting them. I know the pros and cons but i'd like to hear your opinion. Regards

Well, the amount of work to get the slant to work out was astronomical!!! The main reason I slanted the glass was to minimize the light reflections (the "mirror effect") of the parallel glass, and to be honest, I am not sure that it made that much of a difference! I can still see myself pretty well in the glass, and a perfect image of the wall behind me as well! So all of that work, and the benefit is not as much as I thought it would be. Plus, as you know, parallel panes will give a bit better isolation since there is a larger average gap between the panes. My "ugly window" at the back of the CR was sooooo easy to build and install since it was parallel to the walls. Piece of cake compared to the main CR windows. Plus, if I *ever* decide to move out of this place, it is going to be harder to convince any new potential clients that slanted glass is a cool thing! It is certainly cool and geeky to us studio nerds, but what if the new owners want this room to be a spare bedroom or a home theater? The slanted glass is probably not something that be appealing to anyone. BTW... I love your signature! Great stuff!!!

Ya know, as I look at the stuff that some of you guys are building, I find myself getting a bit depressed... Look at Dan Scott's build, Tim Lord's Build, Lou's build, BF's build, U-N-I's build, Brad Jacob's build, etc. (I am sure there are several that are nearing completion at the moment that I forgot...). Dang, you guys do good work! There is no way that I can keep up with you guys! But then I started thinking about my original goals, and the realization that I will never be able to keep up, so why stress over it? My wood-working skills are lacking, I don't have the cash to pay anybody to do it for me, and I am impatient as hell!! :lol: Not a good combination, eh? I mean you guys have all these fancy slot resonators, cool soffit-mounted speakers, on and on... Very nice!!! I made a joke earlier (with "old man Lou" ;) ) about my place being a "little hobbit hole", and I think that fits things pretty nicely! Maybe I should change the name of the studio from "Helix Recording Studio" to "Hobbiton Studios" or "Hobbit Hole Studio"? Hehe... Hobbit Hole Studios sound pretty cool, but it would be a tongue-twister when answering the phone!!! "Hobbit Hole Studios, can I help you...?" :D When you say it out loud like that, it somehow loses some of its appeal!!! Anyway, as someone mentioned in another thread, it is very cool to see so many studios reaching completion within such a short time, and I for one have to say that I have learned so much from watching all of you! What a great resource this place is, and what a great group of contributors to share all of this knowledge with us amateur builders. John, thank you so much for sponsoring this place. You are due a donation, and I will most definitely be giving you one here real soon! Rod, what can I say? Great book, great guy, great advice (but ugly as hell! Just kidding! ;) ). There is no way I could have done this without you. This is starting to sound like a farewell! Ha! You haven't got rid of me yet! I still have a long way to go until I sleep, so consider yourself warned! I guess at this time of year, we all start getting a bit sentimental! Happy New Year to everyone!!! I love you all!!!

DH Wrote:

John,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,I will most definitely be giving you one here real soon!

:shock: :shock: :shock: :lol: :lol: :lol: Dude - I know we all respect these guys, But I really don't think that will be necessary! :wink: Sorry folks, but sometimes my almost arid English sense of humour gets the better of me, and I just can't help myself! :twisted: :wink: :twisted: Regards, Lou. 8)

Not *that* kind of donation, although he is *kinda* cute... ;) Lou, you are a *SICK* man!!! :lol: (I owe ya one, old man!!!) Happy New Year!!! It is 2008 already, and my studio is *still* not complete, what the...?

James - C'mon, what is different about yours that ours? Your walls are the same (double rock), your wiring is the same, your HVAC is the same. The only thing that's different is the size. You and both are doing basement studios, so our space is limited. I agree with you that the slot-reso's and the sofits are super-cool. Having *known* the reason for sofits, I would have done it too. But my door placement eats up all the room for sofits. Oh well, right? Your place is great and will do what it's supposed to - isolate sound. A little acoustic treatments and your room is alive and kicking. Remember, the final test is how well isolated your music is and how well your mixes come out, right? IF that's in place, you're a winner. Happy New Year!

James - So what ever happned to that situation you had with the bass traps and the outlet box? Funny thing, if take a look at my thread, there is a picture of a doublegang outlet box that is (you guessed it) contained within my alotted bass trap space. :shock: What was your solution?

BradJacob wrote:

James - So what ever happned to that situation you had with the bass traps and the outlet box? Funny thing, if take a look at my thread, there is a picture of a doublegang outlet box that is (you guessed it) contained within my alotted bass trap space. :shock: What was your solution?

Actually, I haven't crossed that bridge yet, but it is coming soon! I need to get the floors finished before I start on the traps. I think I am just going to notch around the boxes the best that I can. I have some crazy ideas in my head, but until I actually get there, I am not sure how any of them are going to pan out yet. Sorry that you are in the same boat! I guess neither one of us was thinking very clearly when we installed the boxes.

I know it has been a while since I have updated this thread, but the last couple of weeks have been pretty crazy... the holidays of course slow things down quite a bit, but I have also had a close relative in the hospital which took up all of last weekend (he is fine now), and then we had some family commitments this weekend, etc., etc., etc. Anyway, I have made *some* progress believe it or not, just not as much as I would have liked (does this sound familiar?). Basically, I have been working on finishing my door frames, and have begun laying the flooring. Here are a few pictures to show the progress so far. The doors I used are of the "pre-hung" variety, which means that I was able to buy a door frame as part of the door assembly. This makes it so much easier for amateurs like me to hang them, but there are a couple of drawbacks. 1) Price: They are obviously more expensive 2) "Standard" door frame width: This is the biggie. The door frames that come standard with these guys are made to fit into standard wall construction, which means single-wall construction (2x4 studs) with a single-layer of 1/2" drywall on each side. This also means that the included frames are too "thin" to fit the wall construction for my project, and they had to be "extended" so that the frames were flush with the sides of the wall on both sides of the door (inside the room and outside the room). I got some S4 grade wood, and extended each door frame. This first shot, shows a picture of the CR-to-airlock door frame. I am standing in the doorway taking a pic of the extended frame. You can see the white primered wood of the pre-hung door, and the plain wood extensions that I made to bring the edge of the frame flush with the drywall. I then puttied and sanded the heck of the frames before painting them all with primer. You can also see the old vinyl seals that came with the doors. I will be adding rubber car trunk (car boot) seals to the doors later. Here we are looking at the edge of the frame, and you can see the gap between the frame edge and the drywall. The door frame was already caulked with acoustic caulk, but I decided to fill in the space between the frame and the drywall with expandable foam. Beware, there are 2 types of this foam, and if you get the wrong type to use in doors or windows, it will expand and warp your door or window frames. There is the "regular" expanding foam, and then there is the type that is specially-designed for use with windows and doors. Here are a couple of more shots of the foam work. Once it is dried and cured, it will be trimmed back with a knife so that it is flush with the edge of the drywall, and then covered with trim. Here is a shot of the door between the airlock and the iso room. Puttied, and ready for sanding. This is the door that separates the live room from the air lock, and here I had to deal with the double-walled construction, and had to extend the frame quite a bit more than the other 2 doors. The hinge side of this door presented another challenge in that I needed to route out 3 notches to give room for the hinges to fit, and then a small notch at the bottom to fit around the threshold. One it was routed and sanded, I hung it, and then onto the usual putty and sanding work. And then a coat of white primer paint on all the doors. I am going to wait to put on the final latex paint until after I have completed the door seals (more on that later). Here are the raw door stops that I cut to house the rubber seals. I have since sanded them smooth, and I am waiting for the seals to show up so that I can cut rabbets in them to hold the seals. Once that is done, I will primer and paint them along with the door frames. This will make more sense once I get the door seals, and I will be sure to document the process at that time. With the door frames at a standstill while I wait for the seals to show up, I went ahead and got started on the flooring. I decided to go with engineered hardwood flooring throughout the studio, which is of a glue-down style. It is quite messy, and a lot of work, but I think it looks quite classy. Here I am spreading out the first glob of glue. Here are the first few pieces in place (sort of!). As you can see, I started a few feet out from the wall, and worked towards it. What I did was figure out a 12 board space (at 3" per board), and then gave myself a 3/8" expansion gap at the wall edge, and snapped a chalk like that was 36 3/8" from the wall. I then lined up the first pieces of flooring along that line, and worked my way towards the wall. If everything worked out right with my calculations, I should be able to fit 12 boards between the chalk line and the wall, and still have a 3/8" expansion joint left over. It worked out fine for the most part, but it is difficult dealing with walls that are not 100% square. You can see that I cut some scrap pieces of flooring to use as anchoring cleats for the first row. These were nailed into the subflooring to provide a firm anchor point for the first row to sit against. And here is a classic picture of my son doing his best Cinderella impression! He is going back over my handiwork with a rag and some mineral spirits to remove any residual glue. I tried to be as neat as I could, and even wiped up as I went along, but it still needed a quick once-over when I was done with this section. And this is where I stopped for the night. I had to go to a relative's birthday party, and I thought it best to let this section dry for a day or so before starting to fill in the rest of the room. At this point, I will just continue to add boards to the left until I get to the left wall. At that point I am going to have to rip some of the boards so that they will fit against the left wall. Last picture for the day. Here is that space underneath the stairs that we decided needed beefing up. If you remember, I "gave" this project to my son to complete. Well, more than a week later, and he has *finally* finished the insulation and first layer of drywall. (It is also caulked). I will now come in and tape and mud his botched up handiwork before adding a second layer of drywall. I am actually out of Green Glue, so this second layer will go on dry. OK, that is it for now. Hopefully, the rubber door seals will arrive today or tomorrow so I can finish the doors, and I will of course be pounding away at the floors for the next 10 years or so!

Still plodding along with the flooring. Wow, glue-down is a lot of work, and quite messy! I am now out of glue, so I had to stop with about 2-3 feet to go. I ended up using 2 gallons of glue so far, and I am still not finished with this room. The glue is not cheap either, at about US$20 per gallon. My rubber seals have finally arrived for the doors, so I am going to focus my efforts this weekend on finishing the doors, but will most likely spend some time getting the control room floor finished as well if time permits. Moving forward, but oh so slowly!!!

I was kinda worried about this: That PUR ain't gonna go much with sound-isolation. Dunno if that's what it supposed to do. But you prolly know what ye doing.. I hope.