best way to soundproof a room

[hantge30]

everybody has opinions on this
what is the best inexpensive way to soundproof a room
well not actually completely sound proof it but dampen it

[Hadji]

I'd say hanging carpet about 6" away from the wall would do the best.

[devildriver421]

basically all of them. other then the panels they sell, you could just put insulation when you build it, then line the floor with a thick carpet, and put those eggshell mats on the wall. if that isn't enough, then put thick blankets on.

[crossfireband.biz]

just dont use styrofoam board (sp*) cause all your sound will bounce around the room and cause feedback hell..It not very sound absorbing...

[zer0gauge]

none of those will soundproof a room, except for insulation in conjunction with a room within a room build. everything else will work towards some acoustic dampening, but that's about it.
go read here for soundproofing (http://www.acoustics101.com/)
your best bet for cheap sound dampening would be heavy blankets hung 3-6inches away from the walls if you really can't afford any acoustical tiles.

[devildriver421]

Why would you want to put the blankets away from the wall, out of curiosity?

[Hadji]

Why would you want to put the blankets away from the wall, out of curiosity?
The carpet dampens the sound, it goes into what is then an empty chamber, then hits the wall which dampens it more. The remaining sound is divided up between bouncing around inside the 3"-6" gap and going out of the room. If you just hang it straight on the wall, it only has 1 layer of anything to hit as you've made the carpet/blankets part of the wall.

[kurtis *W*]

none of those will work......cover it with dead animals


edit: this room is also in the basement so we dont need to cover the floor, mainly the ceiling really.

[devildriver421]

The carpet dampens the sound, it goes into what is then an empty chamber, then hits the wall which dampens it more. The remaining sound is divided up between bouncing around inside the 3"-6" gap and going out of the room. If you just hang it straight on the wall, it only has 1 layer of anything to hit as you've made the carpet/blankets part of the wall.

Oh yeah, never thought of that. Well what if you hung one like 6" away, and then another on the wall to absorb/bounce back whatever is left, instead of the wall? OR, what if you put one like 12" away, one 6" away, and then one against the wall?

[ThePinkPanther]

that would probably work pretty well

insulation actually helps, at least for the ceiling

[Hadji]

Oh yeah, never thought of that. Well what if you hung one like 6" away, and then another on the wall to absorb/bounce back whatever is left, instead of the wall? OR, what if you put one like 12" away, one 6" away, and then one against the wall?
The more layers you do, the better the sound will be, but you have to remember that you also are cutting away 2' of width and length in your room if you have one 12" away from the wall. Also, any doors will let a good bit of sound escape.

[BlackNoiseAudio]

Why would you want to put the blankets away from the wall, out of curiosity?

Dead air space is one of the best dampeners you can get. hanging blankets away from the wall will cut down reflections because the waves that get through will bounce off the wall and get cancelled better between the wall and the blanket.