Mike-48's system

[BlueDoor]

The phrase I've retained the most was: "The system is housed in a basement room that I designed with soundproofing help from a local acoustician."
I'm a bit envious

Very nice, good job! It shows a lot of planning. And discipline.
Well done.

[Mike-48]

Originally Posted by BlueDoor

The phrase I've retained the most was: "The system is housed in a basement room that I designed with soundproofing help from a local acoustician."
I'm a bit envious

Very nice, good job! It shows a lot of planning. And discipline.
Well done.

Thanks so much! It did take a lot of planning and work. When I couldn't get acoustical consultants to answer my calls, I hired a designer-draftsman. He was nice, said he'd done this before, and drew up the plans quickly.

Then the acoustician called back. Major revisions needed. The d-d met with him and me, listened carefully, but incorporated only a few of the changes; he just didn't have the patience for the job. Then I got lucky. Our neighbor, an architect, met with the acoustician and me and incorporated the changes into the plans. I owe her big!

Though I used a general contractor (I have no construction experience), I needed to supervise the most extensive part of it -- the sheetrock work -- myself, as neither the GC nor the subcontractor was familiar with the nitpicking details needed to install QuietRock effectively.

A funny part was that the architect didn't know about silent ventilation, so she specified the HVAC as "design and build." The HVAC contractor said sure and bid, but then didn't have a clue what to do. The GC and I designed the dead-vent system one evening, based on thoughts from the acoustician and ideas from the internet. It was built a few days later, and it works pretty well.

I learned a few things in doing this. The main one was to have your door open OUT , so you can carpet the floor even though your doors have acoustic drop-seals. I also learned how to write city variance requests, which I needed to avoid installing a special exit window, which would have meant a large break in the left wall and a large excavation expense to match.

It was quite an experience, one I wouldn't have been able to do without having lots of time off to supervise. I learned a lot and got a good result. I never want to do it again! Though it would be easier the second time around.

[joey_v]

Where did you get your diffusors?

Nice system and room!

[Mikeylee]

Very awesome room and system!

[Mike-48]

Originally Posted by joey_v

Where did you get your diffusors?

Nice system and room!

Thanks, Joey, and thanks to all who sent nice comments.

Today, I am putting the room back together again after fixing a construction problem. I've been without it for six months and have missed it.

The diffusers are by Vicoustic. They're similar to those sold by some other manufacturers but less expensive. I mounted them to artist's stretcher frames and put Dynamat on the back to deaden them.

Your system looks great, too. It must give a lot of musical pleasure.

[joey_v]

And how do you find those hangers for the panels? And where did you buy them?

[Mike-48]

Originally Posted by Rojet2015

Thank you for the link on cork

Roger, FYI, I had to pull up the cork and replace it with something else. The cork is great and was beautiful, but I would not recommend it on or below grade. As we found out (to much trouble and expense), concrete transmits water vapor from the ground; and any flooring that is impermeable will cause that water to accumulate. In our case, that caused problems.

[Rojet2015]

Mike,
Thank you for the follow up on the cork. I will go with carpet and a door which opens out.

[Mikado463]

Now that's a 'man cave' , nicely done Mike !

[Mike-48]

Originally Posted by joey_v

And how do you find those hangers for the panels? And where did you buy them?

I like the hanging system, as it lets me move stuff around and find good spots without making a lot of holes in the wall.

There are several companies that make these systems; mine is from Walker Display.