Building A Studio - What Do I Need?

[MessyBeatz]

Hello,


The family and I will be moving into a new flat in the next few weeks and one of the storage cupboards / rooms in the flat seems to be big enough and suitable for a studio build.


I dont have any pictures of the actual room yet but it is similar in size to the one ive put in this thread only difference being mine is slightly bigger. (not much)


So my main concerns are how im going to block sound from leaking into the flat which would disturb my little boy when he goes to bed and also I dont want to piss off the neighbours.


The room has a heavy solid door fitted and no windows so im assuming thats a good thing already.


So... can anyone guide me into the right direction on what would need to be done to soundproof this room?


Also consider my budget is minimal at the moment.


Thanks

 

[bandcoach]

I do not mean to put a damper on your spirits but this is not going to work the way you want it to

Read this

Sound Proofing vs. Sound Treatment

short version: by the time you sound proof it you will have almost nowhere left to work. even treating the surfaces won't do much good as this boxy room is just going to be really hard to make flat in terms of its frequency response

 

[MessyBeatz]

Thanks for the info.

I would like like to add what equipment is be using in case that helps at all.

iMac
MPC
HS80m x2
Midi keyboard
turntable

 

[MessyBeatz]

I do not mean to put a damper on your spirits but this is not going to work the way you want it to

short version: by the time you sound proof it you will have almost nowhere left to work. even treating the surfaces won't do much good as this boxy room is just going to be really hard to make flat in terms of its frequency response

@Bandcoach - does this not make any difference now that you know the equipment im using, which is very minimal.

 

[mycbeats]

To make a room sound proof, you either have to plan for it from the initial constructions or you have to increase the thickness of the walls,floors,ceiling (with sound absorbent insulation), pretty much build a room within a room. What bandcoach is saying is that you won't have enough room because your room boundaries will have to come in nearly a foot in every dimension.

I think you've grasped the idea of sound proofing vs sound treatment yet and you should carefully read the article he supplied.

This is funny because usually Bandcoach asks for the OP's setup, and the one time that he gets it, he doesn't need it.

 

[bandcoach]

@Bandcoach - does this not make any difference now that you know the equipment im using, which is very minimal.

sadly the issues are structural not equipment or musical, so even if you were swinging a cat in there you would be too loud as far as your neighbours were concerned

 

[CasanovaProduction]

Focus on Acoustic treatment, and put a big portion of your money into the best monitors you can get. People too often make the mistake in buying hardware and expensive mics, but the reality is that if your workstation and monitors are sh-t, then your material will reflect that completely.

Remember, there are no effects or plugins for a poor workstation.
Good Luck.

 

[MessyBeatz]

Well this little project is now completed.


The space i had was very limiting but im still happy with the outcome.

 

[Tallen]

Well, you're going to need a computer firstly. I would start with the basics: computer, monitors/headphones, and a simple MIDI controller, which isn't really that necessary.

 

[MessyBeatz]

Well, you're going to need a computer firstly. I would start with the basics: computer, monitors/headphones, and a simple MIDI controller, which isn't really that necessary.

thanks for the input but you clearly didn't read this thread properly.

 

[Salem Beats]

thanks for the input but you clearly didn't read this thread properly.

Well this little project is now completed.


The space i had was very limiting but im still happy with the outcome.

Your little mini studio looks very nice and clean.

You definitely need to be using and trusting your headphones if that's all the space you have
(I would drop the money on a high-quality pair rather than those monitors).

They'll be much more accurate that all of the crazy comb-filtering you'll get out of those monitors,
with them being so close to the walls in such a tiny space.

In fact, you have four strikes against you which will affect the accuracy of your monitors:
- Too close to walls
- Space too small
- Monitors too low (tweeters need to be at the same level as your ear canal)
- Angle seems to be too narrow and uneven (the amount of distance between the two monitors should be the same as the amount of distance between your ear and one of the monitors)

All of these seem to be a result of your limited space,
and since it seems that you can't do anything about it at the moment,
I'll reiterate that I'd definitely put most trust in the translation on your headphones.

-Ki
Salem Beats

 

[Nutek Studios]

Agree with Bandcoach and Salem here. All the treatment in the world wouldn't help here, the space is simply to small.

As Salem already stated, use headphones for now, im not sure what type those are but invest in some good (open back) mixing headphones and use those for now, i would never trust what you are hearing in that little space.