DIY Music and Workout Studio

Earlier this year I found myself in predicament. Late at night, I would like to lift weights, work out, and do a bit of overtime, all while blasting music to keep the energy up. This quickly caused a problem as the rest of the household didn’t appreciate the concerts I held in the middle of the night, not to mention the neighbors that didn’t want that either. So I had a couple of options, I could go to a 24-hour gym (which at the time were open but little did I know that would have been a temporary fix) Or I could design my own workspace that would reduce the sound by drafting an acoustical treatment plan. 

Avoiding the sweaty gyms and having the freedom of being in my own home while having the option to have my music through a speaker was a no brainer choice. So my wife and I designed an acoustical plan. 

What is an acoustical treatment plan? 

In short, it is a design that will solve your problems and make the room better for recording and listening to audio. When making an acoustical treatment plan you need to decide what your main problems are and how much coverage you need. Most people need between 25% and 75% coverage. This is only for the walls and ceiling. Most people forget when treating a room that the ceiling is just as important when it comes to treating a room as the walls are. So when buying or collecting materials make sure to pick up some for the ceiling too. 

How do you go about it?

When I was making mine I decided to use scraps from a previous project. I had odd shapes of sound silencer material, which was perfect for the outcome but the shapes would be a creative challenge. My wife and I spent time maneuvering the pieces into intricate designs that would get the job done while still being aesthetically pleasing. This process saved us money and kept our room design unique, compared to the typical soundproofing methods. 

Find a store that sells soundproofing materials then draw out a design for your room while placement is important that doesn’t mean you can’t make pieces that look good in the right places. The sound silencer is a unique product, from an initial look it looks like styrofoam but it is actually tiny engineered beads molded together, which is both functional and pleasing to the eyes.

After implementing this plan the sound was reduced drastically. I now have a place where I can do work and be as loud as needed while others can sleep peacefully just a wall away. My wife and I had a great time working on this together it was a good problem-solving experience and gave us some extra time together. Most people think that acoustical treatments are eyesores…and they wouldn’t be completely wrong. It’s great that we were able to come up with something that worked for our space and looked cool. 

Putting soundproof panels behind canvas pictures, or cutting them into unique designs are simple ways you can make acoustical treatments a designing choice instead of a functional eyesore. This project was cost-effective, made use of old material, and solved our main problem. 

By Tony Sprando

Sources used

https://advancedacoustics-uk.com/pages/how-much-acoustic-treatment-should-i-install