Seeking advice in sound supression, building a theater room in an unfinished basement

[mac_angel]

First off, I want to start by saying that budget is a HUGE factor. I am renting this townhouse. The owners have agreed to let me finish the basement and they'll pay for the supplies, but they are not going to be interested in big budget sound isolation/proofing. I don't mind spending a little out of pocket, but absolutely not for a home I rent. As it is, I'm already going to be spending on internal wiring for the speakers and HDMI, so any suggestions above what I've listed for my ideas so far, try to keep below $1000CAN. If they are above that, please don't bother suggesting them because it won't be helpful. Added note/warning (lol). This is a townhouse. One that's only a few years old where they only care about fire code, not sound.

Edit: added an idea at the end of this.

The whole basement is almost completely unfinished. No flooring, no ceiling, no drywall, no studs. "Minimal" meaning that the outside walls are insulated and vapor-barrier, a couple of basic lights and a couple of outlets for the space in question. I'm going to be finishing the whole basement, minus the bathroom for now at least (it's roughed in - it's a new-ish house. Just a bigger and different project than the rest). This will include putting up some new walls to section off the theater room, probably a double door entrance, wiring, etc. The room will be roughly 19' x 11'. The joining walls are mostly concrete except for these odd sections that I took pics of:

(fyi, not my system. Left by the owners when they decided somewhat last minute to move to Slovenia. The Paradigms in the first pic are mine).
I drilled a small hole in one of those drywall panels to try and see what's behind there and seems it's just insulation. The concrete wall is not behind that. There is also NO insulation in the ceiling, above the concrete wall, between the units. I was in the basement last weekend and I heard vacuuming so clear I thought it was right above my head.
So, my plans/ideas so far, but open to changing. That's the idea of this post.
Using metal studs and setting them about an inch away from the concrete wall. Using pink insulation (much like the stuff in the pics) to go all the way across, including behind the metal studs, using the plastic vapor-barrier and sealing it much like an outside wall. Using some extra of the insulation to stuff the top of the concrete wall/ceiling, and the first couple of spaces (not concerned about sound going up, just to the neighbours).
Putting up resilient channels on the ceiling. Ceiling, outside walls, and internal walls, using 1/2" drywall (might be okay going to 5/8", but I don't think that's needed for the whole basement. Not to mention I'm doing this myself). The joining walls, using 5/8", Green Glue, and another layer of 5/8". Acoustic caulking in the spaces all around that. I also want to add a small box in the ceiling for a power outlet and HDMI port for a ceiling mount projector. (wondering if adding the vapor-barrier to seal the ceiling might help as well)
For the flooring, using this for an underlay. Then this on top of the underlay, making sure it doesn't touch any of the wall framing. Using acoustic caulking again to fill the space between that wood and the metal studs, as well as sealing it. My thoughts are a cheap/easy floating floor. Yes, I know, not as good as the real thing, but thinking it should be better than nothing. And then laminate flooring on top of that, again, making sure it doesn't touch the framing. The underlay, wood sub-flooring, and laminate would be continued through the whole basement.
The vents you see in the pics, I was thinking of shortening them and having them pointing down from the ceiling instead of having odd corners in those two corners just for the vents to be closer to the floor. I'm not overly concerned about heating with that many layers and the furnace room being right next to it.

So, that's my idea so far. I'm open to suggestions and other ideas though. The only thing I'm somewhat concerned about is those areas in the pictures where the concrete wall is 'missing'.

Also, I was wondering if there was something I could put between the metal tracks for the stud framing and the concrete floor that might also help with the vibration, or should that not be a concern.

Edit/Added: I was wondering about building a wall on the floor with drywall and 1x2 (I don't think it has to be to code for this exact idea. Read the whole thing before commenting on that), and lifting it into place with the drywall on the concrete side, and the 1x2 facing towards the room. Then building the other walls as I suggested. Insulation > Vapour Barrier (yes, I know a "vapour barrier" isn't needed on that wall, just using it for sealing and sound suppression) > steel studs > 5/8 drywall > Green Glue > 5/8 drywall. And acoustic caulking all around, etc. That might get me something of a "room within a room", at least with those 2 walls (yes, I know the ceiling and other walls wouldn't be decoupled. Open to cheap/easy ideas for that, though).
Also, as for the ceiling, which would be better? Anti-vibration tracks, or just dual layer drywall?
Small stuff like a few extra sheets of drywall and/or some 1x2 pieces of wood wouldn't be that expensive and can easily be added to the materials list for the owners to pay.

 

[highfigh]

Best practice- don't attach the walls or ceiling of the theater to the walls & floor of the building if you want to prevent sound reaching people in another unit and rock the backside of the walls, to block sound that would normally pass through the insulation. Use the insulation that's more dense than the rest, but if you have money only for regular fiberglass, know that it does a good job, but the needs change if you plan to operate the theater at extremely high SPL- that's not a realistic goal if you live in a multi-unit building. If you have money and energy for it, add a second layer of drywall on the interior of the room, to make the walls more dense- you can use particle board, MDF, OSB, etc if you want because it all helps to block sound.

If you make any holes in the drywall, give up on the idea that it will block all sound. Any cables fed into the walls should come from the top and those holes should be sealed, too.

Look into rubber or foam pads that are made for sound isolation. Here's one supplier, but they carry a wide assortment-

Acoustic Sound Isolation Pads for Soundproofing - SoundAway

We have all the best sound isolation flooring materials and products you need for your home or office. Order online for low prices and fast shipping on all orders.

www.soundaway.com

For the projector's junction box- look at Arlington Electric boxes- they make them for dual voltage, so they meet NEC requirements. Make a box from MDF or something that will contain this because it will do a better job than just the drywall and a plastic box. Use Smurf tube for the HDMI, ethernet (yes, use that instead of WiFi for all of this) and any other low voltage cabling- make sure it's large enough and remember the 65% rule- don't fill the cross-sectional area more than 65% with cabling, or it will be a bitch to pull the first time and a real PITA if you need to replace anything later.

Is the floor where you're building the theater concrete? If so, find out if it was insulated and has a vapor barrier or you WILL have moisture problems.

 

[mac_angel]

Best practice- don't attach the walls or ceiling of the theater to the walls & floor of the building if you want to prevent sound reaching people in another unit and rock the backside of the walls, to block sound that would normally pass through the insulation. Use the insulation that's more dense than the rest, but if you have money only for regular fiberglass, know that it does a good job, but the needs change if you plan to operate the theater at extremely high SPL- that's not a realistic goal if you live in a multi-unit building. If you have money and energy for it, add a second layer of drywall on the interior of the room, to make the walls more dense- you can use particle board, MDF, OSB, etc if you want because it all helps to block sound.

If you make any holes in the drywall, give up on the idea that it will block all sound. Any cables fed into the walls should come from the top and those holes should be sealed, too.

Look into rubber or foam pads that are made for sound isolation. Here's one supplier, but they carry a wide assortment-

Acoustic Sound Isolation Pads for Soundproofing - SoundAway

We have all the best sound isolation flooring materials and products you need for your home or office. Order online for low prices and fast shipping on all orders.

www.soundaway.com

For the projector's junction box- look at Arlington Electric boxes- they make them for dual voltage, so they meet NEC requirements. Make a box from MDF or something that will contain this because it will do a better job than just the drywall and a plastic box. Use Smurf tube for the HDMI, ethernet (yes, use that instead of WiFi for all of this) and any other low voltage cabling- make sure it's large enough and remember the 65% rule- don't fill the cross-sectional area more than 65% with cabling, or it will be a bitch to pull the first time and a real PITA if you need to replace anything later.

Is the floor where you're building the theater concrete? If so, find out if it was insulated and has a vapor barrier or you WILL have moisture problems.

yea, you pretty much confirmed what I was saying. The joining walls to the other units, two layers of drywall, using the 5/8" thicker sheets for that, and using Green Glue in between. And the ceiling, using the anti-vibration tracks and putting the drywall to that.
And, yes, the floor is concrete, that's why I mentioned the vapour-barrier underlay. The stuff where I say, "this" is actually clickable to a link of what I was looking at getting.
So, walls, going from inside my theater room to the neighbours would be 5/8" drywall, Green Glue, 5/8" drywall, steel studs, vapour barrier (not needed for a vapour barrier, just using it as extra sealant), pink insulation, then concrete wall. So the studs would not be connecting to the shared concrete wall.
Flooring would be concrete, the padding in the link which is 2mm thick and good ratings for sound isolation (it's also a vapour-barrier, the 1/2" OSB sub flooring (not touching any framing, just laid on top of the underlay), then laminate flooring on top of that. So it would be a somewhat floating floor without having to lay the studs and all.
Acoustic caulking in the corners and whatnot.

That link looks good. It's what I was wondering for the bottom metal track part for the steel studs. I wasn't sure if that would be needed since the speakers (mainly the sub) is on isolation pads, then the laminate floor, the OSB, the sound dampening underlay/vapour barrier, then concrete.

 

[highfigh]

yea, you pretty much confirmed what I was saying. The joining walls to the other units, two layers of drywall, using the 5/8" thicker sheets for that, and using Green Glue in between. And the ceiling, using the anti-vibration tracks and putting the drywall to that.
And, yes, the floor is concrete, that's why I mentioned the vapour-barrier underlay. The stuff where I say, "this" is actually clickable to a link of what I was looking at getting.
So, walls, going from inside my theater room to the neighbours would be 5/8" drywall, Green Glue, 5/8" drywall, steel studs, vapour barrier (not needed for a vapour barrier, just using it as extra sealant), pink insulation, then concrete wall. So the studs would not be connecting to the shared concrete wall.
Flooring would be concrete, the padding in the link which is 2mm thick and good ratings for sound isolation (it's also a vapour-barrier, the 1/2" OSB sub flooring (not touching any framing, just laid on top of the underlay), then laminate flooring on top of that. So it would be a somewhat floating floor without having to lay the studs and all.
Acoustic caulking in the corners and whatnot.

That link looks good. It's what I was wondering for the bottom metal track part for the steel studs. I wasn't sure if that would be needed since the speakers (mainly the sub) is on isolation pads, then the laminate floor, the OSB, the sound dampening underlay/vapour barrier, then concrete.

Will the studs touch the framing near the theater?

I don't remember if the frame of the theater we installed at a place where I worked used any kind of pads under the walls, but the layers for the walls and ceiling were as follows, from outside to inside:

- 5/8" fire-rated Gypsum drywall (commercial spaces require fire rating)
- 2x6" Metal studs
- Mass loading vinyl sheet
- 3/4" fire-rated particle board
- 5/8" fire-rated Gypsum drywall
- All walls and ceiling had 6" fiberglass insulation

All in-wall and in-ceiling speakers were from Triad, with particle board back-boxes.

The double doors were solid core, weatherstripped and had a sealed threshold.

Very little sound escaped, even at high SPL.

 

[mac_angel]

Will the studs touch the framing near the theater?

I don't remember if the frame of the theater we installed at a place where I worked used any kind of pads under the walls, but the layers for the walls and ceiling were as follows, from outside to inside:

- 5/8" fire-rated Gypsum drywall (commercial spaces require fire rating)
- 2x6" Metal studs
- Mass loading vinyl sheet
- 3/4" fire-rated particle board
- 5/8" fire-rated Gypsum drywall
- All walls and ceiling had 6" fiberglass insulation

All in-wall and in-ceiling speakers were from Triad, with particle board back-boxes.

The double doors were solid core, weatherstripped and had a sealed threshold.

Very little sound escaped, even at high SPL.

Not sure what you mean by theatre studs touching the framing.
Front towers, Paradigm Studio 100 v.3. I made stands that had speaker spikes and disks, and I put silicone pads on the bottom side of the disks. For the sub, which I think it the biggest concern, it's a Paradigm Servo 15, and I bought a 4 pack of Big Food Sound Isolation feet for it. I think the pad that I made worked better though. It was 5 layers, alternating from sound dampening carpet underlay and 1/8" fiber board. Dark grey bonded leather surrounding the sides showing to look nice.
The framing track and studs will be about an inch away from the concrete wall, so not touching. Maybe a little bit more, depending on how that works with those stupid drywall parts.
The biggest concern isn't noise just leaving that specific room, but just the neighbours. I don't care much about it going throughout the rest of the house as much, so going upstairs isn't a big deal, other than it then leaking to the neighbours that way, especially since the concrete wall does not go up past the basement.
No in-wall speakers. Paradigm Studio 20s for the back, Paradigm ADP (can't remember the model number off the top of my head. Heavy F'er's though) for sides, and they will have to be mounted on studs (which I should really try to remember in the future to maybe put a double stud, or added wood stud for that mounting). They are on the sides, which will be the outside wall, and the inside wall going to the furnace room. I'm also using four Paradigm Cinema series speakers mounted to the ceiling for Atmos. So, an 11.1 speaker setup with the fronts on a separate amp. Projector screen on the wall, and stereo rack is a basic, reinforced home theatre rack that holds a Yamaha RX-A3050, and an Onkyo TX-SR876 in bridged mode to power the two fronts. Only media device is an NVidia Shield TV Pro, and I had the Paradigm centre sitting on top of the stand. I bought a much bigger screen, so I'll probably have to do some shifting around to lower the centre channel.

You did make a good point that I had overlooked in my thoughts. The outlets and speaker runs. I already thought that the outlet boxes would be a little more difficult in installing with the dual layer of drywall (btw, did you look up what Green Glue is?). But I never considered the sound leakage going through the outlets since they aren't going to have the dual layer drywall with the Green Glue.

 

[Verdinut]

Not sure what you mean by theatre studs touching the framing.
Front towers, Paradigm Studio 100 v.3. I made stands that had speaker spikes and disks, and I put silicone pads on the bottom side of the disks. For the sub, which I think it the biggest concern, it's a Paradigm Servo 15, and I bought a 4 pack of Big Food Sound Isolation feet for it. I think the pad that I made worked better though. It was 5 layers, alternating from sound dampening carpet underlay and 1/8" fiber board. Dark grey bonded leather surrounding the sides showing to look nice.
The framing track and studs will be about an inch away from the concrete wall, so not touching. Maybe a little bit more, depending on how that works with those stupid drywall parts.
The biggest concern isn't noise just leaving that specific room, but just the neighbours. I don't care much about it going throughout the rest of the house as much, so going upstairs isn't a big deal, other than it then leaking to the neighbours that way, especially since the concrete wall does not go up past the basement.
No in-wall speakers. Paradigm Studio 20s for the back, Paradigm ADP (can't remember the model number off the top of my head. Heavy F'er's though) for sides, and they will have to be mounted on studs (which I should really try to remember in the future to maybe put a double stud, or added wood stud for that mounting). They are on the sides, which will be the outside wall, and the inside wall going to the furnace room. I'm also using four Paradigm Cinema series speakers mounted to the ceiling for Atmos. So, an 11.1 speaker setup with the fronts on a separate amp. Projector screen on the wall, and stereo rack is a basic, reinforced home theatre rack that holds a Yamaha RX-A3050, and an Onkyo TX-SR876 in bridged mode to power the two fronts. Only media device is an NVidia Shield TV Pro, and I had the Paradigm centre sitting on top of the stand. I bought a much bigger screen, so I'll probably have to do some shifting around to lower the centre channel.

You did make a good point that I had overlooked in my thoughts. The outlets and speaker runs. I already thought that the outlet boxes would be a little more difficult in installing with the dual layer of drywall (btw, did you look up what Green Glue is?). But I never considered the sound leakage going through the outlets since they aren't going to have the dual layer drywall with the Green Glue.

Maybe have a look at lead sheeting. That material is the best sound proofing stuff as it also damps low frequencies, vibrations that are transmitted throughout any building. I don't know about the cost which may be a factor for your decision.

 

[mac_angel]

Maybe have a look at lead sheeting. That material is the best sound proofing stuff as it also damps low frequencies, vibrations that are transmitted throughout any building. I don't know about the cost which may be a factor for your decision.

yea, you have to keep in mind a few things. One, I rent. This isn't my house. It's an odd situation in that the owners just up and decided to move to Slovania. The wife is from there, and they have four kids, so the kids have dual citizenship. The kids are in school there, and they are happy there so far. But this is literally their home in Canada. If and when they decide to come back, I have zero legal grounds in fighting an eviction. I'm not sure where you're from, but I know in Ontario, rental prices have gone through the roof. I really, REALLY wanted to avoid moving to another townhouse. My system definitely does not belong in a townhouse. But we had no options, and less than 2 weeks left of searching. The townhouse is way better than all the other options for the same price range. And if the owners don't plan on coming back, we're here for as long as we want, with very little to worry about in rent increase and whatnot. While it's not my 'house', it is my home. So I don't mind fixing it up and doing home improvements, to an extent. I actually enjoy having the home projects and it's somewhat more hobby based than actual work (sometimes. Other times I seriously question WTF is wrong with me when I'm having a bad day with my joints, lol). Two, because it's not my house, I don't want to spend that much of my own money. I'm already expecting to have to spend money on speaker wiring for in-wall, a hybrid HDMI cable to run in wall, speaker outlets for the placement, acoustic curtains, etc. And I want to upgrade my projector when it's all done since my BenQ is a 1080p. This is the one I have my eye on, an Optima UHD38. I'm still somewhat jaded when it comes to lens shifting technology, and even more jaded about trying to find direct answers to very specific questions about it. I am also on permanent disability with a limited income (and a very, VERY forgiving/tolerant fiance that I probably don't deserve. But she has also fallen in love with our home theatre system and doesn't like a normal TV and speakers when she can avoid it). And three, as I just said, I'm on disability. And I'm doing this mostly myself, with a little help from her and our 13 y/o son. I have good days and I have bad days. I'm good at this stuff, and as I said, I like the projects. But this is going to be a very slow job. Probably 4 months at least. The 5/8" fire rated drywall will do quite a bit. The weight of it is good for the sound suppression. Not so much for trying to handle it alone, even with the help of my family.
I have heard really, really good things about Green Glue, so I'm thinking the plans I have so far are going to be pretty good. The Green Glue between the two layers of 5/8" drywall, and this 2mm underlay going under the OSB sub-flooring (Advanced Acoustical Foam STC 72 // IIC 73 // Delta 21). And I'm probably going to be going with at least 12mm laminate flooring on top of that. I think my weak points will be the outlets and those drywalled spaces on the wall in the pics.

 

[highfigh]

Not sure what you mean by theatre studs touching the framing.
Front towers, Paradigm Studio 100 v.3. I made stands that had speaker spikes and disks, and I put silicone pads on the bottom side of the disks. For the sub, which I think it the biggest concern, it's a Paradigm Servo 15, and I bought a 4 pack of Big Food Sound Isolation feet for it. I think the pad that I made worked better though. It was 5 layers, alternating from sound dampening carpet underlay and 1/8" fiber board. Dark grey bonded leather surrounding the sides showing to look nice.
The framing track and studs will be about an inch away from the concrete wall, so not touching. Maybe a little bit more, depending on how that works with those stupid drywall parts.
The biggest concern isn't noise just leaving that specific room, but just the neighbours. I don't care much about it going throughout the rest of the house as much, so going upstairs isn't a big deal, other than it then leaking to the neighbours that way, especially since the concrete wall does not go up past the basement.
No in-wall speakers. Paradigm Studio 20s for the back, Paradigm ADP (can't remember the model number off the top of my head. Heavy F'er's though) for sides, and they will have to be mounted on studs (which I should really try to remember in the future to maybe put a double stud, or added wood stud for that mounting). They are on the sides, which will be the outside wall, and the inside wall going to the furnace room. I'm also using four Paradigm Cinema series speakers mounted to the ceiling for Atmos. So, an 11.1 speaker setup with the fronts on a separate amp. Projector screen on the wall, and stereo rack is a basic, reinforced home theatre rack that holds a Yamaha RX-A3050, and an Onkyo TX-SR876 in bridged mode to power the two fronts. Only media device is an NVidia Shield TV Pro, and I had the Paradigm centre sitting on top of the stand. I bought a much bigger screen, so I'll probably have to do some shifting around to lower the centre channel.

I know what Green Glue is but I wouldn't expect anything like that to be a silver bullet for sound leakage. It works best on large surfaces, to dampen/decrease resonances in materials that could resonate like a diaphragm.

"Not sure what you mean by theatre studs touching the framing."- it should be apparent- the framing of the theater shouldn't touch the framing for the rest of the building- structure-borne sound transmission is hard to stop once it begins- the only way to do it effectively is to create a break between the source and the destination.

You can't completely stop low frequencies if you don't isolate and use dense materials. Air gaps will negate any of your efforts.

 

[mac_angel]

I know what Green Glue is but I wouldn't expect anything like that to be a silver bullet for sound leakage. It works best on large surfaces, to dampen/decrease resonances in materials that could resonate like a diaphragm.

"Not sure what you mean by theatre studs touching the framing."- it should be apparent- the framing of the theater shouldn't touch the framing for the rest of the building- structure-borne sound transmission is hard to stop once it begins- the only way to do it effectively is to create a break between the source and the destination.

You can't completely stop low frequencies if you don't isolate and use dense materials. Air gaps will negate any of your efforts.

yea, thank you for pointing out about the outlet boxes, switches, lights and others. I had already thought about the little box in the ceiling for the HDMI and power outlet for the projector, but completely overlooked the outlets. Even more so about the speaker outlets that I wanted to add, especially since I wasn't sure which way I wanted to go with those - having jacks much like THIS, which would add a lot of extra connectors along the speaker wire (something else I wanted to research into), or something like THIS where I could run the speaker wire directly (with extra length for manoeuvring and whatnot) since this would be a more solid, direct line instead of going Amp > (banana plug) speaker wire (banana plug) > wall jack > in wall speaker wire > wall jack > (banana plug) more speaker wire (banana plug) > speaker. It would look nicer, but is that many 'breaks' in the line going to affect it?

 

[mac_angel]

Maybe have a look at lead sheeting. That material is the best sound proofing stuff as it also damps low frequencies, vibrations that are transmitted throughout any building. I don't know about the cost which may be a factor for your decision.

I doubt about the lead sheeting, however I did have a 'late night' idea last night and added it at the end of my original post. Let me know what you think.

 

[highfigh]

I would use the vinyl mass loading material- lead is HazMat.

You can use those wall plates, but look at the cost vs not using them- I have some if you want them, but I stopped using them a long time ago. They're useful if you need to frequently move the rack away from its location, though. You should label the cables well, regardless of how you terminate and remember- leave more length than you think you need.

Some outdoor rated junction boxes have a foam sheet attached to the back and around the flange- those can work, or you can use the usual kind and spray insulation on the back. You could also use Flex Seal, Rustoleum's Leak Seal or something similar, in spray cans.

 

[Verdinut]

I doubt about the lead sheeting, however I did have a 'late night' idea last night and added it at the end of my original post. Let me know what you think.

I know that lead is probably the best soundproofing material, but I'm no expert. I suggest that you do your own research. You could start by verifying with this firm which I found on the web. If such project looks too expensive, you just forget about it:

What is lead soundproofing? Lead Sheets used for Noise Reduction-

Lead soundproofing consists of lead sheets of suitable thickness. Lead Sheets for lead soundproofing are available from stock from Nuclead. Call 508-5832699

www.nuclead.com

.

 

[mac_angel]

I know that lead is probably the best soundproofing material, but I'm no expert. I suggest that you do your own research. You could start by verifying with this firm which I found on the web. If such project looks too expensive, you just forget about it:

What is lead soundproofing? Lead Sheets used for Noise Reduction-

Lead soundproofing consists of lead sheets of suitable thickness. Lead Sheets for lead soundproofing are available from stock from Nuclead. Call 508-5832699

www.nuclead.com

.

oh, it probably is good. But, one, I rent, it's not my home. Two, budget is a big thing. The owners aren't going to pay for added sound isolation, that's coming out of pocket. Three, I'm doing this myself.
added: I can probably get away with adding the little things I mentioned in the materials, such as some added sheets of drywall, and the extra 1x2 studs for that internal wall I mentioned. But speaker wiring outlets, speak wire runs, HDMI hybrid cables, etc, is coming out of pocket. And, I'm on permanent disability, so my own personal budget is very tight, and I still have other things I want for the theater room, such as upgrading the projector.

 

[highfigh]

I know that lead is probably the best soundproofing material, but I'm no expert. I suggest that you do your own research. You could start by verifying with this firm which I found on the web. If such project looks too expensive, you just forget about it:

What is lead soundproofing? Lead Sheets used for Noise Reduction-

Lead soundproofing consists of lead sheets of suitable thickness. Lead Sheets for lead soundproofing are available from stock from Nuclead. Call 508-5832699

www.nuclead.com

.

One thing going against lead or other mass loading material is the shipping cost unless the OP has an acoustical supply house in his area. The kind with lead definitely blocks a lot of sound but, as he posted, this is a rental unit and cost is an issue.

 

[highfigh]

oh, it probably is good. But, one, I rent, it's not my home. Two, budget is a big thing. The owners aren't going to pay for added sound isolation, that's coming out of pocket. Three, I'm doing this myself.
added: I can probably get away with adding the little things I mentioned in the materials, such as some added sheets of drywall, and the extra 1x2 studs for that internal wall I mentioned. But speaker wiring outlets, speak wire runs, HDMI hybrid cables, etc, is coming out of pocket. And, I'm on permanent disability, so my own personal budget is very tight, and I still have other things I want for the theater room, such as upgrading the projector.

Where are you located?

 

[mac_angel]

Where are you located?

Ingersoll, Ontario. About 25 minutes East of London.
The owners moved to Slovania. This is/was there personal house before they moved, which was somewhat a spur of the moment idea with no plans for returning. They do see the value of having the basement finished, and I'm pretty sure they can get tax credits for it. They aren't going to be interested in spending extra money for a specific theatre room, or extra for sound isolation. The ideas that I had last night, like adding a thin, internal wall up against the cement wall, then a small, thin space before my wall, I can probably get away with in adding that with the building supplies. I also wondered what the performance difference might be for the ceiling between dual layer drywall vs those anti-vibration tracks and a single layer. It's not so much for sound going upstairs, but lessening it going through the corners/rafters.

 

[Verdinut]

Ingersoll, Ontario. About 25 minutes East of London.
The owners moved to Slovania. This is/was there personal house before they moved, which was somewhat a spur of the moment idea with no plans for returning. They do see the value of having the basement finished, and I'm pretty sure they can get tax credits for it. They aren't going to be interested in spending extra money for a specific theatre room, or extra for sound isolation. The ideas that I had last night, like adding a thin, internal wall up against the cement wall, then a small, thin space before my wall, I can probably get away with in adding that with the building supplies. I also wondered what the performance difference might be for the ceiling between dual layer drywall vs those anti-vibration tracks and a single layer. It's not so much for sound going upstairs, but lessening it going through the corners/rafters.

Actually, by leaving a space, which means no contact between the concrete wall and the dual layer drywall, is a great soundproofing solution for the mid and high frequencies. Adding some fiberglass in between the studs should provide an overall excellent isolation for those frequencies. As for the low frequencies, you will have to limit high peak SPLs after 11pm.

You are living in Ingersoll. I'm not very far from your location in Montreal. Keep us posted on your project and the final results should you have the opportunity to test them later on.

 

[highfigh]

Ingersoll, Ontario. About 25 minutes East of London.
The owners moved to Slovania. This is/was there personal house before they moved, which was somewhat a spur of the moment idea with no plans for returning. They do see the value of having the basement finished, and I'm pretty sure they can get tax credits for it. They aren't going to be interested in spending extra money for a specific theatre room, or extra for sound isolation. The ideas that I had last night, like adding a thin, internal wall up against the cement wall, then a small, thin space before my wall, I can probably get away with in adding that with the building supplies. I also wondered what the performance difference might be for the ceiling between dual layer drywall vs those anti-vibration tracks and a single layer. It's not so much for sound going upstairs, but lessening it going through the corners/rafters.

If you were wondering why they moved, this might shed some light-

From the link, "Consumer Prices Including Rent in Slovenia are 29.74% lower than in Canada" and the difference would be a lot more if they left the US.

Cost Of Living Comparison Between Canada And Slovenia

www.numbeo.com

 

[Eppie]

I'm just down the road in London. I haven't researched sound proofing for a while but they always stressed mechanical decoupling. I would think that sound isolation channels with a single layer of drywall used with sound insulation would work better than two layers of drywall and no mechanical decoupling. You want to mechanically separate the walls and ceiling from the rest of the framing as best as possible. Be really careful with holes in the drywall for outlets or terminals or any equipment. A small hole can bleed a lot of sound. If using vapour barrier, install a gasket behind every box and seal it to the vapour barrier with acoustical sealant. (The wrong kind of sealant will not stick to the plastic vapour barrier properly.) This will also prevent moisture intrusion along concrete walls.

 

[Eppie]

@mac_angel Came across this video from a Canadian home reno channel. Might find some useful info in there:
Soundproof: What Works And What Doesn't!