Table of Contents
What This Project Involved
This was a single garage in a three-storey terraced townhouse converted into a dedicated drum room with a separate vocal booth. The goal was for the drummer to be able to play whenever they wanted without disturbing the neighbours on either side or the rooms above.
Because it was a concrete block and beam construction, around 50% of the noise entering the structure was flanking noise, travelling through the concrete rather than through the air. That meant every surface had to be treated, not just the walls facing the neighbours.
For a professional studio soundproofing installation, Quietco handles the full design and build. If you want to talk through what your space would need, fill out the contact form to book your FREE noise diagnosis call and Jim will advise on the right approach.
Why Drums Are the Hardest Instrument to Soundproof
Acoustic drum kits average around 119 decibels, which puts them in the same range as a chainsaw or a thunderclap. At that volume the noise does not just travel through the air. It enters the structure of the building and causes every wall, floor, and ceiling surface to resonate like a ringing drum cymbal.
That structural transmission is why a floating frame system that works well for electric guitar or a TV lounge is not always enough for drums. For drums, every surface in contact with the structure needs to be sound deadened before any acoustic layers go on top, and the floor needs to be fully floating and isolated from the walls to stop impact energy from the kit travelling directly into the building.
Room Preparation and Space Planning
The garage was stripped back to expose what was behind the existing surfaces. Removing the hollow metal ceiling frame uncovered:
- A 4-inch waste pipe running through the space, which needed sound deadening to stop toilet flushing sounds coming through during recording
- An RSJ steel beam transmitting noise across the whole structure
- Hollow voids in the walls amplifying noise from the concrete structure
The RSJ was sound deadened with a visco-elastic membrane, the web insulated with Rockwool, and finished with two layers of 15mm sound bloc board to meet building regulations. The waste pipe was wrapped in self-adhesive visco-elastic membrane and boxed in.
The layout was planned as three separate zones: a drum room at the back, a vocal booth in the middle, and a garage storage area at the front with the utility door. Three doors stood between the drums and the outside, which was the target from the start. More on wall soundproofing systems here.
The Wall and Ceiling System
Because the garage was a single UK garage with very limited space, a full floating room within a room was not practical. The 95mm baton system was used instead, giving 95mm space loss to the walls and around 200mm to the ceiling.
Walls
- Sound deaden every wall surface with visco-elastic membrane
- Fix 2×2 timber battens on anti-vibration pads
- RW3 Rockwool packed between battens
- 5kg per m² mass loaded vinyl applied over the Rockwool
- Resilient bars fixed over the mass loaded vinyl to the battens
- Cement board, 10kg per m² mass loaded vinyl, fibreboard, and 15mm sound bloc board fixed to the resilient bars
The cement board layer is highly reflective, pushing noise back through the mass loaded vinyl and Rockwool. The fibreboard is denser than standard acoustic plasterboard. Together the combination gives significantly better performance than two plain layers of board alone.
Ceiling
The ceiling was the direct noise path with rooms above. A clip and channel system was used here rather than resilient bars because the space available allowed for it and the ceiling needed a higher level of isolation than the walls. Mute clips were used, fixed to new ceiling joists isolated from the concrete block and beam structure above, with 150mm insulation between the joists.
For garages with flat roofs or limited ceiling height, a space-saving approach is to mount the clip inside the rafter bay rather than below it. This bypasses the joist entirely and saves 40 to 50mm of headroom while still achieving full decoupling.
Ventilation
Ventilation was installed before any boarding went up. The system used:
- One inline extractor fan pulling air out of the drum room
- One air brick inlet on the opposite side allowing fresh air in
- Acoustic ducting with bends to allow airflow without sound travelling through
- A baffle box over the inlet vent in the garage storage area
The whole ventilation system was built from standard DIY materials. No specialist decibel-rated equipment was needed. At the end of the video Jim demonstrates how quiet the extractor is from outside the finished room.
Without ventilation, the room becomes uncomfortable within 40 minutes during a playing session. It is non-negotiable on any airtight studio build. More on Quietco’s approach to studio builds here.
The Floating Floor
The floating floor went in after all plastering and decorating was complete. This is one of the most common mistakes on drum room builds: installing the floor first and then building the walls off of it. When the walls are connected to the floating floor, every impact from the kit is injected straight into the wall frames and transmitted into the structure, undoing all the decoupling work above.
The correct sequence is: walls, plaster, then floor, then decorate. The build-up for this project:
- Sound deadener applied to the concrete slab
- Anti-vibration pads and damp proof membranes
- RW3 Rockwool between the timbers
- Structural ply deck on top
- Isolated from all walls around the full perimeter
The result is essentially a drum riser built within the room. Impact energy from the kit has nowhere to go into the walls. More detail on floor soundproofing options here.
Doors and the Finished Result
Three doors separated the drum room from outside:
- The drum room door into the vocal booth
- The vocal booth door into the garage storage area
- The garage storage door to the outside
Each door was a heavy duty door beefed up on both sides with soundproofing materials, with acoustic seals on all edges. The drum room door had two acoustic seals and the outer door three. The larger the air gap between consecutive doors, the better the result.
Sound absorption panels were fitted to the ceiling of the drum room to control the acoustic environment inside. The homeowner added their own wall absorption panels after completion.
Watch the full installation video here:
The finished result showed a significant reduction in noise from outside the garage. With three doors between the drums and the street, standing outside the garage door the drums were not audible. For a project like this in your own space, fill out the contact form to book your FREE noise diagnosis call and Jim will walk you through what is achievable.
FAQ
Is a floating room within a room always needed for drums?
Not always. In a space with enough height and wall depth a full floating room gives the best result, particularly for low frequency impact noise. But where space is limited, a well-executed 95mm batton system with a properly isolated floating floor and clip and channel ceiling can deliver a very good result for a home drum room.
Why does the floating floor have to go in last?
If the walls are built on top of the floating floor, they are connected to it. Every impact from the drum kit is then injected directly into the wall frames and transmitted into the structure. The floating floor only works if it is fully isolated from all walls around the perimeter, which means the walls must be finished first.
Can I soundproof a garage with a flat roof for drums?
A flat roof creates challenges because you cannot simply install a clip and channel system under the rafters without risking condensation. A space-saving approach is to mount the clip inside the rafter bay to bypass the joist and save 40 to 50mm of headroom as long as it does not cause condensation. For complex flat roof situations, get specialist advice before starting.
How many doors do I need for a drum room?
As many as the space allows. Each door with acoustic seals adds another barrier for the sound to pass through. For this project three doors between the drums and the outside was the target and it delivered the result needed. The air gap between consecutive doors is as important as the doors themselves.
Does ventilation affect the soundproofing?
Only if it is installed without acoustic ducting. A standard inline extractor and an acoustic ducted inlet with bends is all that is needed. No specialist decibel-rated equipment is required. The ventilation on this project was barely audible from outside the finished room.
