Sound proofing listening room


My listening room is in the basement. My problem is that my wife above can hear too much, always telling me to turn it down, I was wandering if anybody has any cheap ideas to help keep the music in my basement.I do know the the space between the ceiling and floor are not insulated and I'm planning on doing that. But I'd like to do more. Treatment for the ceiling in my room is ok. Anything is ok cause it is my room to do with what i want. So I welcome all suggestions.
philefreak
As usual, I recommend reading F. Alton Everest's "Sound Studio Construction on a Budget", which deals with this problem (and a ton of others).
Thanks Gentlemen, now where would I happen to get some acoustic ceiling panels. Is this a product you get at a building supply or is it a Audio specialty?
In regards to the suggestion of what amounts to a suspended ceiling. You could well make things sound a lot worse in your room taking that route. I strongly second Tom's suggestion of perusing both the book he suggests and another by the same author, The Master Handbook of Acoustics. There are great (affordable) suggestions that should work toward both a better listening environment for you... and a worse one for her!
I put insulation between the first and second floor of our home (blown in) and found it didn't help very much. There are so many cavities (walls) that remain sound carriers, and I think the joists themselves may carry sound.

I have found that if you can have two doors between you and "them" that is *much* more effective than a single door.

I'll be curious to hear how it works for you.

- Eric
You have to look at the room / system as a "whole". Don't jump into anything as you may end up wasting your money or having to re-do it later.

If your floor beams / joists are exposed ( unfinished with no ceiling ), THICK fiberglass insulation is your best bet. It is both linear in absorption characteristics and cheap. In plain English, it will absorb bass, midrange and treble frequencies pretty evenly. This is especially true if you can use at least a 6" - 8" layer of it ( your floor joists should be that deep anyhow ). You could / should then cover this in a layer of polyester batting ( acts as a "filter" to the fiberglass and adds more absorption ) and then a layer of burlap dyed to match the walls. If your wife wants to get involved, she can even create designs by sewing or crochetting ( spelling ??? ) colors / patterns into the burlap, kind of like a HUGE ceiling tapestry.

As to using "foam" or acoustic tile type treatments, they will produce an uneven tonal balance due to non-linear absorption characteristics. You'll then have a whole new set of problems to deal with as a side effect.

Outside of that, try and pick up at least one of the two books already mentioned. I'm just getting ready to dive into the Master Handbook of Acoustics myself. You may be able to borrow it from a local library or you can order it from Amazon, Parts Express, etc... Sean
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