Insulating a ceiling for drumming!?

Hey guys,
I've recently moved from an apartment and now have a basement in the new house. After some experimenting with drumming while having someone standing upstairs, I have come to the conclusion that it is way too loud above the basement which is undoubtably coming from the ceiling of the basement/floor of the upper part of the house. My question is, is there is a solution to reduce noise from drums that come through a ceiling, I've already looked at Drop Ceilings etc., has anyone one ever had experiences with things like this? Thanks in the future!
 
I was in a similar situation. Basement drummer. Drums too loud. It comes down to two choices.

1: Build a soundproof enclosure.
2: Build a quiet kit or eKit.

I opted for the later as it was far cheaper and required far less effort. I now practice on the eKit at night and play the aKit when permitted.
 
I was in a similar situation. Basement drummer. Drums too loud. It comes down to two choices.

1: Build a soundproof enclosure.
2: Build a quiet kit or eKit.

I opted for the later as it was far cheaper and required far less effort. I now practice on the eKit at night and play the aKit when permitted.

eKit is probably not currently an option as the budget is kind of tight (As I just moved etc. but I might save up for one), but I'll check with the neighbors wether they even hear the drums and if they do I'll only play when it fits with them, otherwise thanks already!
 
Is this an open basement? No actual room you are playing in? Is the basement finished with drywall? I'd lay odds it's not just the ceiling, it's also the stairs. A drop ceiling will do very little to reduce sound from getting out, at most it will control a little reflection in the basement but that's about it. In order to reduce sound from getting out you need mass and air which will involve a number of room building techniques. Mineral wool insulation in between the rafter (this isn't the pink fiberglass stuff) dry wall maybe resilient channel to mount the dry wall to. Sound is also probably traveling up the stairway as well so you'll honestly probably need to build a room if the volume is an issue for the upstairs and neighbors. Again mass an air to help control sound from getting out. 5/8" dry wall, mineral wool insulation in the walls, resilient channel or decoupled walls.

Here's a little reading material on acoustics and sound control
http://www.acoustics101.com/

Sadly there is no cheap, easy or short cut way to control sound for drums.

Only other option would maybe be drum mutes or mesh heads and some cymbal mutes.
 
Is this an open basement? No actual room you are playing in? Is the basement finished with drywall? I'd lay odds it's not just the ceiling, it's also the stairs. A drop ceiling will do very little to reduce sound from getting out, at most it will control a little reflection in the basement but that's about it. In order to reduce sound from getting out you need mass and air which will involve a number of room building techniques. Mineral wool insulation in between the rafter (this isn't the pink fiberglass stuff) dry wall maybe resilient channel to mount the dry wall to. Sound is also probably traveling up the stairway as well so you'll honestly probably need to build a room if the volume is an issue for the upstairs and neighbors. Again mass an air to help control sound from getting out. 5/8" dry wall, mineral wool insulation in the walls, resilient channel or decoupled walls.

Here's a little reading material on acoustics and sound control
http://www.acoustics101.com/

Sadly there is no cheap, easy or short cut way to control sound for drums.

Only other option would maybe be drum mutes or mesh heads and some cymbal mutes.

I wouldn't say it's an open basement, it is a side room, from the main one (all of them have carpet) and its walls aren't drywalls, but just brick and the room itself inside sounds pretty dead (the room however doesn't have a door but rather a passage way in the shape of a door, not sure if that sounds right). The only drywall there is I think is the one connecting the main room with the side room I drum in. It might actually be sound mainly getting through that "doorway" and up the stairs and slightly coming through the wall that connects thin. Thanks for the reply!
 
yeah you've got a lot going on there with sound. The sound is reflecting off the brick, no door means sound is getting out into the main area and up the stairwell plus sound getting through the ceiling.
 
I was in a similar situation. Basement drummer. Drums too loud. It comes down to two choices.

1: Build a soundproof enclosure.
2: Build a quiet kit or eKit.

I opted for the later as it was far cheaper and required far less effort. I now practice on the eKit at night and play the aKit when permitted.

It should not be that expensive if you do it all yourself. I think I paid like 1500€. It sure is a lot of work, it took me 3 months' worth of Saturdays, lots of evenings and the occasional day off. Double wall, double ceiling (mineral wool between), double door.

A sound proof basement is a golden opportunity not only to play an a-kit at home, it also allows you to invite a bassist buddy over and make noise! If it's big enough (mine isn't but ok) it can even be a studio. You don't have to haul your kit around for rehearsals. It's pure gold.
 
...is there is a solution to reduce noise from drums that come through a ceiling

The best solution is to work around other people's schedules.

You could spend a lot of money, and the basement still won't be soundproof enough that somebody can function in the room above it.

Even with a bit of soundproofing, you're still looking at an e-kit or playing your kit with brushes if you want to play while other people are using the house.

Given the choice between brushes on a real kit, or sticks on an e-kit, I much prefer brushes. I just dampen the drums by putting a bit of cloth on each, and I replace the bass drum with a padded cajon, because the bass drum carries much more than any other drum.

It took some getting used to, but now I can play real drums in the middle of the night. I put music on the stereo at an acceptable volume, match that volume with the brushes, and away I go (no headphones). If I can't hear the stereo, I'm too loud.
 
The best solution is to work around other people's schedules.

You could spend a lot of money, and the basement still won't be soundproof enough that somebody can function in the room above it.

Even with a bit of soundproofing, you're still looking at an e-kit or playing your kit with brushes if you want to play while other people are using the house.

Given the choice between brushes on a real kit, or sticks on an e-kit, I much prefer brushes. I just dampen the drums by putting a bit of cloth on each, and I replace the bass drum with a padded cajon, because the bass drum carries much more than any other drum.

It took some getting used to, but now I can play real drums in the middle of the night. I put music on the stereo at an acceptable volume, match that volume with the brushes, and away I go (no headphones). If I can't hear the stereo, I'm too loud.

Mine is soundproof enough. My daughter does her homework directly above me without complaints. She does hear me somewhat obviously.
 
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