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Is it possible to learn/play drums in an apartment?


Holy War

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Quote Originally Posted by ermghoti II View Post
Where did I mention better/worse? Sample libraries are great, I have BFD myself. Nothing sounds and feels like acoustic drums, and I'm not talking about recording.



I'm not talking about ten years from now, I'm talking about the entry-level e-kit he is going to buy tomorrow. Ten years from now doesn't help him.
Hey, you're right? Sample Libraries ARE great! Like... good enough to allow an apartment drummer to be happy with an e-drum kit.

I'm glad we could settle this like gentlemen wink.gif
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Quote Originally Posted by Johnny Two Tone View Post
Hey, you're right? Sample Libraries ARE great! Like... good enough to allow an apartment drummer to be happy with an e-drum kit.

I'm glad we could settle this like gentlemen wink.gif
I'm certainly happy with the ekit in my apartment for practicing, and it's definitely easier to bang out a piattern than to program a piano roll. OTOH, as soon as I got my acoustic kit, I almost completely abandoned playing the ekit, and my rehearsal space is a half hour's drive from home. Playing the ekit is fun, playing the acoustic drains is also fun, but more visceral. Making a physical instrument make a sound is a far different experience than triggering a sample with a controller.
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Quote Originally Posted by sleewell View Post
anyone think it works? i know it wont 100% soundproof but a 40-60% reduction would sure be nice
Not really. They're absorbent panels. Killing the room reflection can help reduce the overall volume and therefore the amount of noise that escapes, but the reduction is maybe 5 or 10%.

My friend is a drummer and lives on the second floor of his building. I built him a floating jam room:

- floating floor, 1" foam insulation and MLV layer covered with 3/4" plywood.
- walls and ceiling are 2x4" studs 24" on center with roxul safe'n'sound insulation, 3/4" drywall on each side.
- all seams have acoustic caulking, then are mudded over and painted
- interior dimension ended up being 9' wide by 12' long and 7' high. was basically a spare bedroom
- I hung a solid core door with weatherstrips so the room is air tight when the door is closed
- the top 4' of the walls is covered with 1" roxul comfortboard and covered in fabric
- laminate flooring (with comfy foam underlayer), some dark red paint and track lighting... looks nice.

all in all it was about $1500, a few days and a few cases of beer. the result is ~80% reduction in sound outside of the room. even more in the upper/lower apartments. He's played all night and the neighbors upper and lower haven't complained. I doubt you're up for that kind of investment of money and time, but that's one way of doing it. Probably not a good idea if you don't want to spend too much money or if you don't plan on staying in your apartment very long.
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Quote Originally Posted by Johnny Two Tone View Post

"...they'll never match the sound of acoustic drums." You silly guys. Ten years from now you won't even realize that what you're listening to is entirely programmed.
I think the sound is there and has been for a long time. What I do think is that home recording guys now all seem to turn out incredible, like, virtuoso level drum parts with incredible accuracy and frankly I find it boring. I'd rather play an acoustic kit with worse sound but a performance that's true to me and my own abilities, which is a personal aesthetic choice. A bit of imperfection, an overly ringy snare, a room that doesn't sound great, it's fun making these things work and add emotion to your music.

Of course that's just pie in the sky thinking in this case. I'd definitely get a riser to isolate an electric kit with mesh pads from the floor, and use quality samples via midi. That's good advice from you guys! icon_lol.giflove.gif
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Quote Originally Posted by Mogwix View Post
Not really. They're absorbent panels. Killing the room reflection can help reduce the overall volume and therefore the amount of noise that escapes, but the reduction is maybe 5 or 10%.

My friend is a drummer and lives on the second floor of his building. I built him a floating jam room:

- floating floor, 1" foam insulation and MLV layer covered with 3/4" plywood.
- walls and ceiling are 2x4" studs 24" on center with roxul safe'n'sound insulation, 3/4" drywall on each side.
- all seams have acoustic caulking, then are mudded over and painted
- interior dimension ended up being 9' wide by 12' long and 7' high. was basically a spare bedroom
- I hung a solid core door with weatherstrips so the room is air tight when the door is closed
- the top 4' of the walls is covered with 1" roxul comfortboard and covered in fabric
- laminate flooring (with comfy foam underlayer), some dark red paint and track lighting... looks nice.

all in all it was about $1500, a few days and a few cases of beer. the result is ~80% reduction in sound outside of the room. even more in the upper/lower apartments. He's played all night and the neighbors upper and lower haven't complained. I doubt you're up for that kind of investment of money and time, but that's one way of doing it. Probably not a good idea if you don't want to spend too much money or if you don't plan on staying in your apartment very long.
The landlord will love that...
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Quote Originally Posted by GREC

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The landlord will love that...

 

it was actually the landlord's idea. buddy has been there for about 10 years. I definitely wouldn't do something like that in an apartment without working something out with the landlord.
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