Soundproofing Question

You have to forgive us old farts for our unsolicited relationship advice. We may have too much experience. :)

I have given girlfriends earplugs in the past. For me some things are non-negotiable. I am not NOT
playing to appease anyone. Maybe that is why I am always "single."

That said, I wonder if where you play is directly on the wall that separates the bedroom from the
living room. Maybe you could rearrange some furniture and make sure where she sits is not
against that wall, and where you play is on the exterior wall of the apartment and not the interior
wall that is between the living room and bedroom where you play.

They also make Blackout curtains that you could hang in the hallway, too. They won't do much, but
even just trying to do something may make her feel like you are trying, and sometimes that is all that
matters to show you really do care.

Good luck. :)
 
Think about what she is hearing, reflections of your guitar strings bouncing off of walls, floor, ceiling! That said, the surfaces that are reflecting your guitars sounds need to be absorbent of said sounds to minimize her disturbance and allow you to continue with your desire to play at such times!! There are many ways this could be accomplished, and here are a few suggestions.

1. Take up quilting! Then let your girlfriend know that you would like to hang your creations in the hallway and in the room where you practice!! She then loves your metro-sexual tendencies and you are able to practice after she retires for slumber because those lovely quilts you have made are absorbing the sounds of your killer guitar playing!!!
2. As mentioned above, find a way to hang blankets (the heavier/thicker the better) on stands. It is understandable that you may not be able to properly hang stuff on walls, so in addition to the idea above regarding photography stands, you can also build what you need, to your own custom shape using PVC and it too can be broken down and stored as necessary (glue only joints that must be glued or drill hole through connection areas with pipes all connected and put a bolt through that hole with a wing nut on the other side)!! I would recommend a 3 sided cubicle like construction and when you are inside of it playing, face the center wall of that 3 sided structure.
3. Practice lighter material in the after hours. This could include scales, fingerpicking, work on techniques that are not as loud, etc.
4. Send me all of your guitars and equipment and I will play them for you!

I do not buy into the "find a new girlfriend" option over something like this, but if you are a "My way or the highway" kind of guy, then that would certainly be the right choice (and you would not be here asking for reasonable solutions)! Best of luck, I hope you can find a comfortable balance with your lady friend!!
 
Moondog Wily said:
I do not buy into the "find a new girlfriend" option over something like this, but if you are a "My way or the highway" kind of guy, then that would certainly be the right choice (and you would not be here asking for reasonable solutions)! Best of luck, I hope you can find a comfortable balance with your lady friend!!
Click to expand...

Just to waste some more time here on "relationships," ;) let me suggest as others have that it is not about "My way or the
highway." Not even close. It is about truly loving and accepting someone for who you knew they were going into a
relationship. I have never asked anyone to give up something they love for my sake. Why? Because that sounds (and feels)
like the opposite of love and respect.

Like others here, I am also old enough to see how scenarios like this often play out, and while it may not be a "red flag," it also
could very well be a "red flag." There's only one person in this thread who will ever find the answer to that question out, and it
ain't you or me. :)
 
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Can you possibly put a door in? Also, aside from a fan which was suggested, if you have a smart speaker, you can usually ask it to "play the sound of ___ " (rain, river, wind, etc.) which provides some level of masking.

Another idea: practice guitar when you can, then get a keyboard with quiet action and practice that when she's sleeping. The cross-instrument musical experience will only benefit your guitar playing, and you get a new toy!
 
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la szum said:
Just to waste some more time in useless arguments, ;) let me suggest as others have that it is not about "My way or the
highway." Not even close. It is about truly loving and accepting someone for who you knew they were going into a
relationship. I have never asked anyone to give up something they love for my sake. Why? Because that sounds (and feels)
like the opposite of love and respect.

Like others here, I am also old enough to see how scenarios like this often play out, and while it may not be a "red flag," it also
could very well be a "red flag." There's only one person in this thread who will ever find the answer to that question out, and it
ain't you or me. :)
Click to expand...
Yeah, could be red flag, maybe not, I totally agree. I was not suggesting that "My way or the highway" was the only scenario, just using that to note that if he were that type of person, he would not be here asking! As for unconditional love, I am happy for those who have found it!! I do not however believe that unconditional love is the basis of the majority of relationships!!! Every relationship in your world (the keyboard you are typing on, the screen you are looking at, the chair you are sitting in, your car, your house, your partner) ALL come down to how much do you want to give, how much do you want to take and are you comfortable with the current give/take balance. If you are not comfortable, you try to change that balance which may include completely severing your relationship with that object/individual. We all want unconditional love, and although I try to give just that to all in my world, I know of zero relationships that I have ever had with anything or anyone (other than some pets) where that was 100% true (although I believe some have tried) ;~))
 
la szum said:
You have to forgive us old farts for our unsolicited relationship advice. We may have too much experience. :)

I have given girlfriends earplugs in the past. For me some things are non-negotiable. I am not NOT
playing to appease anyone. Maybe that is why I am always "single."

That said, I wonder if where you play is directly on the wall that separates the bedroom from the
living room. Maybe you could rearrange some furniture and make sure where she sits is not
against that wall, and where you play is on the exterior wall of the apartment and not the interior
wall that is between the living room and bedroom where you play.

They also make Blackout curtains that you could hang in the hallway, too. They won't do much, but
even just trying to do something may make her feel like you are trying, and sometimes that is all that
matters to show you really do care.

Good luck. :)
Click to expand...
The living room and bedroom is separated by approximately 20-30 ft of hallway (estimate!)
 
Admin M@ said:
Can you possibly put a door in? Also, aside from a fan which was suggested, if you have a smart speaker, you can usually ask it to "play the sound of ___ " (rain, river, wind, etc.) which provides some level of masking.

Another idea: practice guitar when you can, then get a keyboard with quiet action and practice that when she's sleeping. The cross-instrument musical experience will only benefit your guitar playing, and you get a new toy!
Click to expand...
cant put a door in unfortunately. But a keyboard aint a bad idea! or just use the time to practice theory or something else musical related other than my picking lol
 
Moondog Wily said:
Think about what she is hearing, reflections of your guitar strings bouncing off of walls, floor, ceiling! That said, the surfaces that are reflecting your guitars sounds need to be absorbent of said sounds to minimize her disturbance and allow you to continue with your desire to play at such times!! There are many ways this could be accomplished, and here are a few suggestions.

1. Take up quilting! Then let your girlfriend know that you would like to hang your creations in the hallway and in the room where you practice!! She then loves your metro-sexual tendencies and you are able to practice after she retires for slumber because those lovely quilts you have made are absorbing the sounds of your killer guitar playing!!!
2. As mentioned above, find a way to hang blankets (the heavier/thicker the better) on stands. It is understandable that you may not be able to properly hang stuff on walls, so in addition to the idea above regarding photography stands, you can also build what you need, to your own custom shape using PVC and it too can be broken down and stored as necessary (glue only joints that must be glued or drill hole through connection areas with pipes all connected and put a bolt through that hole with a wing nut on the other side)!! I would recommend a 3 sided cubicle like construction and when you are inside of it playing, face the center wall of that 3 sided structure.
3. Practice lighter material in the after hours. This could include scales, fingerpicking, work on techniques that are not as loud, etc.
4. Send me all of your guitars and equipment and I will play them for you!

I do not buy into the "find a new girlfriend" option over something like this, but if you are a "My way or the highway" kind of guy, then that would certainly be the right choice (and you would not be here asking for reasonable solutions)! Best of luck, I hope you can find a comfortable balance with your lady friend!!
Click to expand...
" I would recommend a 3 sided cubicle like construction and when you are inside of it playing, face the center wall of that 3 sided structure."

It's funny you mention this because that's similar to how i have it setup. My desk (and thus my guitar) face the wall; so I face the wall when I play. The entrance to the living room (where there is no door and just a walk-in) is about 10 ft away.
 
Moondog Wily said:
Yeah, could be red flag, maybe not, I totally agree. I was not suggesting that "My way or the highway" was the only scenario, just using that to note that if he were that type of person, he would not be here asking! As for unconditional love, I am happy for those who have found it!! I do not however believe that unconditional love is the basis of the majority of relationships!!! Every relationship in your world (the keyboard you are typing on, the screen you are looking at, the chair you are sitting in, your car, your house, your partner) ALL come down to how much do you want to give, how much do you want to take and are you comfortable with the current give/take balance. If you are not comfortable, you try to change that balance which may include completely severing your relationship with that object/individual. We all want unconditional love, and although I try to give just that to all in my world, I know of zero relationships that I have ever had with anything or anyone (other than some pets) where that was 100% true (although I believe some have tried) ;~))
Click to expand...


 
Since I’m an old guy and not exactly sure what it is we rule, I’ll offer my advice. She’s a girlfriend and you didn’t mention kids. That means it’s easy and cheap to switch it up. Later on when you’re 10-20 or more years into a marriage, switching models will be costly. I can understand being annoyed by unplugged electric playing for hours on end. You should be able to fix that using one of the suggested methods. You have to make sure to love her up and give her attention otherwise she might resent your playing. But…..if she doesn’t get and support why you play, then yes that’s a red flag.
 
Jipps0525 said:
" I would recommend a 3 sided cubicle like construction and when you are inside of it playing, face the center wall of that 3 sided structure."

It's funny you mention this because that's similar to how i have it setup. My desk (and thus my guitar) face the wall; so I face the wall when I play. The entrance to the living room (where there is no door and just a walk-in) is about 10 ft away.
Click to expand...
And do you have any sound deadening on the wall you are playing towards? If not, install!! Even just 4x4 or 6x6 foot space of 2" thick foam panels should nicely absorb the reflection from that wall you are bouncing off (I am assuming that wall is not acoustically treated)!!! I must agree though with the assessment above, as we get more details about distance, air conditioner, etc. , that it seems very odd that someones sleep could be disturbed by an headphone only electric guitar all things considered!!!!! Of course, there is always the Princess and the pea!!!!!! Best of luck on a peaceful resolution!!!!!!!
 
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