Building an isolation for the KD-9 BASS TRIGGER

[Oridoron7]

Hello good people..

My Name is Ori, and I'm from Israel, and I'm having 11-kv Roland Kit.

I live in a building in the basement floor. There are 4 apartments in the basement, and every 2 apartments has a share wall - and here comes the problem.

I have a serious issue with the noise of the Basedrum trigger - KD-9 (http://www.roland.com/products/en/KD-9/I've built the known "Tennis Balls Platform". It helped with most of the vibrations, but not all. I've set 4 sacks of sand under the platform's 4 corners. I added 2 carpets under and on top of everything). I also been in his apartment, and heard how it sounds- it doesn't has the sound of a hammer knocking through the walls. it's the same sound that I hear in my apartment, only with less volume.

I was thinking about creating an Isolation device, that will wrap the KD-9, and will reduce some noise of this trigger making (maybe even prevent *CROSSING FINGERS*).
As DIY people, what do you thing about this idea, practical? Do you have any suggestions of the matters to use for isolation? Mineral wool Maybe?
I believe it should be in a shape of a tunnel with high side wall, in order to wrap most of the trigger, but not prevent from the beater's head to hit it.
What do you think?

Thanks
Ori

[perceval]

You can try to build some kind of isolation wall around your kick pad, or whole kit, but it will be a lot more expensive and bulkier than buying the Krigg, kick drum trigger.

It's cheap enough, and it will transform your kick into the quietest part of your drum kit.

Check it out.
And then, you will be able to play at 2am!

http://triggera.com/kick-pedal-trigger

And one vdrums thread talking about it:

http://www.vdrums.com/forum/forum/general/products/63947-triggera-krigg-beaterless-bass-trigger

[barryabko]

If you want to suppress the acoustic noise from the KD-9 you will need to build a shroud around it which will have acoustically absorbent material on the interior. The shroud will need to cover the front, top and go as far back towards you as practical. Fiberglass insulation (covered) or dense foam would work on the inside and 3/4" mdf or high grade plywood could be used for the exterior.

[Oridoron7]

To Perceval - Thanks for the suggestion (first time seeing this product), But I would like to keep trying having the beater before I give up..

Barryabko - Thanks for the suggestion as well. Is fiberglass Would be the best material for this job? I keep hear people talking about Mineral Wool. I wonder the right matter to pick for such device..

ori

[perceval]

Your call... but nothing will beat the Krigg in noise reduction.

It's funny how we play electronic drum kits, and imagination is our only limit as to what and how to do it... and yet, we are so stuck on "traditions" like an e-kick must have a beater...

Good luck with the baby shrine around the KD9!

[Oridoron7]

Your call... but nothing will beat the Krigg in noise reduction.

It's funny how we play electronic drum kits, and imagination is our only limit as to what and how to do it... and yet, we are so stuck on "traditions" like an e-kick must have a beater...

Good luck with the baby shrine around the KD9!

I bet you right about the noise issue..
BUT HEY, we are here at DIY, so why not give it a try?

So, lets ask again:
Is fiberglass Would be the best material for this device? I keep hear people talking about Mineral Wool. I wonder the right matter to pick for such device...

[perceval]

Rock wool (mineral wool) is usually denser than plain fiberglass wool, that's why it is usually used in bass traps and other wall panelling.
I've built my bass traps with rock wool and it works well enough.

DIY is great about trying things out. I know, I've been there... many times.
But believe me, a Krigg (or a DIY version of it) will be way better than anything you could come up with as a silencer booth around your KD9.

I actually made a DIY version of the Krigg, and in terms of quietness, it is amazing. In terms of speed, it is amazing! (not having a beater really opens up the speed)

I really don't believe a sound dampening booth around your KD9 will be as effective as a Krigg or something similar from DIYing.
But you are welcomed to prove me wrong in building your sound isolating apparatus.

All in the spirit of DIY.

[Oridoron7]

I understand your attidiude, but it is not a question of right or wrong for me. I want to keep the beater for the feeling, cause I play acoustic kit a lot. About the device I want to build, I dont care if it won't mute completely the beater hits, but only not to cross too hard to the wall of my neighbor's apartment, in a matter that keeps him from sleep (the mesh heads and cymbals don't interrupt him for instance).

[barryabko]

I also agree that the Krigg might be a better choice as far as noise control and will certainly take less effort to implement than making a shroud. But if you want to go the DIY route, rock wool is less hazardous to handle and does work quite well. You will need to completely line the interior with several inches of absorptive material so the entire structure will be kind of large and cumbersome. I am the President of Bright Star Audio. We started in 1989 as a manufacturer of exotic, high end loudspeaker systems but through a number of interesting twists of fate we have become a well established manufacturer of vibration control products. In the 1990s, some exotic turntables used noisy air pumps to run frictionless tone arms, platters that ride on a cushion of air or vacuums that hold the records firmly to the platter. I designed a product called the "Padded Cell" into which the pumps were placed. It was very effective to reduce the noise but my favorite part was our motto: "Every audiophile needs a Padded Cell!". :-)

[Oridoron7]

Hello barryabko, and thanks for your help.

I have a few questions about your statements:

A. I saw you mention term like: "Vibration", you do remember I neutralize it with the tennis ball platform, and sacks of sand right? I'm just want to make sure we are talking about isolating sound, not vibrations.
B. When you said: "You will need to completely line the interior with several inches of absorptive material so the entire structure...", by material you mean Rock Wool? if not, what material are suggesting?
C. When I think about the structure of this thing, obviously I'll need something like a shroud as mentioned earlier on this post. Do you think different? What material should I use for that? Should it be elastic (get something from Ikea maybe) or hard as wood?

Thanks for the helping friend
Ori

[barryabko]

Yes, I understand that you are trying to mitigate acoustic sound waves traveling from the KD-9 through the air towards the wall between you and your neighbor. Absorptive material: Rock wool is safe to handle but you will need to compress it to make it more dense. I would guess that it will need to be at least 2"-3" thick (after it is compressed) to be absorptive enough for the task. It will want to decompress so it will probably need a cloth covering held in place at various points. Fiberglas insulation is not as safe to handle (don't breathe it in / wear a mask, it irritates skin and eyes) but it absorbs well and can be cut and fitted to size easily. It will also need to be covered with cloth so the fibers don't escape into the air. Polyester foam can also work well depending on the density. It is easy to shape and glue into place and is safe to handle. It will not need a cloth covering. Combed polyester is a synthetic version of the wool. The cowl/shroud itself should be rigid and relatively thick. MDF or high quality plywood at about 3/4" thick should be good. The thick walls of the cowl/shroud will resist vibrating in sympathy with the acoustic wave coming from the KD-9. If they do vibrate the walls themselves will become sources of sound (like a passive radiator).

[Oridoron7]

Excellent instructions barryabko. I'll work as you say.

One little thing about the plywood walls. If they do vibrate, it means that they are to thick? The main concern by that is the walls won't become a "sound box"?

[barryabko]

The thicker the walls, the less prone they are to vibrate. You are, of course, building a "box" of sorts - the floor will become the fifth wall. The open end is where your foot will go in to reach the kick drum pedal. Any open "box" would constitute a Helmholz Resonator but that shouldn't be a factor since, I assume, you'll be using headphones when practicing.

[barryabko]

One more thing... The bottom of the cowl/shroud should make a good seal where it contacts the floor. If not, some sound might escape. Some type of compressible foam or Neoprene (or a combination of materials) lining the bottom edge should make a good seal as long as the floor is relatively flat.

[Oridoron7]

Thank you... this all of information I would never come myself in the near future. I hope to get this thing done soon!