Adventures in office soundproofing
April 24, 2022 8:48 PM Subscribe
Recently, I moved from an office with thick old walls and heavy doors to an office that is flimsier and more prone to spreading sound. I'd like to listen to music without annoying people. But I'm finding that music carries a good distance down the hallway, even though the speaker is pointed away from the door.
Any tips or tricks to keep sound confined without having the volume so low it's inaudible?
The way my desk is set up, the door is a few feet away at about 10 o'clock, and I face my monitor at about 2 o'clock. There is a big window on the wall opposite the door, behind me. I can close my door if needed, but I'd like my reports and colleagues to feel free to stop by whenever they like. I could move my monitor if it made a difference. My office is at the end of a long hall. The hall ends on the left and there is a row of offices to the right.
The way my desk is set up, the door is a few feet away at about 10 o'clock, and I face my monitor at about 2 o'clock. There is a big window on the wall opposite the door, behind me. I can close my door if needed, but I'd like my reports and colleagues to feel free to stop by whenever they like. I could move my monitor if it made a difference. My office is at the end of a long hall. The hall ends on the left and there is a row of offices to the right.
I worked in an office set up like this. Either close the door or put on headphones. You can put a sign on your door welcoming people to open the door and stop by. Or wear open ear headphones so you can hear when someone addresses you; your co-workers will thank you. The only time to play the speaker with the door open is when no one else is working.
posted by a humble nudibranch at 11:13 PM on April 24, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by a humble nudibranch at 11:13 PM on April 24, 2022 [1 favorite]
More specifically... bone conduction headphones.
posted by stormyteal at 1:39 AM on April 25, 2022
posted by stormyteal at 1:39 AM on April 25, 2022
To the angst of apartment and office dwellers everywhere there isn't really a way to accomplish this beyond headphones.
posted by oceano at 1:48 AM on April 25, 2022 [3 favorites]
posted by oceano at 1:48 AM on April 25, 2022 [3 favorites]
Yup - headphones is the only way to nor be annoying to someone, somewhere, possibly not even close by, with a distant sound they can't quite pin down.
To expand on stormyteal's answer, bone conduction headphones let you hear the music without cutting off your connection to the outside world the way other headphones do, so you'll still be able to hear if an interesting chat breaks out among your colleagues in the corridor outside, or if one of your reports knocks on your door quietly.
posted by penguin pie at 2:32 AM on April 25, 2022 [4 favorites]
To expand on stormyteal's answer, bone conduction headphones let you hear the music without cutting off your connection to the outside world the way other headphones do, so you'll still be able to hear if an interesting chat breaks out among your colleagues in the corridor outside, or if one of your reports knocks on your door quietly.
posted by penguin pie at 2:32 AM on April 25, 2022 [4 favorites]
Soundproofing is not possible without construction. More specifically, building a floating room within a room. (Lots of people think that the sound treatment they see is "soundproofing," but it's only about changing the way the sound bounces around a room, not keeping it from going outside.)
Since I'm guessing this isn't likely to happen in your office, yeah, headphones.
posted by nosila at 7:15 AM on April 25, 2022 [2 favorites]
Since I'm guessing this isn't likely to happen in your office, yeah, headphones.
posted by nosila at 7:15 AM on April 25, 2022 [2 favorites]
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by lulu68 at 10:16 PM on April 24, 2022 [29 favorites]