The All Purpose Advice Thread - Part 2

I didn't want to clog the Pi2AES thread, so I'm posting this here. I'm running a Mercury Streamer V1 with Volumio and have figured out how to do most of what I want. I have also installed a WD Blue SN570 NVMe SSD drive that I want to use to transfer all my hard drive music to.

When I have my hard drive connected by usb, I can access it from my PC by mapping the network drive and opening the usb folder. I get three folders (Internal Storage, nas, usb), but nothing that indicates I can access the NVMe drive. Can someone help me on how I can find and transfer stuff to my NVMe drive?

 

You may need the latest version. See this thread:

https://community.volumio.com/t/pcie-nvme-compatibility/65722

 

Do you mean the latest version of Volumio or Raspberry Pi? Sorry, I am not very familiar with this stuff.

 

I actually solved my problem. I partitioned my NVMe drive to NTFS (other formats probably work, this is most convenient for me on PC), then named the drive "issd". Boom!, recognized on Volumio without having to do any Linux terminal stuff. Can also add files to drive through the network with my PC.

 

Hi all - My wife and I recently bought a new house, and with it comes the joy of figuring out how to make two-channel listening work harmoniously again! Thanks preemptively to anyone who drops an answer to my questions, and sorry if I end up back and the watering trough with more questions as I go!

I've got three questions today, listed in roughly order of priority:

1) Has anyone mounted a pet door in an interior door, so your pets and come and go while they listen, without bothering others? I hate having to keep my door closed and my dogs not being able to visit - or if I let them in, they feel locked in - so I'd like to figure out a solution. I'm thinking doors designed for exterior use have a higher chance of not letting sounds pass, but, it also feels like cutting a hole in a door is a sure-fire way to undo any other kinds of soundproofing measures. Otherwise, maybe some kind of motion sensor just outside the door, so I know when they're there and can just let them in (they'll camp outside the door sometimes)? That just feels like the kind of temporary solution that works, and becomes permanent.

2) I'm looking for a pair of the most comfortable headphones ever for my wife. The key thing is that most headphones she's tried end up making her ears hurt, so, big over-ear phones with big/deep pads are ideal (but also - she complained that my LCD-2 headphones are "too big" so...¯\_(ツ)_/¯. Low clamping force is also ideal

After that - wireless is more ideal that wired, but not a deal breaker. And not sure if closed-back or open-back will be better, so all options there are on the table. Sound quality is not a high priority.

3) Any other suggestions on how to reduce the transmission of sound from inside a listening room to the rest of the house is appreciated! Currently, it seems that sound is going through the doors more than the walls, so, looking at things like automatic door sweeps (the floor is hardwood, so hopefully they'll make a seal), weather sealing the edges, swapping hollow core doors for solid core, adding white strategic white noise machines, etc. I'm not too concerned about avoiding vibrations through the floor at this time, but plan to add some isolation feet to speakers in the near-ish future anyway. I'd appreciated hearing anything that's worked for y'all, and anything that hasn't to avoid!

 

HD800’s are super comfortable for clamp force and stock pad comfort, but aren’t much help in the “too big” department. Also could be too loosey goosey on a small head, depending. Obviously all the usual HD800 issues too, re: harder to drive, sonic preferences, etc.

 

Sounds like an excuse to buy and try an HD800, thanks for the recommendation!

 

1) Yes a solid/insulated door will block more noise, but also yes a hole in the door is going to undo most of that. If they are small dogs, some kind of insulated/lined tunnel through the wall that also takes a 90° turn at both ends so there's no direct path for sound can also work

2) Most of our suggestions are going to be bupkis. Start with big poofy things like a Beyer with upgraded pads.
@Sqveak actually has a DT880 for sale here: link
Comfort is a super subjective thing, so really the best thing to do is buy a few things used, let her try them out for comfort, then if applicable "upgrade" from the family that she likes best (or not if sound quality isn't important). Go closed back if she doesn't want to be bothered by your noise.

3) Are you willing to do more extensive reno work? In order of increasing difficulty....
a) hang up heavy curtains or drapes on the inside
b) add a second layer of drywall
c) tear down the drywall, stuff insulation between the studs, add resilient channel then put up new drywall
d) double staggered stud walls, double insulation with air gap, res channel, mass loaded vinyl sheet, double drywall
Don't even bother with any of the above if you aren't replacing the door. The wall assembly is only as good as the weakest link.

 

Re: headphones for the wife.

Look at wireless over ear models with noise canceling. If she’s into going to the gym maybe some AirPods or the like too. Do not discount convenience and style, what audio nerds will put up with for sound quality isn’t going to fly 99% of the time. An added bonus is you can probably get them at Best Buy or the like and she can try different brands and find one that suits her.

Re: doggy door

You’d think they’d have to be somewhat insulated or sealing since they’re used on exterior doors. If cost isn’t a concern and you’re going to get a solid or insulated door as a replacement anyway, why not use the hollow core one to test the idea out and see what your dogs think? Either way most interior doors don’t seal and aren’t meant to so if noise isolation is a concern you may need to install the new one more like an exterior door.

 

Re: spouse headphones

The Bose wireless headphones are exceptionally comfortable. You can source them from Costco or Amazon and take advantage of their return policy if they don't float the boat.

 

I would definately vote against the hole in the door. Pet doors may even be draught proof, but that says nothing about sound! One could seal a door with a strip of tape!

On the pet issue, I'd suggest a doggy cam!

Don't forget that sound also leaves through windows, and then enters through other windows. Double glazing helps, but heavy celing to floor drapes for windows and door are a must.

Happy living and happy listening in your new home!

 

They make these pet doors with an RF transmitter/receiver so that it is only open when the pet approaches. Maybe one of those could be made sturdy enough to not undo the sound isolation you're also looking for?

Even for people, for the best sound isolation, one is supposed to put in a door then a little corridor then another door as someone mentioned.

Most comfortable ones I have are Sendy Audio. They are also head-turningly great looking.

I have this same problem. Is your room on ground floor, basement, what?

When I had a basement room, 4" of Roxul above the ceiling tiles kept the noise from going upstairs through the floor -- still went through the glass door from the basement.

Redoing the drywall is the most likely way to keep sound from propagating, as mentioned. Look up QuietRock sometime for an idea.

Also, be aware that "sound isolation" and "acoustic treatments" aren't the same thing. They aren't exclusive but they don't cross-pollinate, iykwim.

One more thing - any opening in the walls of the listening room is an avenue for the sound to escape and essentially undo whatever sound isolation steps you've taken. A/C vents, windows, door frames....

 

My wife and I used to rent apartments in our old house. I learned a bunch about sound isolation. A contractor and my research highlighted three main things to consider when soundproofing. Air - seal/complicate/isolate airflow wherever you can - air is the material thought which sound travels. This is sealing doors, closing/complicating vents, adding insulation into walls etc. Mass: the heavier things are, the harder they are to move. This is mass loaded vinyl under flooring, another layer of drywall, etc. Mechanical separation: staggered studs, resilient channel, etc. Solutions like quiet rock contribute to all three as it is thin layers of drywall material laminated together with acoustic "green glue". It is super heavy and the green glue material decouples each layer.

When we did the house with apartments, we used solid core doors between units, heavy weather stripping and door sweepers, sealed switch and plug boxes with the foam used to stop drafts, hung a second layer of drywall and acoustic board on resilient channel on the ceilings of shared boundaries (careful not to short it out with long screws), used acoustic caulking on the edges, and we laminated quietrock to the side walls where they were shared.

Prior to doing this you could hear quite a bit between units - full conversations, tv shows etc. Once we made this change it was 80--90% better. You could hear muffled sounds if they were loud and that was it. We threw a couple of glorious parties and the tenants said they heard very little - we were dancing and going wild and sure we would have to do damage control the next day - nope.

 

What are people using for gaming headsets? I’ve had a Drop PC37X and PC38X and both were pretty shittily made and both have failed in the same way, The PC38X sounded great and the PC37X sounded like shit. Both have one channel that comes in and out and I can fix it by just hitting the headphone. I may open up the PC38X and see if I can just resolder a wire, but I am pretty annoyed at the poor quality.

Is there a gaming headset with mic and headphone that people like? I think the PC38X sounded great, it is just poor quality. I feel like there must be something out there that doesn’t suck.

 

I've been using the Audeze LCD-GX as my office headphone for a while now (plugged into a Schiit Hel). No complaints on my end.

 

Hey y'all, between moving, prepping our old house to rent, and trying to keep up with work (writing this at work now!) - huge thank you to everyone who chimed in with thoughts on my last question - @internethandle, @Armaegis, @haywood, @Pocomo, @Thad E Ginathom, @artur9, @Justin S - lots of great food for thought. Thanks for talking me out of a pet door and into a pet monitor, and will keep folks updated as I work on renovations. First step - heading to the ReStore to see if I can find a used solid core door, then sealing it in. Also, I greatly appreciate the headphone recommendations. I can count on one hand the number of headphones I've tried and nothing I have on hand fits the bill, so these are all great to take back to the wife to start the conversation.

 

How much do you need the mic integrated? I game with my HD800 for max spatial cues, but am not usually mic'd up. On the rare occassion that I do, I have a mic I used to use for video calls that I can use. There are also a number of stick on mics either wired or bluetooth, though I haven't tried any.

 

Yeah I would agree with this, if it's not for a work headset or something where you need the mic integrated into it I've personally had better luck with just having a desk mic. What I ended up doing a year or 2 ago was getting a clamp mount meant for cameras and sticking a desk mic on it and clamping the mic onto one of my monitor arms (rode nt-usb in the picture, not the best but it works)

 

I appreciate any help with this one - where can I buy an unshielded SPDIF coax or BNC cable? Does anyone specifically make these, or do I have to go the DIY route?

Thank you.

 

Any coax connector (both of the ones you mention + tons more) is gonna be paired with coax cable, which is always a bare center wire surrounded by a dielectric sleeve surrounded by a tubular shield. If you buy coax connectors on their own, you can substitute another wire for the outer shield. You'll need to solder this wire to the outer shell of the connector. Both wires need to have their own insulation.