A Guide to Commercial Soundproofing in New York City

If you live in New York City, you truly understand the meaning of “noisy.” As one of the most densely populated and happening cities in the world, noise is just part of the game. That said, many of New York City’s main attractions, such as its illustrious collection of fine dining restaurants and towering high rise offices housing the world’s greatest corporations, the ability to block sound is crucial to business.

Fine dining, in particular, requires more than just amazing food, but an amazing experience, which always involves premium sound control. It’s not overtly obvious, but controlling sound in a fine dining experience is as important as the food itself! If you are eating the best dinner of your life, what if you couldn’t hear your friends talking at your own table because there was so much noise, whether other guests, neighbors, or the streets outside? The distraction and your annoyance could even alter your perception of the taste of the food!

I recently worked with an event space in NYC that lives in a building that has a wildly popular and renowned restaurant next door. The walls between the event space and restaurant were not soundproofed, and many of the events hosted there have loud music and the sounds of an excited, happy crowd. Although they weren’t meaning to be an annoyance, and because the events, especially in this exciting space, aren’t exactly quiet affairs, the sound was coming through the walls and interfering with the ambiance of the restaurant. The owners asked the building management what could be done about it, and I helped them come up with a plan to use soundproofing materials along the wall to keep these two business neighbors from negatively impacting one another. Even in an old building, and with NYC’s notorious building codes, I was able to provide a unique and straightforward solution that provided major relief.

Soundproofing doesn’t have to be complicated! Even if you can’t alter the building itself, there are numerous solutions to achieve soundproofing and dramatically enhance your business in NYC.

That’s why I created this helpful guide for everything you need to know about commercial soundproofing in NYC, including product recommendations, installation tips, and more! Let’s dive in.

To walk you through commercial soundproofing in NYC, I decided it would be best to show you how to create the most soundproof space in the worst possible conditions.

Follow my step-by-step guide to soundproofing the noisiest commercial space possible:

The first thing you’ll want to do is soundproof your doors. Most of the sound transmission through doors happens in the gaps around the door’s edges. So, if you’re going to create a soundproof door, you should seal all the air gaps around the perimeter of your doors. The following products are ideal acoustic solutions for the noisiest commercial spaces.

Next, you want to soundproof the walls. In many spaces, outdoor noise pollution isn’t as significant a problem as in NYC, so a few wall panels can work wonders, but if you’re trying to soundproof a noisy commercial space, you’re going to need to do a little more than that. That’s why we recommend floor-to-ceiling acoustic solutions for soundproofing the walls in commercial buildings.

If your space is like most commercial spaces in NYC, you probably have more than one floor, so you should definitely put some time and attention into soundproofing your floors. After all, no one likes hearing all the noise created by their upstairs or downstairs neighbors, which can be the case in a bustling office space.

Finally, you’ll want to focus on soundproofing the ceilings. In many commercial spaces, drop-down ceilings are a significant source of sound transmission. Not only can this affect sound transference within the building, but outdoor sound can bleed through the ceiling, as well. If you’re trying to soundproof a noisy commercial space in NYC, you’ll want to focus some time and attention on the ceilings.

When trying to create a soundproof office or commercial space in NYC, you have to consider every area that contributes to sound transmission. Fortunately, we offer high-quality, affordable products for every aspect of commercial soundproofing.

While there are companies available in NYC that offer soundproofing solutions, none of them will have the state-of-the-art technology created by Acoustical Solutions. Our products can be installed by anyone with some development experience, including your local contractor.

Contact us today to learn how Acoustical Solutions can transform your commercial space into a quiet, peaceful, and productive environment!