Server Room Soundproofing: Top Tips, Techniques, and Products to Explore

Since the rise of the internet and its integration in all facets of business and modern life, the need for servers has skyrocketed exponentially. Servers may seem esoterically complex to the layman, but they essentially do what their names suggest: serve data. When you send an email, for example, your personal computer sends data “to the internet”, aka a data center of servers, which then serves it to the computer of your recipient. Keeping it even more simple, just think of servers as giant computers, and we all know computers working hard tend to be noisy. Now imagine hundreds of thousands of them side-by-side in racks in a warehouse!

To that end, I have helped many clients over the years during the intense growth of server farms and data centers to figure out the best way to soundproof server rooms. I’ve been personally astonished at how many have reached out in the last year alone, thanks to the introduction of AI. The largest tech companies in the world are spending tens of billions of dollars to create even more data centers to power what they see as the very near future where AI is integrated in all systems. More AI means more servers which means more IT personnel to handle what will likely become our most critical jobs, and they want/need to be able to perform at their best surrounded by so much whirring equipment.

In this article, I will detail my go-to methods for soundproofing server rooms and how integrating soundproofing during build-out is a useful idea for data center developers.

A Quick Soundproofing 101

Our lingo in acoustics can sometimes be confusing, and we routinely send-out this write-up for customers to easily understand the difference between soundproofing and sound control. When it comes to servers, we are just looking at soundproofing, which is best understood by its synonym: sound blocking.

Soundproofing is a method of blocking sound from transmitting from one room to another. For this topic, let’s think about IT office space that sits adjacent to a server room in a data center. IT personnel would rather not have to listen to the hum and whirr of huge server racks while at their desks, so what we’re looking to do is stop the sound from entering the office space from the server room. By utilizing specific soundproofing materials on or within walls, ceilings, floors, and even windows and doors, we are able to effectively create a sonic shield that stops or significantly reduces the sounds coming from the server room to create a tranquil workplace.

The Best Way to Soundproof Server Rooms

The most effective method for soundproofing server rooms is not to soundproof server rooms, but the rooms in which you want the server noise blocked. A head scratcher – let me explain!

Server rooms, especially now, tend to be big. The ones in data centers are hardly rooms at all but rather significant portions of giant, tall-ceilinged warehouse-type structures. If our goal is to soundproof the small fraction of the data center that comprises the office space, we do not need to soundproof the server room. We need to soundproof the office spaces.

This is an important concept to understand about soundproofing. No matter which side of the wall you apply soundproofing techniques, sound will be blocked from either direction. Meaning that if we only soundproof the office space, it will have the same effect for those within as if we only soundproofed the server room. Put another way, we don’t need to sonically encase a giant server room to protect some small rooms in the corner of the building. This would be a significant waste of resources. Instead, all we need to do to block sounds entering the office space is to soundproof the office space.

Now that we have the room that we need soundproofed identified, let’s explore how we soundproof the components of that room.

Walls

Our main concern when it comes to soundproofing is addressing walls. Typically, walls within data centers and most offices are constructed of either metal or wood studs with drywall covering. This provides some level of sound blocking, but not nearly enough to stop the hum and vibration of large server racks penetrating.

To beef up these walls, I suggest using the combination of AudioSeal^® Mass Loaded Vinyl (MLV) Soundproofing Barrier, Green Glue Noiseproofing Compound, and Resilient Sound Isolation Clip (RSIC-1). The MLV barrier provides material heft to block sound while the Green Glue creates an acoustic seal. Interestingly, the addition of an air gap helps tremendously in reducing sound transmission, which is why installing walls with resilient sound isolation clips allows for the walls to be decoupled, meaning the creation of a small air gap.

Since this method involves taking down existing drywall, its best down during a data center build out, but can certainly be achieved through renovation depending on how bad the noise pollution is.

Economical/Non-Renovation Options

If renovating walls isn’t feasible, there are still great options to achieve soundproofing on existing walls. AlphaSorb^® Barrier Acoustic Panels are my go-to choice here, as they can be simply adhered to walls to provide significant sound blocking. It’s important to understand though they need to completely cover the wall in order to provide significant benefit.

Alternatively, and depending on the size of the server room, acoustic blankets can be employed as another effective sound blocking protocol. I recommend these often to clients in industrial settings to block noisy equipment, and they would be a great option for small server rooms to hang on the walls adjacent to office space.

Ceilings

When we analyze ceilings, typically we are either dealing with the same general assembly as walls described above or drop ceilings. Concrete ceilings provide excellent soundproofing, but aren’t common in data centers. If the ceilings are drywall with plywood fastened to joists, the same combo described above can be employed. Again, this would be best done at initial construction, otherwise renovation would need to take place.

If the ceiling is a drop ceiling, then you’re in great shape with an easy sound blocking addition. Employing  PrivacyShield^® Ceiling Tile Barrier and PrivacyShield^® Light Hood provide a powerful sound blocking solution with minimal installation effort. Since the sounds of servers are typically going to impact walls most and ceilings less, this arrangement will certainly take care of any noise that leaks over the wall.

Doors and Windows

We can’t forget about doors and windows because sound is sneaky and a lot of it can get through even the smallest holes, like the seals around doors and windows and the glass itself. Likely there won’t be any windows between office space and server rooms, but if there are, it’s an easy fix to add a PrivacyShield^® Window Seal Kit.

When it comes to doors, you are either dealing with “thin” doors that have no solid core, or solid core doors. The former are cheaper and often employed for that reason, but have limited soundproofing ability. To know what to do, it’s important to analyze how much sound is penetrating. If it’s a lot, then replacing the door with a solid core wood or steel door. Our PrivacyShield^® Soundproof Door and Overly Quick Ship Metal Acoustical Door are two great options to achieve excellent soundproofing.

If the door doesn’t have a ton of noise leaking in, then I suggest applying a PrivacyShield^® Soundproofing Door Seal Kit on the existing door to patch any sonic holes.

Floors

The least likely avenue for server sounds to penetrate is the floor. Data centers are typically warehouse-type structures that are essentially large boxes on a foundation of concrete. That concrete is a great soundproofing barrier, so it is unlikely that the noise from adjacent server rooms will penetrate through the floor and come up on the other side.

That sad, vibrational noise can pass through concrete, and depending on how much equipment is in the data center, could have an impact on the flooring. My suggestion is to apply Iso-Step^® Soundproofing Underlayment between the subfloor and the flooring to provide a severe sound blocking barrier that will help with any loose vibrations as well as protect from impact energy in the room itself. While not as important as the above, it certainly creates a more peaceful environment when you add underlayment.

Work with Acoustical Solutions to Soundproof Server Room Sounds from Office Areas

It is no longer theoretical; AI is here and the greatest tech companies and their leadership are spending unfathomable amounts of dollars to build out the necessary data centers that will power it. They will become the brains behind an AI ecosystem that will become the backbone of our entire society and its systems, and the IT personnel who run and maintain them will thus become our most important workforce. We want the best for them to succeed, which means an optimal workplace environment free of the noise of hundreds of thousands of powerful servers.

If you’re working to help build out these data centers and/or already own some looking to create ideal acoustics for your personnel, reach out to me today and we’ll find the best solution for your unique builds.