neighbors installed sound-blocking insulation - does it really work?

"Honestly, I'm skeptical...seems like a lotta trouble."

I get the skepticism, but honestly, it can make a pretty noticeable difference. Helped my brother install some of that sound-blocking insulation last summer in his townhouse - he was fed up with traffic noise and neighbors' late-night TV. It wasn't exactly cheap or super easy to put in, but afterward, the improvement was clear. Didn't completely silence everything (nothing really does), but it muffled the annoying stuff enough that he sleeps way better now.

If you're hesitant about tearing into walls, you might wanna try simpler fixes first - heavy curtains or acoustic panels can help too. But if noise is seriously bugging you and you're already planning some remodeling anyway, I'd say it's worth considering.

I was skeptical too at first, but after going through a similar renovation recently, I can confirm it does help quite a bit. We didn't go all-out with the insulation, just focused on the shared wall with our neighbors and a couple of exterior walls facing the street. It wasn't exactly fun - dust everywhere, unexpected issues popping up - but the difference afterward was noticeable enough to justify the hassle.

One thing I'd suggest is checking out some videos or guides online first to get a realistic idea of what's involved. It helped me feel more prepared and less overwhelmed once we actually started tearing things apart. Also, have you thought about whether your noise issues are mostly airborne (voices, TV) or impact-related (footsteps, doors slamming)? Knowing that can help narrow down the best solutions for your situation.

Interesting perspective, and glad it worked out for you. I'm wondering though, was insulation alone enough to tackle impact noises like footsteps or doors slamming? In my experience, insulation usually does great with airborne sounds - voices, TV - but for impact noise, you'd typically need something more targeted, like resilient channels or acoustic mats. Curious if you noticed any improvement there, or if you had to address that separately...

Yeah, insulation alone isn't exactly magic for footsteps or slamming doors. Learned that the hard way renovating a duplex...thought I was clever stuffing walls with fancy soundproof insulation, but nope - still heard every stomp upstairs like a herd of elephants. Ended up adding resilient channels and acoustic mats under flooring, and THAT finally did the trick. Insulation's great for muffling voices or TVs, but impact noise? Whole different ballgame.