I keep wondering and asking the forum experts if there is an effective way to reduce the volume of an upright piano without using the practice pedal (sordina).
I don't have issues with neighbors because I live in a detached house, but sometimes I would like not to torture my family or those nearby with the monotony of exercises.
I would exclude the practice pedal; in fact, I would be tempted to eliminate it entirely from the upright, as Paolo Ferrarelli suggests.
Are solutions available such as, for example, soundproofing blankets that are easy to put on and take off, or something similar?
I would say no. You can isolate the study room a bit by soundproofing the door and the internal communicating wall, but one must consider, as technical physics argues, that only lead succeeds in isolating acoustic waves.
Behind my upright piano there are 4 recesses and I put 4 cushions, then I moved the
hammer rail closer by adjusting it with the screw underneath and the volume dropped quite a bit.
However, I also have a digital piano that I need to use for studying with headphones even at 3 in the morning.
Thanks for the advice. However, I would rule out interventions on the mechanics. I am looking for something that allows me to reduce the volume temporarily, without a mute, and can be easily removed. The four cushions are a good idea, but perhaps also a duvet or some sound-absorbing material,
There is great confusion between soundproofing and sound absorption.
The former acoustically isolates one environment from another, and this goal can be achieved (with many limitations) by spending a lot because soundproofing requires dense and heavy materials; despite this, it is practically impossible to achieve complete isolation inside a building because much of the vibration is transmitted structurally. However, one can still achieve a good soundproofing coefficient that will certainly prevent disturbing the neighbors too much, but as I was saying, at the cost of an arm and a leg. Depending on the square footage of the room to be soundproofed, it doesn't take much to exceed 10,000 euros for the intervention.
The latter absorbs sound to limit reflections within the same room. Naturally, some vibrations are also attenuated, so the materials used in sound absorption also provide some kind of soundproofing (very little). I have seen people wallpaper a room with sound-absorbing panels, convinced they won't disturb the neighbors. Money spent uselessly because, besides having practically isolated nothing, they completely ruined the acoustics of the environment, obtaining a sound that is too dry, losing practically all the piano's highs.
The best inexpensive solution to not disturb the neighbors is to buy a good digital piano to which you can connect with headphones during nighttime hours and enjoy the music. Today's digital pianos are not like those from many years ago. They have good mechanisms that even simulate the behavior of the acoustic piano's escapement lever.
...The best solution to not disturb the neighbors and is inexpensive is to buy a good digital piano to which you can connect with headphones during the night hours and be able to enjoy the music. Today's digital pianos are not like those from many years ago. They have good mechanics that even simulate the behavior of the escapement lever of an acoustic piano.
In my experience, however, playing on a digital during the night hours, you might not disturb the neighbors, but you might disturb family members. It's strange to believe, but the noise of the keys (or perhaps the hammers, since my digital should be a hybrid - Kawai CA 97) can be clearly heard from one floor to another in a country house.
And indeed, after a certain hour, I no longer play. Also because the creaking of the bench at night is also amplified?
It's a rather old discussion, but I want to give my contribution anyway, perhaps for future readers.
From my experience, it works excellently only if the piano is placed against a wall; you can try this. Build yourself a sound-absorbing panel (I used rock wool) covered in non-woven fabric to place between the soundboard and the wall itself. I found an enormous benefit! While it's true that you will never achieve complete acoustic isolation, you will "reduce" the volume significantly.
In the end, these matters are never "black" or "white"; to put it bluntly, if on a scale from 0 to 100 you "annoy" your neighbors/family at an 80, this way you can easily drop to 40-50.
