[Freq Farm]

I'm seriously thinking about moving my studio to a new bigger building and I think I may have found a decent candidate - great area, great vibe, decent price and character.

It's got 2 floors and about 1800 sqf of space. The plan is to build studio 1 1st then wait 6 mnths - 1 year while we get studio 1 finished and fully booked before moving onto the other studios.

I'm planning to do the room to high specification, including hiring a decent designer - so suggestions please, I'm UK based so I would prefer to use someone here, I'm considering Whitemark among others.

I'm struggling with one major issue at the moment and that is the placement of the 1st studio. The ideal situation would be to build studio 1 and the lounge on the 1st floor while using the ground floor for something non-studio related.

The building is old, but there is a decent sized RSJ (I-Beam) and steel columns running the length of the buidling down the middle on the 1st floor. From what I can guess, the RSJ beam is supporting wooden joists that are set into the brickwork, then there is ply on the top and bottom. So i'm pretty sure we'll be fine as far as weight is concerned (I will check with a structural engineer before i go ahead).

At the moment you can really hear when someone is walking on the first floor when you are on the ground floor.

I know the ground floor with it's lovely concrete slab is the best option, but from a business point of view it's not the best solution.

Am I mad for even thinking about putting the studio on the 1st floor?

Is filling the exisiting floor cavity with sand or one of the new products designed for sound-proofing my builders tell me about an option?
If so I plan to float the floor of the studio using methods yet to be determined which would add further deadening...