As you can see I have layed down 1/4" thick cork, which I got at Home Depot, on the entire table to deaden some of the sound.

From the above images you can see that I have changed my track from Lionel O-27 to Atlas O gauge. The Atlas track is much more realistic looking but a lot hard to work with. The Atlas track does not conduct electricity as well as the Lionel track does. The trade offs we do for a more realistic look. I have also used Woodland Scenics 24' Track-Bed, which comes in Rolls from your local train store, for the roadbed. I have started pouring the gravel between the tracks, also to add realism to my layout. You need to be careful working around the track because anything you happen to drip on it could disrupt the Digitial signal, if your using with the TMCC or DCS system. The gravel will need to be glued down to make sure it does not get on the tracks or into your engines, this also helps keep any dust down. I lightly sanded the area of the track I dip plaster, glue, etc.. on and created my own cleaning car (below) to run to clear up any residue left behind. I got the directions for creating the cleaning car from an article in Classic Toy Train magazine.