How to Make High Performance Sound Absorption Panels for $5

Discussion in 'Speakers' started by Madaboutaudio, Aug 31, 2016.

  1. Madaboutaudio

    Madaboutaudio Friend

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    Towel better than acoustic foam:
     
  2. danishchelsea

    danishchelsea New

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    Looks cool and cheap to build.. Will try when have time.
     
  3. Armaegis

    Armaegis Friend

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  4. Madaboutaudio

    Madaboutaudio Friend

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    There's also fire hazard concerns with towels.
     
  5. Serious

    Serious Inquisitive Frequency Response Plot

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    I tried that (hanging towels and blankets on the walls) when I had speakers in my room. Works pretty well. Better used in a room where the lower mids and bass are less of a problem (like mine). Hanging thick winter blankets over first reflection point walls really helped in my room.
     
  6. haywood

    haywood Friend

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    I doubt towels would be significantly more combustible than the rest of your room, especially if you got all cotton.

    The insulation idea is cool but very thick, these were much less obtrusive. Maybe you could compress it? It'd be nice to avoid the sewing but $50 buys a lot of thrift store towels.

    I like the minimalist look of the white but terry cloth seems like it'd be tough to keep clean. I guess you could always use a different fabric rather than terry for the front.
     
  7. Madaboutaudio

    Madaboutaudio Friend

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    won't it be better/easier to just curtain up the walls?

    example:

    [​IMG]
     
  8. Armaegis

    Armaegis Friend

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    And you regularly lay out water resistant bedding around the house because... o_O
     
  9. Wfojas

    Wfojas Friend

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  10. Madaboutaudio

    Madaboutaudio Friend

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  11. Rex Aeterna

    Rex Aeterna Friend

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    r30 fiberglass is usually cheaper. more dense and more idea for bass traps due to 9'' thickness. only problem with fiberglass lot people don't like working with or properly cover it. i like fiberglass too since it can compress while remaining same density and is flexible as it's main advantage. i do like rockwool too and have used it as well with great results. just bit harder to work with if dealing with a weird shape room or area since rockwool is stiff and not flexiable. it's also usually twice the price of fiberglass around here which can be an issue at times.
     
  12. Armaegis

    Armaegis Friend

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    I believe rockwool is better per thickness than fiberglass for both heat and acoustics, but I agree that cost and workability are definitely issues. I don't have too much experience working with them, but a buddy of mine who redid my basement I believe used a table saw to cut them (he may have had a special blade for it; I'm not sure)

    >>i like fiberglass too since it can compress while remaining same density

    Um, not really? Compressing something by definition increases its density.
     
  13. Rex Aeterna

    Rex Aeterna Friend

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    yea, i know. but if think bout it the r30 is 9'' thick and has higher r value than the the thickest 4'' thick rockwool which is around 50 something bucks for 12 slabs where a 25ft of r30 fiberglass is like 14 bucks around here. get better deal with the fiberglass and better coeffciency. was just saying. yea, there is a special like saw blade you can buy to cut them perfectly without crumbling cause rockwool can crumble if cut incorrectly and become a mess sometimes.

    bout, compressing fiberglass, i am wrong on my part. found out it decreases r value a bit due to the material of glass fiber between air space of the material. i should remember this myself next time around.
     
  14. Armaegis

    Armaegis Friend

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    But not everyone wants to make 9" thick panels :cool:
     
  15. yotacowboy

    yotacowboy McRibs Kind of Guy

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    Actually, r-value is a measure of thermal conductivity - what most folks concerned with sound absorption focus on is Noise Reduction Coefficient (NRC).

    I've played with various panel materials over the years, from compressed r30 (taking 8.5" nominal and compressing down to 4" thick), rockwool, duct board, and Owens Corning 703 or 705 rigid fiberglass. Best value for the money imho (and, at a .9-ish NRC, probably measures among the best) is OC703. You can get 6 2'x4' 2"-thick panels for $65 here. Most non-Home Depot building supply houses should have either OC703 or Knauf equivalent in stock.

    Either build frames using 1x2 wooden trim stock, or use 3M High Strength 90 spray adhesive to mount the OC703 panels to 2'x4' 1/4" hardboard or pegboard and attach any wall mounting hardware to the back side of the pegboard. Wrap everything in burlap, or go to Ikea and have the wifey pick out her fav fabric. Or leave it bare and wear a respirator when you're listening to tunes.

    Going with 4" thick panels increases the effectiveness.

    There's these, too, for cheap but hard to tell what the actual NRC is. Could work well for small spaces.

    Another thing to keep in mind is that it's easy to over treat a room and a lot of studios are set up "live end - dead end," meaning the front of the studio features acoustic diffusion and absorption for proper decay time, and the back 2/3rds of the studio features full-band absorption. Most speakers are designed to sound good in a room, not an anechoic chamber.
     
  16. Hrodulf

    Hrodulf Prohibited from acting as an MOT until year 2050

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    Remember guys - when talking about panel absorption you need to take into account the wavelengths of frequencies you're looking to absorb. Thicker usually means that they work lower.

    I have access to a 10x20x10m (approx., haven't measured, but it's effin huge) anechoic chamber covered with 1.5m fiberglass spikes and it's anechoic only to around 50Hz.

    [​IMG]
     
    Last edited: Nov 4, 2016
  17. beemerphile

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    never mind. I should read to the end before hitting send.
     
  18. Divad al-Rahsir

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    That OC703 looks exactly like the hullboard that we use at work for thermal and acoustic insulation, but our stuff is faced with fiber-reinforced film and costs a hell of a lot more. Interesting. The boards are relatively stiff and the fiberglass, if pulled, tends to come off in layers, right? Or is it the looser stuff that won't hold its own shape if you hold a board up by one end without the other end supported?

    Anyway, if this is what I think it is and you have any questions about how to work with this shit, I may know a guy. Special tools are not required.

    Yota? Good call on the 3M. That's exactly what the pros use, at least when it's available. (We're not allowed to buy our own tools or materials. They must be provided by our agency. Don't ask.)
     
  19. murphythecat

    murphythecat GRU-powered uniformed trumpkin

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    by far the best value for money in room acoustic is Roxul safe and sound. performs just as well as oc703
     
  20. fraggler

    fraggler A Happy & Busy Life

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    For sound panels, how porous does the fabric on top need to be? I had thought about getting canvas movie posters to cover whatever I used to make them more girlfriend friendly.
     

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