Sound proofing vs absorbing which should i go for???

[raman]

first hello to every one out there
I am new here and will need your help for building home theater room. I know i will be asking some stupid question but i really need to know and want suggestions
My questions are.....
1. Okay i know whats sound proofing and absorption are my question is
this do i need both or can go for only sound absortion as my budget is
low.

I have searched internet for soundproofing and sound absortion and come to know which material is for blocking and which is absorbing. But most of the content are from outside india and i dont know whether their rooms are madeup of concerete or some thing else. They were using term dry wall which is made of gypsum plaster pressed between two thick sheets of paper. So i wonder whether idea they were suggesting will be applicable for concrete wall or not.

I have more questions but i will ask them later. waiting for replies and guidance. I thank all of you in advance.

 

[Sidharth Trehan]

Hi Raman,
- Is it an empty room, which u want to soundproof? Or is it a living room?
- Whats the room size?
- how man sides are the concrete walls?
- Do you want u use full room or half?
- whats the budget at hand?

Share these details and answers shall fall in from friends in here.

 

[spirovious]

Sound absorbing solution is for better HT sound & proofing is for others if neighbours object.

 

[sam9s]

I may ask a noob question, so correct me if I am wrong, does'nt going for sound proofing automatically takes care of Sound Absorbtion as well.??? If the ans if no it would be nice to know the reason and the difference.

 

[smedhavi]

sam9s,
No, sound proofing a room does not make it sound absorbing in anyway. I could just build double concrete walls filled with glass wool and it would be sound proof (one of my friends has done that). Sound absorption is a different baby all together.

raman,
Sound proofing and sound absorption are not substitutes.
You need sound proofing if:

• You live in a noisy location with too much of ambient noise from traffic, machines, trains, public loud speakers, TVs blaring in the other rooms, etc.
• There are others in the same house or in the neighborhood, who should not hear most of the sound you produce in your HT

In fact opening up a window helps in managing the bass frequencies if none of the above sound proofing issues are important to you.

You surely need some amount of absorption in your HT room, but do not make it completely dead. These days people go in for exotic sound absorption products just because someone else was showing off theirs (the same way people end up buying Bose speakers), not based on what they need. You could strike a balance. Here are some conventional and less in-your-face solutions to sound absorption and managing sound in a closed room.

• Put a thick carpet in the room
• Hang thick cotton wall hangings at the first reflection points
• Place real or artificial plants (the tall & bushy ones) in the corners
• Have enough soft furnishing
• Put a foam sheet over glass windows and hang thick, soft curtains
• Cover glass tables with a table cloth
• Put a book shelf (with books) or CD rack on the real wall, these are damn good diffusers. Better than most commercial products for diffusion

Thanks,
Sharad

 

[rahulsood]

hello i am also building a ht. this thread is intersting. my room is 12 x 16 at present and planing to make it big by another 4 feet. I am also confused whether to go for soundproofing or absorption in my case also i have no problem of noise from outside and vice versa ( I guess ?) so was thinking of only sound absoption and save money or can get more eqipment..... what you people say

 

[corElement]

I have a bedroom theatre >=D bed took care of all the loose bass. Before bed came in lots of reflection.

 

[sam9s]

sam9s,
No, sound proofing a room does not make it sound absorbing in anyway. I could just build double concrete walls filled with glass wool and it would be sound proof (one of my friends has done that). Sound absorption is a different baby all together.
Thanks,
Sharad

Ok understood, but cant we make a sound proof room that also acts as a sound absorbent, I mean the way/or the type of material we use absorbes the sound and does not let it cross as well. Does this sound correct or am I fundamentally wrong???

 

[venkatcr]

There is a fundamental difference between the two requirements. Once you understand this, you will also understand why the same materials cannot be used for both requirements.

Soundproofing is to stop sound waves from reaching a particular area. In other words, if there is anybody within that area, he or she should not hear any sound at all. Soundproofing attempts to block the movement of sound waves at all frequencies. The reason for sound proofing could be many - a hospital room, houses near noisy highways, a meeting hall inside a factory, and so on. The attempt, by the way, is to stop sound 100%.

Inside a home theater, the requirements are different. You do not want to block the sound completely. At the same time, you do not want to hear collateral noises. These noises are created by echoes, reverberation, resonance and reflection. So in sound absorption, what is done is to absorb the sound in places that create the echoes, reverberation, resonance and reflection. Sound absorption is also done differently for different frequencies as it is believed sound waves behave differently at different frequencies. Mid and high frequencies usually need softer material for absorption, while low frequencies comparatively harder material.

Cheers

 

[incognito.2013]

I just purchased a Flat in 2nd floor where I am going to have an HT of 10 X 15 ft. My question is do I need to soundproof the walls so that the sound doesn't reach through to neighboring Flats or 8 inch brick wall is sufficient to block that?

 

[jagdish_p]

A concrete wall acts as good barrier for sound proofing and no other treatment is required for normal listening/ normal external residential area sounds.
The main problems / leakage of sound happens through windows and doors.
You will have to consider sound proofing through double glass upvc solutions etc.

If you are particular about wooden doors go for heavy teak doors with overlapping door frames to cut out the sound.

 

[theraindew]

Have any of you used either of these.

Buy Online | Lowest Price | Free Shipping| Aurica Pyramid Shaped Acoustical Foam Panel 1' x 1' x 2 - Hot Deal - Buy online at the guaranteed lowest price in India - BAJAAO - Buy online and Review Musical Instruments, Pro Audio, Studio, P.A. Audio Equ

Buy Online | Lowest Price | Free Shipping| Aurica Anechoic Self-Adhesive Foam - 1' x 1' x 2 - Peel and Stick! - Hot Deal - Buy online at the guaranteed lowest price in India - BAJAAO - Buy online and Review Musical Instruments, Pro Audio, Studio, P.A

I got 6 each of these sometime last year, but haven't used them yet. I recently moved places and I'm thinking of using these. There is quite a bit of echo problem in the room now. I understand carpet is essential, I will be adding one soon, but will either of these help in this case?

If you check the description, 'acoustic absorption' as well as 'sound wave diffusion' are mentioned as their properties! Will these have an effect on bass?

 

[Shivam]

For echo problem, I find the broadband, membrane absorbers to be the most effective. These combined with open-cell foam based low frequency (corner placement) absorbers usually help in even the most difficult rooms.

One easy alternative to absorbers is to open the windows (if the weather is fine and the street noise minimal.)

 

[neo9999]

theraindew,

Even I purchased the pyramid shaped foam panels from bajaao last year and not yet used them. I plan to set them up in next 4 weeks and can post a response. But I've never seen any negative response for these foam panels from bajaao and hence I guess they should be fine. I plan to purchase the base traps from them too very soon.

Neo

 

[theraindew]

Thanks Neo.

theraindew,

Even I purchased the pyramid shaped foam panels from bajaao last year and not yet used them. I plan to set them up in next 4 weeks and can post a response. But I've never seen any negative response for these foam panels from bajaao and hence I guess they should be fine. I plan to purchase the base traps from them too very soon.

Neo

 

[aakashr]

sam9s,
No, sound proofing a room does not make it sound absorbing in anyway. I could just build double concrete walls filled with glass wool and it would be sound proof (one of my friends has done that). Sound absorption is a different baby all together.

raman,
Sound proofing and sound absorption are not substitutes.
You need sound proofing if:

• You live in a noisy location with too much of ambient noise from traffic, machines, trains, public loud speakers, TVs blaring in the other rooms, etc.
• There are others in the same house or in the neighborhood, who should not hear most of the sound you produce in your HT

In fact opening up a window helps in managing the bass frequencies if none of the above sound proofing issues are important to you.

You surely need some amount of absorption in your HT room, but do not make it completely dead. These days people go in for exotic sound absorption products just because someone else was showing off theirs (the same way people end up buying Bose speakers), not based on what they need. You could strike a balance. Here are some conventional and less in-your-face solutions to sound absorption and managing sound in a closed room.

• Put a thick carpet in the room
• Hang thick cotton wall hangings at the first reflection points
• Place real or artificial plants (the tall & bushy ones) in the corners
• Have enough soft furnishing
• Put a foam sheet over glass windows and hang thick, soft curtains
• Cover glass tables with a table cloth
• Put a book shelf (with books) or CD rack on the real wall, these are damn good diffusers. Better than most commercial products for diffusion

Thanks,
Sharad

From what I understand, you need absorbers in the front of the room while diffusers/reflectors should be placed more towards the rear of the room, is that correct? What would be the best location to place book shelves?

 

[captrajesh]

Sound proofing is a term used to minimise sound leakages from the listening room to outside the room and vice versa whereas sound absorption is to minimise early reflections (predominantly of high and mid frequencies) and nulls and peaks (predominantly of low frequencies) within the room.

 

[syednizamudeen]

sam9s,
No, sound proofing a room does not make it sound absorbing in anyway. I could just build double concrete walls filled with glass wool and it would be sound proof (one of my friends has done that). Sound absorption is a different baby all together.

raman,
Sound proofing and sound absorption are not substitutes.
You need sound proofing if:

• You live in a noisy location with too much of ambient noise from traffic, machines, trains, public loud speakers, TVs blaring in the other rooms, etc.
• There are others in the same house or in the neighborhood, who should not hear most of the sound you produce in your HT

In fact opening up a window helps in managing the bass frequencies if none of the above sound proofing issues are important to you.

You surely need some amount of absorption in your HT room, but do not make it completely dead. These days people go in for exotic sound absorption products just because someone else was showing off theirs (the same way people end up buying Bose speakers), not based on what they need. You could strike a balance. Here are some conventional and less in-your-face solutions to sound absorption and managing sound in a closed room.

• Put a thick carpet in the room
• Hang thick cotton wall hangings at the first reflection points
• Place real or artificial plants (the tall & bushy ones) in the corners
• Have enough soft furnishing
• Put a foam sheet over glass windows and hang thick, soft curtains
• Cover glass tables with a table cloth
• Put a book shelf (with books) or CD rack on the real wall, these are damn good diffusers. Better than most commercial products for diffusion

Thanks,
Sharad

Thanks for your advice. My aluminium sliding window rattles on certain low frequencies.. I'm happy with how my setup sounds except the above mentioned window jarring. what is a foam sheet that you have reffered to??where can i get it???

 

[magma]

foam can be pu foam ( mattress foam ) or HItlon foam

both wont solve your problem though - at least not practically
unless you want to have an entire piece of foam covering your window and then move it every time you want to operate it

what the problem really is
is that there is a play between your window sliding glass window and the bottom track

this happnens when contracters dont use the same series to save money

use a strip of woolfile to file the gap
sticking is is gonna be a headache

another option is just two way tape in the right place
find out where the "play" is
between the window and the outer frame


and
P.S

 

[Soundstage]

Thanks for your advice. My aluminium sliding window rattles on certain low frequencies.. I'm happy with how my setup sounds except the above mentioned window jarring. what is a foam sheet that you have reffered to??where can i get it???

Try folding a piece of paper a few times until it is thick enough and wedge it between the loose fitting window frames to get a tight fit. You could use 2 or 3 such wedges at different locations to get a uniform fit. If this tames the vibrations, you could go in for a more permanent solution as recommended above.

Cheers