Can anyone reccomend a good sound insulation product?
Car AudioCar audio related questions and helpful hints for building the best sound system for your car or getting the most out of what you have.
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Can anyone reccomend a good sound insulation product?
I wasn't sure whether to post this in the "audio" or "interior" forums as it partains to both.
Basically, I'm on a mission to lower road noise in the interior of my '88 IROC as much as possible but am having trouble decideing on which brand to go with.
We all know about "Dynamat", as it's been around for a good many years, but since then, there have been numerous other brands hitting the market all of who'm promise sound insulation improvments equal to, if not surpassing, what Dynamat can provide, at a much cheaper cost aswell.
This is what's making my decision so difficult. Obviously, everyone is going to say their product is the best so who can I trust? To make matters worse, many of these company's websites, show charts/tests/statistics that favour their own product over others, meanwhile their competitors are doing the exact same tests and coming up with completely different results which favour THEIR own products. What gives
I'm kind of leaning towards the "peel and stick" method of insulation as I'm not too thrilled at the idea of spraying/painting the inside of my car with a liquid-type insulation.
The downside to Dynamat and similar products are the increased weight they add.
I'm looking to lessen road noise yes, but not if it's going to noticibly slow down my performance. I'm willing to add some weight, just, "within reason"....
I need some advice from those who've actually used a sound-proofing material like Dynamat and such to reccomend a product that has worked well for them.
How much extra weight would I be looking at, for covering the entire floor,doors,trunk and headliner area?
What brand do you reccomend. How much will I need and what does it cost? Was it worth the money? Was their a noticible decrease in road noise.
I need answers and would appreciate some advice from those who know.
Thanks in advance.
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__________________ Follow the links below to get information and see some picture's of the parts I've purchased so far. The car by they way, is an '88 Iroc-Z powered by L98
I used peel-n-seal. The Lowes knock off of dynamat. It's holding up well, in my black car, in Calgary weather. (granted not texas, but it's pretty hot). There's no stinky smell or anything.
I bought 6 rolls, 6"x15'? I forget how long each roll is. I used 4.5 rolls, still have 1 1/2 left (in case you couldn't get that math there ) I have yet to do my doors. I did the floor of the entire car, and the roof of my hard top car. I double layered it in the rear hump area.
My car doesn't rattle at all, or make the resonance sorta noise that you would expect from a non dampened car. I do however have poor window sealing, so it's still kinda loud (big motor too, and no hood insulation...)
I think it was worth my $, as i'm not hardcore enough into stereo stuff to justify spending a ton of coin on sound deadening.
Wow, how interesting. Here we have the two extremes. Over expensive and cheap. I would go with neither if I were you. Peel and Seal is at the lowest end of the sound deadeners in the asphalt category, while Dynamat Extreme is near the top in the butyl category. I would check out this link: Sound Deadener Showdown. It's an independent review of many popular brands of sound deadening products, and is a worthwhile read.
I've used a roll of RAAMmat (60 square feet, butyl based with asphalt filler) in one T/A before and it worked pretty good, and the one roll did a single layer on the floor and sides of the trunk area with probably 10 feet left over. If I were to do it again, I would do two layers on the floor to deaden the sound a little more.
In my T/A I'm using Second Skin Damplifier, which is a pure butyl mat (better sound dampening qualities) and is a better heat shield than RAAMmat (500 degrees vs. 300) for not too much more in price. 120 square feet weigh in at roughly 55 lbs., and I will be doing a double layer on the floor, trunk area, and maybe some other areas. I also have Spectrum Sludge, which is SS's liquid deadener, but I've decided against using it since the mat is easier to apply on the firewall, is a better heat shield, and will deaden just as well, if not better than the liquid.
So that's what I've dealt with. Both owners (Anthony @ Second Skin, and Rick @ RAAMaudio) are great to deal with and will answer any questions you might have. If you are looking for Dynamat extreme quality or better, go with the Damplifier. If you want a great mat at an affordable price, use RAAMmat. I would recommend doing at least a double layer on the floor and gas tank area, so a couple rolls of RAAMmat or 120 sq feet of Damplifier will get you where you need to go, with possibly some left over.
I found it very useful when I decided to start learning about sound deadeners. Not all of his test methods are really as critical as he seems to think they are, but he provides you with more than enough information to easily allow you to decide what product is best suited for your application and your environment.
It's fine for floors, and maybe even doors in cooler climates, but I wouldn't dare put it overhead or on vertical surfaces in hot climates or you're going to wind up with a pile of black goo falling off the car and onto things you'll never get it off of.
I've got it in the doors of my girlfriend's camry, and when I pull her door panels off to change the speakers that no longer function, I'll give a progress report of how well it's held up. But, keep in mind that we're in a relatively cool climate up here in MA, and her car is silver, not a dark color.
my peel-n-seal is holding up well. Black car, in calgary summer. Has been parked in the sun for a while, no ashphault smell, sagging, anything like that.
Putting it on made me a believer, it sticks like CRAZY. Removing it is very very difficult.