Anyone use sound/acoustic panels to lessen noise?

[Eli Malinsky]

Hey all

We have a very echo-y space and we're exploring a few solutions. I wonder if anyone has experience using sound/acoustic panels to capture noise. Any specific products or strategies to recommend?

thanks!

Eli Malinsky
Centre for Social Innovation
New York City / Toronto

[Brydon Gilliss]

We have that issue but haven't tried solutions yet, curious to hear what you try..

brydon

[Ashley Proctor]

Hi Eli!

Can't wait to visit the new NYC location and to catch up :)

As you might remember, Foundery had a similar issue with the high ceilings and exposed bricks etc.

In our Conference Room we have a giant mural made of simple, colorful carpet/ fabric. It really helped with the echo and it looks great hanging on the wall.

In our private offices we have wrapped handmade wood frames with insulation and fabric / used burlap coffee sacks for cost effective and creative sound panels. We reused materials and made some interesting art at the same time. It keeps the sound from bouncing around in the units in the lower level.

And in certain areas we left the sound alone - we don't have to mic panel discussions in our event space, and we don't need giant speakers for live music because the sound carries so well.

When we were exploring sound options, I heard of some people adding carpet/ fabric to the underside of hard materials (tables, chairs) in combination with the hanging 'clouds' and sound panels you can order online. No personal experience with that however, sorry!

Let us know what works for you guys,

Ashley

Ashley Proctor

Creative Blueprint & Foundery

Toronto, Canada

www.creativeblueprint.ca

www.foundery.is

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[Stephen Shumaker]

We are about to order and install some acoustic foam in our phone/privacy booths. We plan to source the foam from here:

http://soundproofstore.com/

We'll either use 1" or 2" foam, haven't decided yet. Total cost of materials will be around $100 per booth (+ labor for installation). We also like the idea of Softwall in open spaces, but it is very expensive. I may take a crack at creating my own softwall from recycled packing paper or cardboard.

- Stephen

[Jerome Chang]

I like homasote, which is like drywall, but made of dense, recycled paper.

If you wrap it in fabric, it can then look a lot better, but even with just paint, it'll look pretty cool.

Note that there are two types of acoustics you'll want to manage: reverb, and "soundproofness."  Materials like acoustical ceiling tiles shape sound to mitigate the echo, and soundproofness blocks sound altogether.  In some instances, soundproofness ends up "deadening" the acoustics in a bad way.

Jerome
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[rachel young]

Eli, did you ever pop in to Hackernest when it was still a coworking space in the west end of Toronto?  (it's no longer a space and is now a tech social series).

Anyway, their space was incredibly echoy and they installed some tiles that really helped to reduce the echoes. Those tiles are now for sale at http://toronto.kijiji.ca/c-buy-and-sell-business-industrial-Acoustic-Ceiling-clouds-hanging-panels-hand-made-W0QQAdIdZ489714303 and looks like they are in storage at Locus Quo.  (if getting them from Toronto is an option; Toronto *does* miss you!)

r.

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[Tony Bacigalupo]

Jerome, any tips on painting or covering homasote? We've got some here and it could use some dressing up!

[Jerome Chang]

You can paint on it directly with a roller but you'll have to touch it up regularly if you pin up on it a lot. 

You can wrap fabric (even burlap!) around the sides by stapling it on the back side. Use deep staples, not the kind you'd typically use to staple two sheets of paper. 

Jerome

www.BLANKSPACES.com

[Fabrizio Tarará]

When I visited Galvanize in Denver I took a couple of shots of what they had on their ceilings, here they are.

Fabrizio

www.WorkFrontalLobe.com

On Friday, June 7, 2013 6:29:36 PM UTC-4, Eli Malinsky wrote:

[Alex Hillman]

We just bought a few things to experiment with dampening the noise a bit at Indy Hall.  

• A pack of these 12"x12" panels (they have other options, too): http://www.ebay.com/itm/1-Pyramid-12-x-12-Acoustic-Soundproofing-Studio-Wall-Booth-Foam-Panels-48-PACK-/220869251413?ssPageName=ADME:L:OU:US:3160
  
• 2 Packs of Nomads from MIO: http://mioculture.com/create/nomad-system.html
• A sheet of sound deadening material for our HVAC units: http://www.soundproofcow.com/Sound-Dampening-Deadening/

We bought all of these items on recommendation, but haven't had any of them installed for long enough to report back yet. Soon :)

We DO have a very large homosote wall on our ground floor - it's >100 feet long and ~20 feet high. I don't have a true comparative  measurement, but I imagine that our ground floor would be a LOT echo-y-er without it. 

Ours was beautified by a massive mural, though I'll warn about painting directly on it: homosote is fiberous, and needs to be "brushed" extensively before being painted on otherwise the paint peels and chips. It's also a bit of a sponge for paint, so be prepared for a more absorbant surface than painting on drywall - you'll use more paint, and more coats, to get the same level of vibrancy.

-Alex

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coworking in philadelphia

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[Angel Kwiatkowski]

We DIYed some small panels out of foam board covered in quilter's batting covered in fun fabric. Used spray adhesive to hold them together and stuck to the walls of our phone rooms with command adhesives. They really work! This might not be feasible for large spaces...

[Will Hurd]

Just a general recommendation to check the flammability of the products you're intending to use. Some foams aren't intended to be left exposed. Remember that the Station night club fire and the recent fire in a Brazilian night club were so deadly because the owners installed "acoustic foam" that created lots of smoke. So use products approved for indoor use.

Will Hurd (architect - the building kind)