DIY Sound panels have been massively popular over the last year since people have been setting up music studios at home. We’re going to test and compare 4 types of sound insulation: rockwool, fiberglass, acoustic foam and denim.

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Chapters:
0:00 Introduction
0:20 Sound versus Noise
1:33 Denim insulation
1:58 Rockwool insulation
2:20 My first sponsorship!
2:48 Acoustic foam
3:10 Fiberglass insulation
4:03 Panel dimensions
4:42 Conclusion

It's very important to make the distinction between sound like music and voice and noise. Acoustical engineering is an advanced branch of engineering that analyzes how sound behaves in a space and how sound waves bounce off walls, floors and ceilings. Sound or acoustic treatment is an art, whether in a music studio, concert hall or cinema. There are scientific principles behind the placement of panels and their shape or thickness. These DIY panels that we build are noise dampeners, not sound panels. They are primarily insulating materials for buildings, their noise dampening properties are secondary characteristics.

The first product we’re going to test is denim or cotton insulation. This is a very dense product and it’s actually used to make sound panels. It costs $1.14 per sq ft at Home Depot. 2 layers or 3 inches of denim brought the noise down to 75.5 db. Another 3 inches brought it down to 72 db. That’s a 5.3 db drop.

Rockwool Safe n Sound is out of stock at my local Home Depot and Lowe’s, so I bought some Thermafiber slag wool insulation which has very similar acoustic properties to Rockwool. It costs $0.94 per sq ft. Sandwiched between 3 inches of rockwool, the noise level dropped down to 69db. That’s an 8.3db difference.

This portion is brought to you by Insulation4US.com. Insulation4US.com is the largest US online retailer for insulation products. They ship nationwide across the US with over 800 locations to ship from via their vast distribution network. They are cheaper than bigbox retailers and they offer a $60 flat shipping fee on 80% of all products.

The next product we’re going to test are these 12”x12” acoustic foam panels that I bought off Amazon. They arrive vacuum sealed and slowly expand over a couple of days. They cost $1.5 per sq ft. While they are very easy to install, they brought the noise level down to only 73.3db, a 4 db difference.

Lastly, fiberglass, the biggest surprise. I bought this roll for 2x4 walls at Home Depot for $0.5 per sq ft. Sandwiched between just 2 layers, the sound level dropped to 65 db, a 12.3db difference.

Fiberglass was by far, the winner. It was the cheapest and had the best sound dampening qualities. I built my 31 inch by 48.5” inch panels out of 1x4 pine studs, back when they were reasonably priced. I cut the studs down to 2 47” pieces and 2 31” pieces. The middle brace is 29.5” long. And the 4 angled corner braces are 8” long. I used glue and a nail gun to assemble the frame and then smoothened it with an orbital sander. Two pieces of Rockwool insulation friction fit into the frame pretty easily. I bought some felt fabric at Joann's and attached it to the studs with a crown stapler

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