opening 

We make an acoustic screen for a microphone with our own hands. Do-it-yourself acoustic design of a project studio Soundproofing with foam rubber in commercial premises

Acoustic foam rubber is considered to be the most effective material for device high-quality sound insulation premises. It perfectly dampens (absorbs) sound waves and significantly improves interior acoustics. Soundproof polyurethane foam has other advantages, these are:

  • flexibility and light weight, so that the installation of panels is not difficult;
  • environmental friendliness;
  • resistance to mechanical stress;
  • lack of smell;
  • original appearance that does not require additional finishing.

Acoustic foam rubber is produced in the form of rectangular panels of a standard size of 1x2 m, with a relief in the form of a pyramid, peaks, waves. Their scope is inclined, vertical and horizontal surfaces of any shape.

Installation of acoustic foam rubber: workflow

  • prepare the surface to be glued. Level and clean it of dust and debris. Walls made of laminated materials and concrete sand and prime;
  • draw up on paper a layout of foam rubber sheets and, in accordance with it, mark out the wall and ceiling. Mark cut lines on the material. Since acoustic polyurethane foam has a textured pattern, it is better to determine in advance the location of the cuts and adjust everything so that they are inconspicuous and look beautiful. Attention: glue from the middle of the ceiling or wall;
  • treat the foam with adhesive. Use an atomizer or spray gun to apply the adhesive to cover the surface of the material with a thin layer. A brush or spatula can create a thick layer when smeared and the foam will "slide" down the surface after gluing. Spot application of glue is also allowed, but with this method of fastening, the material does not use its full sound-absorbing potential. Attention: to work with acoustic polyurethane foam, choose contact adhesives on a butadiene-styrene, neoprene basis. Means containing trichloroethane are not suitable for fixing foam rubber on the surface;
  • press the foam sheet treated with adhesive to the surface at a predetermined place. Wait for the glue to set. Fix the rest of the panels to the wall in the same way.

Shops of the company "Vinyl Tex" carry out acoustic wholesale and retail from 1 sheet. Consultation of the manager and acceptance of the order by the phone number indicated on the website page.

Everyone who is engaged in sound engineering and arrangement in an acoustically unprepared room sooner or later comes to the idea of ​​the need to “drown out” the room. There are many "folk" and, by the way, effective means:

However, in most cases this is not enough. For example, when recording a voice, even in a filled “living” room, “echo”, resonances (“bank”) are felt, which often makes it impossible to further process and use the recorded material.

There are at least 2 ways out of this situation:

  1. Professional preparation of the premises
  2. The invention of the "bicycle"

As inquisitive and greedy minds, we will not take path 1. (about 700 euros per 1 m2 of premises), although it is the most correct one. We will try "on the knee" to assemble the acoustic design of a living room with low material costs.

We will need:

  1. Foam rubber 30-100 mm or foam-pyramid 70 mm
  2. IKEA padding blankets or similar material
  3. Metal braided cord (cable) with a diameter of 3-4 mm
  4. Carabiners for pulling a metal cord
  5. Nylon braided cord with a diameter of 5 mm
  6. Screw hooks 8-10 mm, dowels
  7. Perforator, drill
  8. Stepladder (preferably two when working together)
  9. Sharp knife for cardboard / paper (cut foam rubber)

The cost of materials is from 30 to 40 tr. (except 7.8)

It is better to work together, this increases the assembly speed by 3-4 times. If the area of ​​\u200b\u200bthe room allows - (more than 30 m2) - then the three of us.

Graphic plan

Those. in fact, we hang the panels on the walls like curtains, and on the ceiling we simply lay them on cables. Why can't foam rubber be glued to the ceiling - yes, because foam rubber generally does not normally stick to anything without changing its structure (primer, chemical soldering, etc.).

Stages of work:

  1. Marking the position of the "hooks" on the walls
  2. Drilling, installing hooks
  3. Stretching a metal cable
  4. Assembly of “panels” foam rubber + blankets 1m by 1m or other convenient size up to 1m by 2m by stitching with a nylon cord
  5. Attaching panels to the wall
  6. "Throwing" and threading panels on the ceiling on stretched cables
  7. Alignment of panels and additional stretching.

Special attention:

  1. Cord fastening of “wall” panels - there is a high risk of foam rubber rupture, so the distance between the cord entries (Fig. 2) should be greater, you can also make a bundle through a plastic plate to reduce foam rubber stress at the attachment points. An even more reliable option is to nail foam rubber to wooden lath and cling to the rail.
  2. Sockets - should get to the junction of the synthetic winterizer or immediately provide for the absence of a synthetic winterizer on the outlet (it is difficult to “gnaw through” to the outlet).
  3. Chandelier - calculate the hit of the chandelier on the joint of the panels, cut a recess for it and use ONLY ENERGY SAVING LAMPS, because. they heat up a little and will not be able to melt (or, God forbid, set fire to) foam rubber.
  4. 2-3 days - ventilate the room from the "smell" of foam rubber.
  5. The room must be empty for the convenience of assembling the panels on site.



For better dispersion, the fact that the foam rubber goes in waves and sags a little is in our favor, in any case, it is important to avoid excessive stress on the foam at the attachment points!

When using dark foam rubber in the room it will become very dark - use additional lights and light curtains.

In the room it is desirable:

  • availability of upholstered furniture
  • filled corners (furniture, closet)
  • carpet on the floor
  • thick curtains on the window

results

Now you can enjoy listening to music in the room on acoustics up to 100 watts, there is significantly less echo, voice recording is much better, comparable to studio recording. Important - the ceiling is not damaged, theoretically - the panels can be installed elsewhere.

Hygiene

With blankets, everything is clear - they are hygienically safe. With foam rubber - this approach: you need to buy "furniture" foam rubber and require a hygiene certificate. It is also important that the room has normal humidity, because. this significantly affects the quality of the foam rubber "to break".

Acoustic foam

Acoustic foam is an acoustic treatment material widely used in automobiles. The open-cell material itself is capable of attenuating sound wave vibrations in air, regardless of their frequency.
Foam rubber acoustic pyramid, as it is also called, thus reduces the amplitude of the waves, turning energy into heat. From this publication you will learn what the main purpose of acoustic foam rubber is, what types it can be and what are its features.

Note. Immediately, we note that this material is universal. It can be mounted to the doors, ceiling or even entirely in the trunk of a car.

Application

Acoustic pyramid foam rubber can be used in cars in order to improve the sound quality.
It's simple:

  • Certain surfaces are glued with this material;
  • Due to this, residual overtones in all frequencies are removed, which interfere with the perception of sounds normally.

Note. It is necessary to use acoustic foam rubber skillfully, not forgetting about the correct placement of the panels in the car.

You can use this material for various specific purposes, but the main task is:

Note. Foam rubber migrated to cars from large and small recording studios, where it is often used as a soundproofing material. In such rooms, foam rubber in the form of large panels in the form of triangles is placed on the walls.
In automobiles, in order for the material to better cope with absorption, especially low frequencies, it is also recommended to use it in large pieces, and most importantly, the material must be thick.

Secrets of working with foam rubber

bass traps

Note. big chunks acoustic foam, placed in the interior of a car or other room, create so-called acoustic traps or bass traps.

Bass traps work by capturing the energy of the bass that tends to cluster in the corners of rooms, in our case the corners. After that, the bass starts to deafen already.
If you use bass traps, you can get an amazing effect of reducing unnecessary reverb. The bass will get more clarity and quickness of impact, which will allow you to control low-frequency energy.

As mentioned above, there are many types of acoustic foam rubber. In cars, special foam rubber is used - automotive.

Note. Typically, automotive foam rubber is combined with carpet. Together, these two materials create excellent sound insulation and car audio rises to a completely different level.

To glue the car with these materials in a complex, you will have to do the following:

  • Disassemble the entire interior;
  • Remove all decorative trim;
  • Start sizing from the doors, as the most difficult elements of the car in terms of sound insulation.

Note. As a rule, in the process of soundproofing car doors, materials are already used, the basis of which is foam rubber. In this case, the foam rubber is on the substrate, and with front side it is covered with foil or polyethylene terephthalate film.

  • Carry out sizing and floors, also as the main parts subject to external noise and are surfaces from which the sound can change for the worse.

Note. Material based on acoustic foam rubber must be applied to a dry, fat-free surface. On top, you can glue another material, for example, polyethylene or acoustic felt.

  • Carry out the sizing of the torpedo. Over time, some parts of the panel become loose and create an unpleasant creak that interferes with normal sound perception.
    For this reason, the torpedo is disassembled, the old foam rubber is removed, and a new one is put in its place on a substrate or with a mesh. Self-adhesive tape will help hide the joints of the torpedo and the body.

An example of processing car doors with foam rubber

So:

  • We purchase acoustic foam rubber on a self-adhesive basis;
  • We also buy an acoustic lens to increase the effect of improving the sound.

Note. As you know, an acoustic lens is able to equalize the sound output of the speakers, and in combination with foam rubber, it will be an “explosive” mixture.

  • We disassemble the door, first removing the windows;
  • We degrease the surfaces with which we will work;
  • We glue the foam rubber, then the lens.

More detailed information on how sound insulation of doors is carried out can be found in other articles and instructions on our website. In the process of doing the work with your own hands, we highly recommend watching the video, studying the photo.
As a rule, the price of acoustic foam rubber is low, but this material gives an incredible effect.

Application:

  1. Remove the protective surfaces from one side of each self-adhesive;
  2. Stick the required number of self-adhesives on the panel;
  3. Remove the protective layer from each self-adhesive;
  4. Gently lean the panel against the wall, then press evenly over the entire area;

Note:

  • This installation method is applicable only to absolutely flat, non-crumbling surfaces;
  • Dismantling the panels after gluing destroys the adhesive properties of the self-adhesive (the second time will not hold);

Push pins and pins

Installation process:

1. We mark places on the surfaces of walls or ceilings based on the area of ​​​​the panels;
2. Glue must be applied to the finishing area evenly distributing with a spatula;
3. Next, you need to press the panels and hold for 40 seconds. During this time, the glue will have time to soak into the panel.

.

It is necessary to purchase "liquid nails" and a special dispenser gun for
its application.

This adhesive is well suited for long-term installation of many materials, including sound-absorbing panels. To apply glue, you need to use a special dispenser gun, which is sold in many hardware stores.

Installation process:

1. We prepare the surface on which we will mount the material from dirt and dust;
2. We put marks on the surface according to the size of the panels;
3. Slowly apply glue gently to the area in stripes;
4. Press the panel to the plane and hold for 40 seconds.

hot glue

We will need: glue sticks and a thermal gun for them.

The use of hot melt adhesive is one of the fastest and most simple ways gluing acoustic foam panels. The advantage is that the panels can be installed on any hard surface.
This method is suitable mainly for panels that are not large in area, because. hot glue has a lower degree of adhesion in contrast to acrylic glue.

Installation process:

1. Insert the glue pin into the heat gun;

2. After connecting, the device should heat up for 10-15 minutes;
3. While the device is heating up, it is necessary to prepare the surface by cleaning it from dust with a napkin;
4. We set marks for the dimensions of the panels;
5. We quickly apply heated glue to the marks;
6. We press the material.

Spray adhesive based on acrylic

This is a very convenient, but not the cheapest way to install acoustic panels.

Installation process:

1. Wipe the original plane;
2. We put notes;
3. Spray the glue gently on the plane;
4. You need to press and hold for about 40 seconds, during which time the glue will grab well.

Hi friends. In this article, I will tell and show you how you can make an acoustic screen (or acoustic panel) with your own hands very inexpensively. And for some it might even be cheap.
I personally spied on YouTube how to make such an acoustic screen, and honestly I will attach this video at the bottom of this article. I will share it with you.

What is an acoustic screen for?

A small digression: in relation to the acoustic screen, you can also use the name "acoustic panel" - the essence is the same, so in this article I will use double terminology.

In my course on high-quality voice recording on a computer, in a lesson on preparing a room for recording, I talked about such acoustic panels. If you are planning or have already tried to record your voice on a computer (maybe even purchased), then most likely you have noticed that not every room is suitable for these purposes.

If we take an ordinary room for consideration with you and try to make a recording, then in 95% when listening to the recorded recording we will hear a background echo. And if you are not a koekaker and it is really important for you to do your job with high quality, then you will look for ways to get rid of the echo when recording a voice.

By the way, in my course, I shared a couple of tricky ways on how to solve this problem very simply and easily with improvised means. But this is also not always convenient. Especially if you write not only your own voice, but also the voices of other people who come to you, then it is important to observe the aesthetic component as well.

The echo in the room appears naturally from the reflection of our voice on all sound-reflecting surfaces, of which the room is full (floor, table, walls, cabinet surface).

By the way, in the course of writing the article, I remembered that I had previously raised this topic in, which I had to build in haste at work. If interested, take a look. There, of course, also perfect option, but by 75 percent I managed to cut off the echo.

Recording studios solve this problem with acoustic foam, which is sheathed on the walls of the studio, sometimes the ceiling.

But for us (mere mortals), this method in most cases will not work for at least two reasons:

  1. Decorating a room with acoustic foam rubber will cost us a fairly tidy sum
  2. and not every room can be safely put under this business.

Actually, an acoustic panel was invented to solve our problem. They are installed behind the microphone and try to protect it as much as possible from echoes.

Here are some sample photos of acoustic panels:

These acoustic screens have their pluses and minuses.

  • Aesthetic component (they look neat and beautiful)
  • Functionality - they do their job well.
  • Cost (they cost a lot)
  • Transportation (not in every city you can buy them)

Here we understand that it would be nice to have such an acoustic panel, but how would you assemble it yourself? Yes or no?

But I definitely somehow thought about it and even made my own acoustic screen. Herself. But, to be honest, I got carried away.

This method has its undeniable advantages, but there are also disadvantages - I will not hide it. If I had known about them earlier, I would have avoided some troubles.

Therefore, I better warn you about them in advance!

But I will tell you about everything in detail below. So, my version of making an acoustic panel with my own hands.

We make an acoustic screen for a microphone with our own hands

And I decided to make a super budget acoustic panel, i.e. with the most minimum investment means for the purity of the experiment.

So, to make a homemade acoustic screen, we need:

  1. The material for the base can be, for example, plywood, but I had the remains of PVC panels, and I took them:

2. Piano loops by the number of connections:

3. Foam rubber 4 or 5 cm (preferably 5).

But I disheveled the backrest from the ottoman (I plan to change it anyway, so why regret it?). My cats, however, did not quite understand me. :)

4. Knife with a thin replaceable blade. I warn you: immediately buy a couple more packs of replacement blades - they get dull very quickly on foam rubber.

5. Door seal (but you can do without it):

6. Black color for water-based paints- Take a few. 4 was enough for me, and then for half the idea.

7. Glue - I took Moment Crystal.

So, I made from panels PVC frame as per my idea:

And along the edges of each constituent parts covered with brown tape.

My cat helped me, I couldn't do it alone.

Now we cut the squares obliquely (from corner to corner) so that we get two triangles from each square:

Well, I also additionally cut off the resulting triangles around the edges, so that it would be more convenient to attach them to each other, well, so that the base of the sound-reflecting foam rubber surface was higher:

I warn you right away, if you choose the same method for yourself with cutting foam rubber, you will have to cut for a long time and a lot, changing far from one blade!

After that, we take a color scheme for water-based paints (not everyone can paint over foam rubber, and we can’t clog our pores either). I had this one:

We breed the color scheme one to one, i.e. 1 jar of color for 1 liter of water. If you add more water, then the color will end up not being saturated, but a dirty gray.

In general, we impregnate pieces of foam rubber with a black aqueous solution and lay them out to dry. Don't forget to buy thick latex gloves! Washing off the color afterwards is quite difficult.

Glue the seal on top, but you can do without this step.

And with Moment glue we glue the dyed and dried foam rubber to the base, more precisely foam rubber triangles, putting them tightly one to one:

Thus, we paste over all parts of the base and connect them to each other with piano hinges ... Although it is possible in the reverse order.

I planned to make a rather impressive acoustic screen in this way, but, to be honest, I only had the patience to do this:

Well, friends, this is how, it would seem easy, we made an acoustic screen for recording voice on a computer.

But this method of making a screen has both its pros and cons. Pros:

  1. It cost us little
  2. Functionally, it is no worse than the purchased one - it copes with its task.

But he has his drawbacks, and I'll tell you about them! Minuses:

Well, by the way, here is the result of my work:

My conclusions: if I had to make an acoustic screen again, then I would still spend money on buying acoustic foam rubber: in the end, paint is not taken, and we save a lot of time. With his help, I would not make a screen for a month, but only one or two evenings.

So think about it before you start self-manufacturing acoustic screen with your own hands!

Oh yeah, and here is the promised video, from where I ripped off the idea:

How long did it take a person to do this?

Well, I have everything. Write if something is not clear in the comments below. I wish you success!

Your Victoria Senokosova

For today I have everything. Develop, create and may success overtake you!