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Lets talk about soundproofing possabilities

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FishDog3

Member
Joined
Jul 3, 2001
Like the idea of using automotive insulation installed inside your case to reduce noise, I know about the warning of fire possabilities, but it is a plan with a lot of oppertunity. So I am going to start searching around for something that would be safer to use and figured you guys might like to toss the topic around, a lot of you seem to work in industries where you have experiance with materials that would fit the description, lets here your $0.02.

fd
 
I think you could use the stuff they use in speakers and studio's, just tried to put a little piece on fire but it wouldn't catch fire (dunno bout static charges). CBPB (cement bonded particle board) might be usefull tho I don't know bout fire resistance (acoustic insulation: 6mm - 28dB).

My $0.02
 
[So I am going to start searching around for something that would be safer
...

They have both electrical equipment and gasoline in automobiles, and people do smoke in their cars, so the fire potential is much higher than in your computer. In view of the fact that automobiles are more highly regulated for safety than any other thing, including your home, the idea that soundproofing material which comes with the automobile from the manufacturer is unsafe is some kind of fantasy. Lawyers would be making countless billions in class-action suits and it would be all over the TV.
 
They have both electrical equipment and gasoline in automobiles, and people do smoke in their cars, so the fire potential is much higher than in your computer. In view of the fact that automobiles are more highly regulated for safety than any other thing, including your home, the idea that soundproofing material which comes with the automobile from the manufacturer is unsafe is some kind of fantasy. Lawyers would be making countless billions in class-action suits and it would be all over the TV.

LOL Yeah, I kinda realised that right after I posted and that thought was reinforced this morning when I checked the news on the site and it was confermed that the material used in that article was fire resistent.


I think you could use the stuff they use in speakers and studio's, just tried to put a little piece on fire but it wouldn't catch fire (dunno bout static charges). CBPB (cement bonded particle board) might be usefull tho I don't know bout fire resistance (acoustic insulation: 6mm - 28dB).

KILLorBE, where can I find this stuff?, I was thinking some acoustic sonud material used in sound studios would work great, do you know where I could find it?.

Thanks

fd
 
keep in mind, if you sound proof your case, you're also going to retain heat. The metal case cools easily, where plastic and rubber are insulators. Ever wonder why most every case is made of metal? =)
 
Yeah I thought about that too. Although I figure that if you have enought noise from fans to bother you enough that you are looking into sound insulation than you probably are not too worried about using your case as a heetsink, I think I can get enough airflow to compensate for the insulation factor.

But you never know, guess I'll just have to try, Thanks for the heads-up though.

fd
 
Shadow ÒÓ (Jul 07, 2001 05:30 p.m.):
keep in mind, if you sound proof your case, you're also going to retain heat. The metal case cools easily, where plastic and rubber are insulators. Ever wonder why most every case is made of metal? =)

You've got point. :D
 
Shadow ÒÓ (Jul 07, 2001 05:30 p.m.):
keep in mind, if you sound proof your case, you're also going to retain heat. The metal case cools easily, where plastic and rubber are insulators. Ever wonder why most every case is made of metal? =)

But if you sound proof your case you can just buy bigger/better fans w/ out worrying about the noise.
 
Well, if you're water cooling your setup, then the heat retention isn't so much of a problem(cpu wise). Ambient temperatures will still be higher than normal though, but I geuss thats the trade off. Some of the things I've heard of being used to dampen noise are: rubber, cork, cotton (cloth), vinyl, poly-styrene (styro-foam), cardboard of various sorts, the list goes on and on, so I'll stop here. Personally I thought the cork and rubber were the best ideas I've seen so far. You can usually pick up both at a home-depot or simmilar store. The rubber isusually in the garden section. It's used to make little artificial ponds and things like that. The cork I can't remember what section i saw it in, but you can get it in sheets of various thicknesses. I would think it's in the building materials section, where the keep the masonite and plywood, but I'm not 100% sure.
 
I have used Dynomat for noise reduction - it seems to work fairly well. What I found to be more important was to insulate fans and HD's from the case by use of rubber grommets and rubber matting. Also, ducting your fans helps to reduce noise from fan tip vortacies, which can make a huge difference.
 
Guys a cheap way to keep the noise down would be to use rubberized undercoating for cars. Just be careful cause it make a mess. Do it with an empty machine or mask it off well.
 
Ok just want to put my .02 in

First off dynomat (the rubber stuff not the actual sound proofer) and spray type noise reducers are not the best idea. These products usually don't block sound they actually lower the resonance of your car so that any vibrations caused by speakers are lower than the human ear can hear.

I used bed wave foam. This is the stuff that you can put on top of your bed to make if more comfortable. This stuff is almost identical to wave foam used to deaden speakers.

As far as fire goes I'm sure the bedding stuff has to be somewhat flame retardant do to its use. I would also like to know why you guys are so worried about this stuff catching on fire. I don't know what your setups are like but I don't have any uninsulated high current wires floating around in my case. I also don't have the sound proffer touching any boards, moving parts or the psu. I'm also fairly certain that my case doesn't reach the flash point of foam. Could anyone explain the circumstances that would cause my case to catch on fire?
 
LOL rubber is more sound absorbant than metal so if your on a budget, spray type or dynomat is a good idea. Thats what dynomat is for. Foam is expansive so that spray foam idea is not a good idea but I like the egg crate bed stuff idea thats a good idea though it will detract from airspace in your box. Less airspace less airflow.
 
The best stuff is Open Cell "eggcrate" foam. It's used in studios. I would call around you city to sound insulation, sound studio builders... for it. For filling dead space the best stuff is the stuff used inside speakers (at least higher end speakers) it looks liek the pink insulation used in buildings but it's grey/brown.

BTW Open cell foam is better for comp's than closed cell. becasue closed cell foam traps air pockets that retain heat. While open cell lets air move through it while giving a larger surface area for the sound waves to hit.
 
CSaddict (Jul 08, 2001 07:39 p.m.):
LOL rubber is more sound absorbant than metal so if your on a budget, spray type or dynomat is a good idea. Thats what dynomat is for. Foam is expansive so that spray foam idea is not a good idea but I like the egg crate bed stuff idea thats a good idea though it will detract from airspace in your box. Less airspace less airflow.

Just want to coment on 2 things real quick ... dynamat is very expensive compared to eggcrate bedding. The eggcrate stuff will slow down air movement due to it being so non-airodynamic but if there is less volume inside your case fresh air will be exchanged faster so it kind of evens out.
 
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