Dampening material supplies....

[Fallen Kell]

I am trying to find a good supplier of dampening materials for the use in my case. I have a Lian-Li PC-201B which is a monster of a case and as a result has a LOT of room inside which helps create a nice echo chamber effect.

Any ideas on good materials to use and stores to get (preferably online)? I am looking for something like rubber backed with aluminum, or similar, or other sound dampening materials (not just weight to reduce "rattle").

[jessekopelman]

It seems to me the stuff you can buy for speaker building at a place like Parts Express is less expensive than the stuff that you buy explicitly for PCs. How well it works, I can't say. Looking at the price for this kind of stuff, I wonder how effective just gluing styrofoam peanuts to the inside of the case would be? Maybe a really thin layer of rubber + the peanuts?

[jhhoffma]

Styrene foam is a BAD idea. A it's very squeaky and noisy when its moved. Oh, and it's flammable and melts at a very low temperature.

No if you're after looks and no smell, then Dynamat Extreme or any other butyl based sound deadener will work. If price is an issue and smell is not, you can try "Peel & Seal" (roofing material) which is sold at Lowe's and Home Depot for much cheaper than purpose-built asphalt-based sound deadener. If price is an issue and looks are not, then you can try the most cost-effective deadener, self-adhesive vinyl floor tiles. Home Depot and Lowe's have them, but they're usually too thin and light. You maybe better luck finding them at a carpet or flooring store. You can also cover it up with something else if you like. I've put lightweight auto headliner material on top to give it a nice even look.

If you really don't want any kind of dampening material, I've also used upholstery foam (ugly green) to muffle the sound (mainly high frequencies) and prevent reflections. You can find that at the local fabrics store along with the headliner material sometimes.

[drees]

My favorite stuff to use is RAAMmat + Ensolite foam.

http://www.raamaudio.com/

The RAAMmat BXT is a butyl based aluminum covered material.

Ensolite is a closed cell foam.

Apply the RAAMmat then glue on some Ensolite. Double up the RAAMmat or Ensolite for trouble areas.

[Fallen Kell]

Thank you everyone. All the sites and products listed gave me a lot to think about.

I found McMaster-Carr from another thread and took a look around in there. I picked up some 1"
Acoustical Polyurethane Skinned Foam Absorber and some 1/2" Acoustical Polyurethane Skinned Foam Absorber to start. I may get some other things, like some butyl rubber sheets if I need more weight on some parts of the case. But I don't suspect I will need that as the case has a very decent fit, I just need some material to fill some of the void inside the case.

I thought about getting some of the foil faced or foam/lead absorbers, but I think I made the right decision for my needs. The skinned foam has a higher NRC value then the foil, and I don't need the benefit of heat reflection in this instance as we are not talking about use in a car or engine, at most I don't think I will see heat over 110-120 degrees and at that point my fan controller would be going nuts anyway with all fans being turned on to full.

[TedMC]

Hope you get to check this stuff out,it works quite well. This is what high end car stereo guys use

http://www.scosche.com/accumat.aspx



And this stuff from the world of audiophiles:

http://www.illbruck-sonex.com/products_SonexPanels.php

and finally this stuff:

http://www.rpginc.com/residential/cinem ... oducts.htm