Sound insulation in building loudspeakers

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The acoustic design of HIFI rooms or home theatres can only be completed after choosing suitable loudspeakers. The market offers a large number of different products in various price ranges. From entry class, self-build speaker models, through the moderate classes and up to speakers from the best speaker manufacturers, there are suitable solutions for every need and budget. Technology-inspired individualists, however, increasingly opt to build loudspeakers themselves.

It doesn't matter whether it's a professional loudspeaker manufacturer of reference class speakers or an amateur handicraftsman, who would like to try speaker box building and build his or her own HIFI speakers with a HIFI speaker kit. Whoever prefers optimal sound, with the best speaker sound waves and pressure, should look for high-quality HIFI speakers insulation materials when choosing the loudspeaker dampening.

Thus loudspeaker housing can be dampened correctly

The natural resonance of loudspeaker housings can lead to unpleasant vibrations at different frequencies. Furthermore, the back of the loudspeaker diaphragm emits high frequency tones, which generate distorted vibrations in the loudspeaker's housing.

Vibrating speaker housing is especially problematic with bass-oriented loudspeakers. In order to dampen your self build HIFI speaker housing and reduce vibrations, the loudspeaker box's density must be increased. The highly-efficient aixFOAM acoustic heavy foil is optimally suited for this. This possesses an above average density, and can be attached via self-adhesive equipment on the inside of the box, in order to isolate the loudspeaker.

However, if the sound distortion from the reflection of the loudspeaker's acoustic waves is in the high frequency range, using professional loudspeaker insulating materials, such as acoustic foams or acoustic absorbers, is the best solution for insulating a HIFI loudspeaker. This is achieved by either filling the entire housing with acoustic wadding/foam flakes, or attaching a porous sound absorber inside the housing. Both options for loudspeaker isolation are based on the same principle: The modified pore structure of the acoustic foam material absorbs the acoustic vibrations and converts them into warmth.

If the housing vibrates in addition to the sound distortion, antinoise panels and sound insulation panels can be used simultaneously. This possible combination is preventative, since it will not adversely affect neither a speaker that is self-build, nor a high end speaker's sound. A tedious reworking with the right sound insulation for your box can thus be avoided from the outset.

Insulating the loudspeaker's housing when building the HIFI yourself from a kit

Building do it yourself speaker boxes with a HIFI speaker kit is an absolute highlight for every HIFI-inspired amateur hobbyist. Some go so far as to build the complete loudspeaker housing themselves. For optimal functioning, insulation may not be ignored, whether using a prefabricated loudspeaker kit or building one from scratch. A speaker box without the right insulation will never produce the desired results.

Appropriate housing insulation for the speakers, as well as speaker bottom insulation with suitable insulating material, prevent impact noise and casing vibrations. Lining the housing inner walls with speaker blanket insulation reduces impact noise and prevents outward sound leakage. It's also necessary to isolate the bottom of the loudspeaker, to avoid echoes. These could meet on the back of the diaphragm, and be inadvertently reproduced in this way.

When building loudspeakers using bass reflector tubes, you should generally rely on acoustic panels, since an outward shifting over time is hardly preventable when using alternative materials. In SPL box design, using horns and funnels to concentrate the sound radiation pattern and increase the loudspeaker's sound pressure is only possible with the appropriate housing size. However, large housings are fairly susceptible to natural vibrations, and must be adequately insulated to avoid them.