# Speaker Insulation



## cavedog (Oct 27, 2009)

Any thought on insulating the inside of speakers?


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## Mike Cason (Mar 17, 2007)

cavedog said:


> Any thought on insulating the inside of speakers?


We don't normally insulate speakers. We usually, but not always, dampen them according to their build type, which varies a lot according to their build type.


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## cavedog (Oct 27, 2009)

Sorry wrong term. Does poly fill work as a dampener? I have a tower with a port below the woofer, a port or hole above the woofer a port or hole above the mid range, and a port or hole above the tweeter en closer. When dampening these towers what would be a good guideline for the proper procedure? Thanks for you help. Garry Here is a picture of the tower.  I took out the cheap speakers and tweeters and in the process of putting in Infinities.


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## lsiberian (Mar 24, 2009)

I insulate speakers. rock wool is the most effective dampening material for loudspeaker and subwoofer enclosures. you can purchase it at ATA acoustics. 

You will want to wrap it up with burlap to keep particles flying around in the enclosure. 

For sealed enclosures I suggest you put 2" of insulation on the sides and top. With 4" on the back. Do this along with bracing every 3" to 4" on each axis and putting a constraint layer between two layers of ply or MDF and you will have the best possible enclosure and sound.


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## Mike Cason (Mar 17, 2007)

cavedog said:


> Sorry wrong term. Does poly fill work as a dampener? I have a tower with a port below the woofer, a port or hole above the woofer a port or hole above the mid range, and a port or hole above the tweeter en closer. When dampening these towers what would be a good guideline for the proper procedure? Thanks for you help. Garry Here is a picture of the tower.  I took out the cheap speakers and tweeters and in the process of putting in Infinities.


Garry,

I think all you would need is some 1.25 eggcrate foam for your application. If you can find a sheet of loose wool, that would work as well and perhaps better. Don't overdampen. 

I would spray on the high strength 3M adhesive to the cabinet and the material, let it tack dry and apply it that way. You won't need much. I would do one side, the bottom, and the rear of the cabinet. Polyfil can find its way down into your ports and drivers as it sometimes falls apart. 

Here is a link to a sheet of the eggcrate: http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=260-516

I would get a couple of sheets as you will probably need some later. Shipping would be the same respectively.

If you want to use the wool, which some high end audiophiles like much better, I would go to some fabric shops or hit the 'ole EBAY link and find some. It has a tendency to make cabinets sound better. The rock wool is an excellent choice. Different speaker builders have their own technique that works best for them. Ask 20 builders and you will get at least 18 different answers.

Good luck:T


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## lsiberian (Mar 24, 2009)

cavedog said:


> Sorry wrong term. Does poly fill work as a dampener? I have a tower with a port below the woofer, a port or hole above the woofer a port or hole above the mid range, and a port or hole above the tweeter en closer. When dampening these towers what would be a good guideline for the proper procedure? Thanks for you help. Garry Here is a picture of the tower.  I took out the cheap speakers and tweeters and in the process of putting in Infinities.


What are you trying to do? If you want infinity towers buy the Infinity Primus 362 and then line the walls with peel-n-seal and 2" or burlapped rockwool or fiber. This will dramatically improve performance.


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## lsiberian (Mar 24, 2009)

Mike Cason said:


> Garry,
> 
> I think all you would need is some 1.25 eggcrate foam for your application. If you can find a sheet of loose wool, that would work as well and perhaps better. Don't overdampen.
> 
> ...


Mike that seems a bit pricey for polyfill. Wool or fiber is much cheaper and superior in absorption.


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## Mike Cason (Mar 17, 2007)

lsiberian said:


> Mike that seems a bit pricey for polyfill. Wool or fiber is much cheaper and superior in absorption.


Ok....He has had his question answered and now has several options. I don't cut corners on anything I build. I got about 5 lbs of Romney wool off of Ebay for 22 bucks delivered.

I did suggest wool in my post.


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## lsiberian (Mar 24, 2009)

Mike Cason said:


> Ok....He has had his question answered and now has several options. I don't cut corners on anything I build. I got about 5 lbs of Romney wool off of Ebay for 22 bucks delivered.
> 
> I did suggest wool in my post.


That's not a bad deal on the wool. You gotta love ebay. :T:bigsmile:

I do cut corners. But I won't cut any on my sonosub. It's entirely round. :R


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## cavedog (Oct 27, 2009)

[Thanks for the input. I also will have to add a 3 way crossover. Speaker exchange recommends the Dayton Audio. He tested the mid crossover point and 5k for the 6.5 midrange. Here is the link to the miranges I bought. http://www.speakerex.com/B16D80PR.html. Should I dampen the port below the woofer? Thanks for your help. P.S. Tuning my theater room is next!]

Yea, ya can throw a bit of dampening below the port. Make sure you have 2 to 3 inches of clearance from the port to the bottom of the cabinet or the top of the dampening material so the port will work correctly.

Crossovers, that's what is going to eat ya up. Sure you can get some shelf built units that Dayton sells, but they are basic and don't take in all of the critical theil parameters it takes to properly design a loudspeaker. The efficiency of the drivers, paralled drivers, the slope of your tweeter is critical whether it is a second, third, or fourth order. Box size, reverse polarity of a driver, and many other factors play a role as well. There is a lot that goes into the heart of the speaker, the crossover. 

When I started out many years ago, I bought a couple and my speakers sounded like a match box with sounds eminating from it. If you bought your drivers from Parts Express or Madisound, they will work up a crossover for you for a nominal fee. Someone who might read this post may offer to help. I don't have the time to do that for you because I'm so busy with my work. I have computer software that does the calculations. The link you provided does not have enough technical information about the driver to put into the software for the calculations, so one of the pros here may be able to do a close guestimate because of their experience.


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## lsiberian (Mar 24, 2009)

It's best to voice crossovers. But in a commercial speaker I suggest you leave them in and use an EQ system to correct deficiencies. Crossover building is a lot of work and is not as simple as buying a generic one and hoping it works. 

Don't put dampening in the port and if you are ported leave half the internal surface uncovered. I usually do a side, the bottom and back.


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## cavedog (Oct 27, 2009)

Thanks guys I have an audesy eq on my receiver. I'll let that do all the work.


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