# Cheap+Effective sound dampening technique :)



## zomgiwin

thank you for this info!
ima go get some on payday in a week, and post pix of application probably.
can we get pictures of where and what you applied it on in your pc?


----------



## metaverse

I haven't got my new camera yet but in a few weeks when I'm caught up on bills i'll post pics no problem









I applied it mainly to the walls , floor and ceiling of the case ... I was going to get creative with the hard drive area but its a cheap HP case and doesn't have very good airflow for the hard drives but it does have an air funnel for above my cpu so thats a plus.


----------



## ericeod

OP, is this the tape?

http://www.findtape.com/shop/product...599&height=831


----------



## zomgiwin

i'd been pondering about cheap methods for sound dampening
i was going to put some "egg crate" foam on my case lol









oh, and i think this is the tape


----------



## metaverse

Quote:


Originally Posted by *ericeod* 
OP, is this the tape?

http://www.findtape.com/shop/product...599&height=831










Close but not quite the same stuff I used ...

This is what I used , no foil ...

http://www.covalenceadhesives.com/Se...ls.aspx?ID=634


----------



## metaverse

Quote:


Originally Posted by *zomgiwin* 
i'd been pondering about cheap methods for sound dampening
i was going to put some "egg crate" foam on my case lol

LOLOL

I wouldn't bother with that stuff man , thats not gonna help much AT ALL.

If anything , i'd contemplate a very dense blanket before the eggcrate.

That stuff is more for lessening audible reflections from creating echo on very smooth glossy walls. It doesn't do much for actual sound "insulation".


----------



## j0z3

Thanks man!
I was thinking on putting something to silence my case as i can't buy a new one after i saw some Sileo 500 case.

In my dads company there are LOADS of this tape.

thanks!!

EDIT: pictures would be nice, even if take with a phone.


----------



## metaverse

Quote:


Originally Posted by *j0z3* 
Thanks man!
I was thinking on putting something to silence my case as i can't buy a new one after i saw some Sileo 500 case.

In my dads company there are LOADS of this tape.

thanks!!

EDIT: pictures would be nice, even if take with a phone.

np ...

And although I am all about pictures myself , I have a 50 dollar verizon phone from walmart that doesn't have any type of picture TRANSFER capabilites.

And although I will get pics up at some point , just go back and read over what I posted ...

Its not difficult to picture. Just layer the walls and ceiling [floor isn't really needed] with the flashing tape ... simple as that. And again , this case has JUNK for cooling so I didn't want to go overboard and start using it to lessen vibrations on hard drive mounts , ect ...

Also one thing to keep in mind is the space between your motherboard and the wall ... some airflow between the two is better than none so use at your discretion.


----------



## zomgiwin

Quote:


Originally Posted by *metaverse* 
LOLOL

I wouldn't bother with that stuff man , thats not gonna help much AT ALL.

If anything , i'd contemplate a very dense blanket before the eggcrate.

That stuff is more for lessening audible reflections from creating echo on very smooth glossy walls. It doesn't do much for actual sound "insulation".

i hear ya, i never really thought about it, i just kinda was like "hmm, i have foam laying around, i should use it for sound dampening" lol
i would think that putting a layer or 2 of this tape, and some eggcrate foam on top of it would be best
then the sound wouldn't resonate in the case much, for greater sound proofing
but, i don't think i want to because how much space the foam would take
makes me want to get the case i've been eyeballing, no window, so i could insulate the whole side panel


----------



## metaverse

Quote:


Originally Posted by *zomgiwin* 
i hear ya, i never really thought about it, i just kinda was like "hmm, i have foam laying around, i should use it for sound dampening" lol
i would think that putting a layer or 2 of this tape, and some eggcrate foam on top of it would be best
then the sound wouldn't resonate in the case much, for greater sound proofing
but, i don't think i want to because how much space the foam would take
makes me want to get the case i've been eyeballing, no window, so i could insulate the whole side panel









Yeah I hear ya ...

As far as the eggcrate in the case , IF you really wanted to go that far - i'd suggest using a layer or two of old T-shirt material as that can act good for a ghetto reflection deadener but again keep heat in mind ...

And do I think you NEED it , not quite as I dont think the results would be very noticeable BUT I do like experiments so if you decide to try it out with and without the layered tshirt material let us know how it goes









On another note , if you had a case with a window that you didn't plan on selling you could always seal up that plastic window with the tape as well and then cover the outside with stickers or paint or whatever to cover up the look if you didn't like it.


----------



## stiffy725

vedy vedy good info. deff gonna find someof that tape. +rep 2 u my buddy


----------



## metaverse

Thanks for the REP stiffy , I could use it with low level over here









I'm glad the info helped









Hey everyone ,

I got my girlfriend to bring over her camera so I could take some pics for ya ...

I had got an old socket478 P4 , HP pavilion 752n off my buddy for general internet use a few months ago when my laptop crapped out. The case is designed with the usual slide off plastic panels from store bought pcs.

The computer was caked with black dust initially and after doing a through cleaning and fresh windows install I fired it up and noticed a high pitch whine coming from the CPU fan ... At the time I decided to grab a "rosewill hyper silence 478 cpu cooler" with a 92mm fan. Initially when it said fits "478's up to prescott 3.4ghz" I thought "ok , this'll be easy as can be" ...

So I bought the fan , get it out of the box and notice that it didn't with a mounting kit. it came with two little rails but the mounting already on my mobo didn't match it ... So that fan is still kicking around staring me in the face , laughing at me... I thought "i dont wanna spend anymore money right now ... what can I do ??"

I remembered using it in layers for car audio insulation and thought "why not try it on my computer case" ... And so here are the pics:

These are the right and left doors with 2 layers on each. One thing to keep in mind is air bubbles pop up quick so follow it with you hand and flatten while you apply it to your surface.









This is a picture of the ceiling of the case. I plucked out the psu , cpu air funnel+fan and the IDE cables to take this pic. As you can see I cut around those two little metal spots with a razor to help flatten out the layers. They continue on above the opticals









And this last pic is of the flashing tape roll (without the green/white packaging). One side is sticky and you peel the white casing off the top.









That was done a couple months back. At first it was only 1 layer thick and worked a little bit but not much. After applying 2 layers it took the noise down enough for me to tolerate however i'm sure you could easily get 3 layers on there to take it down even a bit more. The key here is the layers , the more you put on the better as long as you have proper air flow and space you'll be good


----------



## pewpewlazer

Two questions:

1. WHERE can I get it? Google finds nothing.
2. How sticky is the adhesive backing?

I'm pretty sold on the idea otherwise


----------



## Thedark1337

I cant find it either, Tried it at Lowe's and they don't sell it. Home Depot has a big roll for 20$ don't know what to do with extras. Possibly i might go to a small hardware store 10 miles away from here. Everything close to me is out of business :swearing: damn cant find flashing tape lol i'll use plasti dip instead


----------



## kdvwest

Sorry to bump a very old thread, but had a few questions for the OP or anyone else who has done this method..

Does the tape stay pretty cool, none oven-like?

Has anyone tried this for home/computer audio subs with good results?

From the looks of one of the thread pics, dust cleaning looks like a breeze. I found a website that has this tape at a good price, but curious if anyone found a local/online reputable vendor with good pricing-per-size.

http://www.antonline.com/antonline.p...=flashing+tape


----------



## 102014

whats this tape called in the uk?

Thanks [Redacted]


----------



## fortesquieu

Could anyone of you post a video of it? I want to hear how quiet it is!


----------



## coupe

Quote:


Originally Posted by *kdvwest* 
Sorry to bump a very old thread, but had a few questions for the OP or anyone else who has done this method..

Does the tape stay pretty cool, none oven-like?

Has anyone tried this for home/computer audio subs with good results?

From the looks of one of the thread pics, dust cleaning looks like a breeze. I found a website that has this tape at a good price, but curious if anyone found a local/online reputable vendor with good pricing-per-size.

http://www.antonline.com/antonline.p...=flashing+tape


I bought that protecto wrap it is ugly and labelled on the non adhesive side









Found the good stuff!


----------



## legoman786

I'm tempted to try this myself.









With what me having 6 case fans n all.


----------



## MeatloafOverdose

Soon as I find a source for a single black nashua roll..I'll try it.

That accepts paypal


----------



## Josh81

Buying this today (IF i can find it).

My 922 is noisier than my Antec 900,the majority of the sound is leaking from the side panel and the front ( I have 4 unused bays, which are doing nothing but leaking sound out..)

Might just be the big ol 200 MM in the front though, my antec 900 had 2 yate loons in the front.


----------



## Josh81

http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1...atalogId=10053

found it at my local store

edit : installing today!


----------



## maxextz

great thread and tips.


----------



## woox

anyone post pics/results?


----------



## superthang

I know its old thread, but I got 7 fans running, Anyone done this and notice any different? result?


----------



## KoldVoid

Sounds like a plan, will give this a try on my next build, even though that may not be too soon, lookis like it could be a solid alternative to rather expensive insulation. I do home recording and in the studio environment silence is critical, as are processor cores and system overheads in general...


----------



## orangeimposter

anyone else try this? Josh81? Results? I just bought 75 feet of the wrong stuff. Hope I can return it... Will be trying this week.


----------



## Zap

A few thoughts...

I agree that typically more dense materials are better for "quiet."

There are off-brand stuff similar to Dynamat but costing a lot less.

One complaint I've heard about various sound dampening materials is the smell/stink. Your computer might be exhausting rubber smell, or even asphalt-like smells depending on the materials used.

There are also different ways to combat noise depending on what kind of noise it is.

Vibrational noise? That's when the computer case itself starts to produce noise from the fans/HDDs attached to it. You know this is the kind you have if your computer gets quieter just by you putting your hand on the side panel. The heavy stuff is the best for this type of noise. Of course even better is to not create the noise to begin with. To do this, you need to find out what is causing it, and then decoupling it (through soft rubber/silicone mounts or other methods) from the metal of the case. This is why a lot of "quiet" cases use grommets for HDD mounts, or why soft screw replacement fan mounts work. Note that the gasket style does not work that well, unless it is in conjunctino with the soft mounts.

Noise in the air? This is more of the whine from high RPM fans, or whoosh air noise from larger fans. You can't get rid of this too well with panels. You want to have a baffle to trap the noise. That's why "quiet" cases like the Fractal Design R4 has a door that covers the front fans, with foam on the door. This creates an _indirect_ air path which makes it quieter because noise becomes attenuated when it has to reflect. Alternately, just slow down the fan RPM.

tl;dr Best way to make your system quieter is to make it produce less noise (slower fans, decouple fans/HDDs) because reducing noise _that has already been made_ is more difficult.


----------



## CloudX

I agree. but this does work though. I've installed leftover dynamat in cases before and it quiets them down a bit. You can't quiet a noisy fan though. Anyway, that tape and layering it would work even better as long as it doesn't smell!


----------



## Simplynicko

bumping this again.

i'm looking to get an aluminum lian-li case that is famous for rattling due to the flimsy door panels. this should clean up that issue.

lian-li-pca76

http://www.anandtech.com/show/6341/lian-li-pca76-case-review-the-limits-of-aluminum


----------



## wntrsnowg

After going to home depot in search of the Flashing Tape mentioned by the op, I found something near it that was also very effective (and cheaper







). It was called Insulation Tape by AP/Amatape and is a millimeter or two thick black foam with a sticky side covered by yellow plastic. It works great, and was $8.


----------



## dustins

Did you notice a difference? Do you have any pictures?


----------



## wntrsnowg

No, but it was this: http://www.homedepot.com/p/Armacell-2-in-x-30-ft-R-1-Foam-Insulation-Tape-TAP18230/100539553#.UeGSII0qbLI


----------



## yann3804

Bumping this up again.

Is the stuff effective?


----------



## givmedew

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *yann3804*
> 
> Bumping this up again.
> 
> Is the stuff effective?


At stopping a panel from vibrating ABSOLUTELY!

At absorbing or blocking noise... Not at all or almost not at all.

Actually knowing how to properly install this stuff goes a long way unfortunately nearly no one knows how to install it properly.

At max you should cover a panel by 50% from the middle. There is no reason to cover it entirely because remember this stuff doesn't actually block much noise. In high end luxury cars you will something similar installed correctly but then above it you will see another layer of a material that is very thick. Different years and different manufacturers will use different materials from a very thick woven fabric, to a shredded fabric that is glued together like mdf, to extremely expensive closed cell foam. The bottom line is you can't block a lot of noise with a tiny little layer of rubber/tar.

What your are doing is stopping the panel from making noise and blocking out a very small amount of high frequency that won't penetrate the tar and probably wouldn't have penetrated the panel either.

The panel acts as a speaker the dynamat stops it from doing that.

50% coverage want more buy acoustic sound treatment material like blankets and foam which don't work well in computers.

You won't see dynamat being used in homes! But there is an application for it in computers just not quite what people think it is.

Any thing that vibrates it will help. You put just a tiny little bit of that stuff on a bell the bell won't work it will just go thunk and we are talking about 5% coverage. That is dynamats own demo that they make and distribute to dealers. It is the perfect example of how little you need.


----------



## discoprince

im down for it since ive been looking for a way to soundproof my case

does it actually work decent enough?


----------



## givmedew

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *discoprince*
> 
> im down for it since ive been looking for a way to soundproof my case
> 
> does it actually work decent enough?


does what work decent enough... using foam and/or batting or using just a dynamat like material? As I said above dynamat like material will stop your panels from vibrating which can be a huge source of noise. Even if you don't realize it is the actual panel that is responsible for the sound. If there is a sound in your case that is reduced from putting heavy pressure on a panel or grabbing your case from opposite sides and twisting then dynamat like treatment is a must, well that or bending the panel or a support enough to put pressure on the panel but any dynamat like treatment will work great at reducing noises that are caused or amplified by panels.

Foam or batting will do more for sound itself but it can be difficult or expensive to do correctly and giant gaping holes in your case are usually a huge cause of sound leaking.


----------



## discoprince

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *givmedew*
> 
> does what work decent enough... using foam and/or batting or using just a dynamat like material? As I said above dynamat like material will stop your panels from vibrating which can be a huge source of noise. Even if you don't realize it is the actual panel that is responsible for the sound. If there is a sound in your case that is reduced from putting heavy pressure on a panel or grabbing your case from opposite sides and twisting then dynamat like treatment is a must, well that or bending the panel or a support enough to put pressure on the panel but any dynamat like treatment will work great at reducing noises that are caused or amplified by panels.
> 
> Foam or batting will do more for sound itself but it can be difficult or expensive to do correctly and giant gaping holes in your case are usually a huge cause of sound leaking.


i already figured out what im going to do as far as this goes.
im going to use a combination of the sound dampening foam (anti vibration) and the silence proof sheets that silverstone makes and mod the inside panels of my case with it.
my 500R rattles like crazy loaded up with fans and 2 gpus.


----------



## Kazumi

Good amount of info in this thread. I'm planning to rebuild my case soon. So this is good.


----------



## innoc3nt

This is it
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Nashua-Tape-Select-Flash-6-in-x-25-yds-Rubber-Flashing-Tape-8-Rolls-Per-Case-631001/100507542?N=1xo%2FNtk-Extended%2FNtt-butyle%252Brubber%252Btape%3FNtx%3Dmode%20matchpartialmax#.Um6lu-IlJck


----------



## ugotd8

Thanks to the OP for this great tip. Picked up a roll from HD (for $23) and found it has many uses. One use not discussed yet, I used two layers of small pieces on a 360mm rad where the mounting holes are. This should reduce a little of the vibration sounds transferred on the previously metal to metal mount of the rad to the case,


----------

