How is Roxul better than foam absorption material for bass traps?
Q: How is Roxul better than foam absorption material for bass traps?
A: For bass trapping, Roxul soundproofing insulation does a great job from the deep bass and up, while foam wedges seem to do very little to nothing until you reach 250hz. Foam wedge bass traps had virtually no effect on the decay time below 200 hz while Roxul soundproofing insulation decreases the 65 hz decay time and up by a significant amount, with some effect at even 45hz.What makes a good bass trap material, and why not foam?
ASP doesn't sell foam bass traps. Our panels use a rigid, high-density fiberglass acoustic core wrapped in acoustically transparent fabric, which carries far more mass than an open-cell foam wedge, and mass is what actually slows low-frequency air movement.
Foam wedges are light and open-celled, which is exactly why they're cheap and why they do little for bass: there's not enough material there to absorb long, slow-moving low-frequency waves. A dense fiberglass core has the mass to do real work at the low end instead of just breaking up high-frequency reflections.
Thickness matters more than material alone for bass control. 2 inch panels carry a published NRC of 1.0 across the broadband range. 4 inch panels, used as bass traps, are built to reach further into the low end and don't carry a single published NRC number, since NRC isn't the right yardstick for low-frequency performance.
What is ASP's bass trap core made of?
A rigid, high-density fiberglass acoustic core, never foam.
Why not foam for bass traps?
Foam is light and open-celled, so it has little mass to slow low-frequency air movement, doing far less for bass buildup than a dense fiberglass core.
Does thickness matter for bass traps?
Yes. 4 inch panels reach further into the low end than 2 inch panels. 2 inch panels carry a published NRC of 1.0; 4 inch panels don't carry a single published NRC number, since that number isn't the right measurement for bass performance.
Where should bass traps go in the room?
Vertical room corners, where low-frequency energy builds up the most.