Switched from foam to fiberglass panels after a show at a friend's studio last month

I was dead set on foam panels for my backyard studio. Thought they were cheaper and easier to hang. Then I went to a friend's place in Austin and heard his recordings. The difference was night and day. His room had zero echo and my foam setup still sounded boxy. He showed me his 2 inch thick fiberglass panels and I actually heard the difference in a 30 second test. So I spent $200 on four panels from a local supply house and the change is huge. Anyone else have a similar switch they resisted at first?

3 comments

3 Comments

nora73520d ago

Did you cover any specific problem frequencies with the fiberglass that foam just couldn't handle? I had a similar struggle with a spare bedroom I turned into a recording space. I started with foam and kept adding more panels, but the low end always sounded muffled and muddy. A friend finally convinced me to try fiberglass and I was amazed at how clean the bass response got. I ended up replacing all my foam with 4 inch thick panels and the difference in my mixes was huge. It cost more up front, but I feel like I saved money in the long run by not buying more foam that didn't work.

reese55120d ago

4 inch panels is actually the sweet spot for low end absorption, most guys don't go that thick on their first try. Foam just can't do squat below like 200hz no matter how many layers you stack, it's a physics thing with the material density. You made the right call swapping it all out, that muddiness is exactly the kind of problem fiberglass actually solves.

logan_schmidt20d ago

Did you measure the room before or after or just trust your ears on the swap?