Best soundproofing for walls 2023 (Top 5 methods)
What to look for when choosing the best soundproofing for walls.
Living with noisy neighbours can cause stress, interrupt your sleep or just be a general nuisance. Fortunately, if it’s time to take action and invest in some soundproofing you have a lot of choices!
It’s really important to make the right choice to find a solution that works for the noise you’re dealing with and your budget.
But who are we to tell you what is the best soundproofing for walls? We have been helping people just like you for over a decade and have successfully solved tens of thousands of noise issues all over the UK. We have developed our own market-leading range of soundproofing products that are based on new technology or improving existing soundproofing tech.
How to achieve quality soundproofing for walls
Watch my video that shows how soundproofing works through 3 basic principles.
In short; for the best soundproofing you want to create an air gap between the problem wall and a ‘new’ wall made of high-mass materials like acoustic plasterboard and soundproof membrane. you then need to make sure that that air gap is filled with sound-absorbing material to avoid the drum effect. For the absolute best results it’s a great idea to create a decoupled stud frame that doesn’t touch the problem wall, then build a new decoupled wall on top of that stud frame using the MuteClip system.
If you are limited for space you may have to use soundproof panels. Though these save on space they are actually more expensive an less effective than a MuteClip system. If space is non-negotiable then they are a good way to bring your noise level down.
How effective is soundproofing for walls?
It can be highly effective when done right! Some people think you need to improve a wall by 50-60dB to achieve a good result, this is not quite right. Your wall will already be performing at around 40dB and you only need to bring the sound below the background sound level to make the sound coming through the wall inaudible.
Let’s walk through an example to put this into perspective. A standard brick wall is likely to achieve around a 40dB airborne reduction.
A TV on at a normal level is around 90dB. This means 50dB of the sound will come through the wall after the wall has reduced this by 40dB.
Now the important thing is to remember that you only need to bring this below the background sound level. Background sound level will vary across the country, on different days and times of day but this is commonly between 30-40dB. (in the day around 40dB)
So, the sound currently coming through the wall at 50dB is 10dB above the background sound level, therefore it is the 10dB you can hear in your room. This 10dB is what you are looking to reduce.
In this video, I have digitally reduced the sound by 27dB to give you an idea of what this kind of soundproofing actually sounds like.
it’s best to turn your speakers down to the expected level of noise you may hear through your walls to get a clearer idea of what the reduction would sound like.
An introduction to the MuteClip
If I we’re to recommend you watch only one video about soundproofing it would be this one. In this video, we give you a complete guide to the most effective type of soundproofing we offer.
Before picking from our ‘top 5 best soundproofing for walls’ list it’s important to understand what a MuteClip is. These clever little clips work as a method to secure a new soundproof wall to an existing wall whilst hugely reducing the transfer of vibrations. The dual impedance silicone makes contact with the existing wall and hugely reduces the ability for vibrations to transfer into the new wall whilst creating a secure mount. MuteClip channel bars can then run through these clips and soundproof plasterboard can be attached to the channels.
#1 Best soundproofing for walls 2023
The overall best soundproofing for walls is our MuteClip Gold system. We have helped thousands of customers install this exact system to help solve their neighbour noise issues.
So why it is the best when compared with other soundproofing options?
Noise reduction – Utilising the three key principles of soundproofing the MuteClip Gold System delivers incredibly high levels of noise reduction, coming in 12 decibles lower than some direct to wall systems.
Thickness – Whilst not as slim as a soundproof panel the MuteClip comes in 20mm slimmer than an independent stud wall system.
Cost – The MuteClip system can come in around half the price than a direct to wall system whilst delivering a much better acoustic performance.
#2 Direct-to-wall soundproofing panels
Although a decoupled frame is the best soundproofing for walls, not all soundproofing for walls requires building a de-coupled stud frame. Our direct-to-wall soundproofing panels are the MuteBoard range.
With these soundproofing panels, you can attach them straight to an existing wall. They have an acoustic plasterboard front so they are ready to be skimmed and look no different from a normal wall. When fixing to a brick wall we usually recommend the MuteBoard 3. This allows the high-mass materials to be de-coupled from the masonry wall with a 6mm closed cell foam to maximize the sound reduction within a very slimline soundproofing panel.
These will likely show best results on a stud wall that is already low mass so the addition of a MuteBoard can add a strong level of noise reduction. For application on a brick wall, the performance is limited by Mass Law but if you have no space to lose due to window frames or other features you will see some improvement from soundproof panels.
#3 Cheapest Timber wall soundproofing
The cheapest timber wall soundproofing is not always the best. You could install two layers of acoustic plasterboard and acoustic mineral wool but the addition of MuteClip will drastically improve the sound reduction.
The most effective upgrade is the de-coupling so spending a little extra on the MuteClip isolation mounts can translate to a far higher-performing soundproof partition. Other lower-cost upgrades include upgrading the mineral wool and plasterboard layers.
Another cheap option is just an existing timber stud frame wall with a soundproof panel from the MuteBoard range. This adds high mass and vibration-dampening material to the partition to reduce the sound from transferring through. This does however leave you open to the drum effect.
#4 Best stud wall soundproofing (mute clip double)
The best soundproofing for walls of a stud frame make up would be to remove the existing plasterboard and fit the MuteClip double system. It is essential to remove the plasterboard from 1 side of the wall if the wall sounds hollow when you knock on this. If the wall does not sound hollow and you know that acoustic mineral wool has been used within the cavity, then you can attach the MuteClip system over the current plasterboard as long as you use a joist scanner or similar to locate all the joists and fix the clips through.
#5 Best soundproofing for brick walls.
The very best soundproofing for walls made of brick is to build an independent stud frame off the existing wall. This can be built using either a timber stud frame or a metal frame and you will use a different isolation strip for either one. An isolation strip is strip of ruber that helps reduce vibration transmitting from the existing structure to the new wall. Timber isolation strips Metal isolation strips
This frame is attached to the adjacent walls, floor and ceiling and does not touch the original wall. If the wall is over 2.8m then you will need to use a thicker stud frame to brace this with stud ties such as the MuteClip MP.
You can then attach the dual impedance isolation mounts to the independent stud frame ready to attach your soundproofing acoustic plasterboard and Tecsound Layers seen in the system below.
Summary
In Summary, the way to soundproof a wall is by efficiently de-coupled high mass materials. This is easier to achieve when you have more space to lose from the wall. It is always a battle between space and performance as everyone wants the best possible, but people do not want to lose the space in their homes.
Try to move your furniture forward by 80mm to see if you notice the difference. If you don’t notice the difference then you can go ahead with the system or even consider something thicker, if you can’t live with losing that space then try one of the more slimline options available.
If you think the thickest system is overkill, then you can downgrade this but the ‘belt a braces’ approach is always favourable when space is not an issue as some of the thicker systems are cheaper!
If all of this top 5 list of the best soundproofing for walls feels a bit overwhelming, pop onto our live chat or call: 01937 588226 and we’ll connect you to our team of acoustic consultants free of charge who will be able to advise you on the best soundproofing for existing walls solution for you.
