Soundproofing vs Sound Absorption
Sound is a lot like water. It doesn’t have a shape or form, it can mold itself to its surroundings, and like water, it can be absorbed by some materials and contained by others.
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This is why both soundproofing materials and sound absorbing materials co-exist and serve separate purposes. So, how does one define soundproofing vs. sound absorption? Soundproofing products keep sound contained in a space, make it impossible for sound to move to other parts of a building, and stop unwanted sound from entering a room. Soundproofing is the solution you want if you’re looking to keep what happens in your conference rooms confidential, or if you want to block the sound of your next-door neighbor’s Metallica records. Sound absorption products, on the other hand, absorb the extra sound waves that bounce around a space and cause poor acoustics, background noise, and bad echo. They don’t stop sound from travelling into adjoining rooms, but they do drastically improve speech intelligibility and the sound quality of rooms, cars, boats, and other enclosed spaces. They improve the quality of the sound within a room.