Guest Anonymous Posted November 24, 2001 Share Posted November 24, 2001 I was perusing through some previous posts (Love the search funcion!) on the topic of sound deadening, and it seems like a good modification to do. Seems like there's a ton of different products out there, dynamat, Cascade Audio, Ranmat, Home Depot stuff, etc... which makes things somewhat confusing. I was never much of an audiophile, so I wanted to ask you what product out there is the best bang (no pun intended) for the buck? I know Dynamat extreme is really good, but its also really pricey, and I hear there are other products out there that are just as good without the hefty price tag. Roll on or spray on? Tim told me about this spray on that OEMs use that looks promising... With that out of the way, there is also the question of where to apply this stuff? Floorboards, wheelwells, trunk, underside, front bulkhead, rear 1/4 panels? What should I use and where should I use it, I would imagine different areas work with different deadeners. I know this sounds crazy, but what about something on the underside of the valve and timing covers? I would suspect damping the insides of the valve covers would go quite a way to quiet the racket in there, especially if you're running solid lifters. The product used just needs to be able to withstand slightly elevated temps around 150-200 degrees. Also are you supposed to apply this stuff on top of any rustproofing (POR-15, Hammerite, etc) or does it not matter? Can you paint over this stuff? I'm hoping you guys will take some time to address this issue, so hopefully we can organize it and include it in the FAQ, as I'm sure this would be beneficial to a lot of people, however this topic is buried deep inside the archives, and I'm hoping we could make this information accessible to all. Thank you Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DavyZ Posted November 24, 2001 Share Posted November 24, 2001 quote: Originally posted by Omar aka Hydra: I know this sounds crazy, but what about something on the underside of the valve and timing covers? I would suspect damping the insides of the valve covers would go quite a way to quiet the racket in there, especially if you're running solid lifters. I'm hoping you guys will take some time to address this issue, so hopefully we can organize it and include it in the FAQ, as I'm sure this would be beneficial to a lot of people, however this topic is buried deep inside the archives, and I'm hoping we could make this information accessible to all. Thank you Sound deadending material in the valve covers?!? Umm, don't go there. As for taking the past information and making it a FAQ, you are welcome to do so since a number of us are working on other topics. Do the FAQ topic on Word, and then copy and paste to email, then send to Jeromio. The reason why this topic is buried in the archives is because it is not asked about very frequently. In my mind the archives are like a library and are available to anyone anytime. Not trying to dump on you, just my $.02 Davy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted November 24, 2001 Share Posted November 24, 2001 quote: Originally posted by Omar aka Hydra: I know this sounds crazy, but what about something on the underside of the valve and timing covers? I would suspect damping the insides of the valve covers would go quite a way to quiet the racket in there, especially if you're running solid lifters. The product used just needs to be able to withstand slightly elevated temps around 150-200 degrees. Ummmm no. No type of sound deadening should even be attempted to be applied there. The only real way to quiet down the valvetrain is titanium valves. A lot of the newer luxury cars are coming eqipped with titanium valves to lower the noise and reduce the weight of the moving parts. The first thing you should is check the door and window seals. These are the biggest culprit of road and wind noise. When I prep cars for stereo installs, the first thing I do after stripping the interior is applying sheets of Brown Bread. This material can be bought in small sheets or large rolls. It's a mastic-type dampener which means it has to be heated before applying to the car. Now before you do this, make sure there are no loose objects, dust or fabric on the surface is this stuff only works with exposed metal surfaces. I normally use this on the floorpan and trunk. There are other brands you can use like Dynamat sheets, RAAMmat or even the Road Kill liquid dampener which can be rolled on by a paint roller or sprayed. Next, I'd tackle the doors. Usually it's too difficult to use sheet deadener on doors so it's best IMO to use the Stinger RoadKill spray. Spray it on the insides of the doors liberally and wait for it to dry. After that, use rubber undercoating spray (I prefer the 3M variety) and spray it on top of the layer of RoadKill. This seals the Stinger and prevents it from become saturated with water. If the stinger comes into contact with water, which usually happens during the winter due to condensation, it will become slushy. If you're really interested in cutting down engine noise, there are sheets of sound dampening that can be applied to the underside of the hood and fenders. I used all the above methods of sound dampening on my Q45 and the thing is dead quiet now. It's so quiet that sometimes I grind the engine thinking that the car hasn't started up! Before, I hated driving alongside motorcycles because they were so loud but now even if they were at WOT I could barely hear them. Maybe it's because my stereo is turned up so loud!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DavyZ Posted November 25, 2001 Share Posted November 25, 2001 Good points, Sopdadope. What you are saying in essence is that any sound deadening should be done in the body & interior, not the engine itself. I agree 100%. Thanks for the info. BTW, my '90 Q45 is very quiet now; I'm not sure I'd want it any quieter!! Davy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike C Posted November 25, 2001 Share Posted November 25, 2001 Cast aluminum valve covers do a bang up job of sound deadening compared to stamped steel. WIth the added bonus of better gasket sealing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted November 25, 2001 Share Posted November 25, 2001 quote: Originally posted by DavyZ: BTW, my '90 Q45 is very quiet now; I'm not sure I'd want it any quieter!! Davy Your welcome. My Q was always a quiet bugger but I can't tolerate road noise at all. For daily drives it's fine but for 1000+ mile trips the constant road humming does get to me. I've invited people to sit in my car and they're just amazed at how silent it is inside even on the freeways. I sprayed some undercoating spray in and around the wheel well and it significantly reduced tire noise. I've spent so much money on my stereo system that it would be a crime to not slap on some sound dampening. I'm so happy with the results I can't wait to get started on the stereo system for the 240. It will be TOP-NOTCH!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fl327 Posted November 25, 2001 Share Posted November 25, 2001 for overall sound deadening, i would go with the dynomat extreme on top of a nice coated interior and floor, with like a rubberized undercoating or somthing. for the motor ive seen people put a big slab under the hood itself, which looks funny to me because it is reflecty silver. the fire wall and tranny hump are the prime spots to insulate from heat. plopping a couple sheets to the inside of the door panels is pretty easy, and the hatch inside of the tool boxes, and the spare tire well should do the trick, and the secret is that you make gaskets out of this stuff for the rear tailight housings....YAY! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BLKMGK Posted November 25, 2001 Share Posted November 25, 2001 I think there's pics on my site from when I did this on my Z. I bought a Dynamat "trunk kit" and was able to do the entire car with it! However remember that for this stuff to work you do NOT have to cover every square inche and I sure as heck didn't! I put squares wherever there were BIG panels. I used a bunch of them inside the doors, all over the floor, rear towers, firewall as best I could, and I'd have done the roof if I could have! Remember, you're just tyring to damp oscillation and while covering every inch is best it's not strictly required. On top of my deadening I also rolled out some of th echeap bubblewrap looking foil stuff form Home Depot - worked great! No hotspots on my floor or firewall Just make sure that any big panels get a good sized square at least - the doors in particular, mine rang like bells before. A cheap idea I wish I'd thought of was to use spray bedliner. This stuff sticks like mad, isn't super expensive IMO, and should deaden pretty well. I tried some of the spray Dynamat and found it to be crap - the can is at such high pressure it blows everywhere If you could find bed liner cheaply enough or undercoating that didn't stink like mad I think either would work well. Does anyone make a consumer sprayable bed liner in a can of some sort? Heck, I'd be willing to buy some just to cover still more area on my car, it sure couldn't hurt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fl327 Posted November 26, 2001 Share Posted November 26, 2001 you can get spray on bed liner from kragen, or csk auto or grand auto or whatever the local parts store is called in your area, thats what i used on top of the rubber stuff, no dynamat yet however.... the spray is like 7.00 bucks a can, which does not go very far. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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