I have the JCW stage 1 kit and the exhaust is just a tad too load for my middle aged ears. For those of you who have used dynamat [or other sound deadening products] do you think it would bring down the exhaust level if I did the portion under the boot liner and back seat or would it be a waste of time and money.

Thanks.

 

Yes, you will need to put it under the seat and in the boot. If you can also spray the underbody sealant under the car, it would be better.

You may consider other brands of insulation that are more targeted toward sound reduction as well.

You can still hear it but it is more subdued.

 

Are there other brands out there that are recommended or is Dynamat the best one to choose. I really dont know anything about it other than some passing posts on NAM.

 

I used FatMat because it was similar to DynaMat but less expensive.
I used it on the rear side panels and rear floor including the battery box.
I installed it in my GP, that did not come with rear insulation or a rear seat, to eliminate some of the exhaust noise.

 

Undercoat spray sealer? worst idea ever. You can use it if you want nothing but headaches later. Underbody coatings disrupt the water drains under the car eventually resulting in rust. Not to mention it makes any future mods a pain in the *** it gets every where. Just my .02

 

Just depends on where you spray it.

Have not been a problem for any of my mods.

 

I've read some online reviews of dynamat and theat is the way I am going. The big question is do you all think that just doing the boot and under the back seat will be enough. I really don't want to get into removing all the carpet etc. I just want to reduce the drone of the JCW exhaust.

 

If you're worried about road noise I would definitely do the wheel wells and the floor. Dynamat is pretty expensive IMO. I like Raamat, but I would definitely add a layer of ensolite when doing the install. It's really not worth it to only do the mat if you're gonna take apart the car anyway.

http://www.raamaudio.com/

 

Also check out www.sounddeadenershowdown.com

 

+1 on the Raamat

 

My main goal is to reduce some of the exhaust drone from the JCW exhaust. So you all are saying that Raamat is better than Dynamat? Is that because of the price? Quality Ease of use? Results?

Thanks.

 

I like Raamat better because it's cheaper and it's pretty easy to install. It's pretty much just cut, peel, and paste now. The ensolite is also easier to work with now as well. It used to be you had to spray an adhesive on it to get it to stick. Now it's also self adhesive like the raamat.

On my last car, I did the roof, doors, hatch, floor and wheel wells. It made a big difference. I was also trying to get rid of the drone from my exhaust because it was really wearing on me, but I also had a bunch of audio gear in there as well. I think it took me about 10 hours total taking the car apart, applying the mat, and putting everything back together. Definitely worth it.

Your best bet is to email Rick, the owner, and just talk with him about what you want to do. He won't steer you wrong.

 

I'd recommend reading the info on sounddeadener.com as a primer. You can get better results by using a dampener to stop panel vibration and a barrier to cut sound transmission. They serve two different purposes.

 

What gaw said...
Adding lots of material will help some of the HF noise, but not the lower tones. Besides, the rest of us middle and older will still hear it!
It can add up in weight. 3 series cars have several hundred pounds of sound abasement in them.

Dynamat adds mass to the panel so it resonates at lower frequencies. It does not block sound. It has some dampening effect to help prevent resonances. Fiber or open-cell foam is used to absorb sound. Problem is, you need INCHES of it for midrange, FEET for bass. For a primer on this technology, search on absorption panels on the WEB. Sound is sound. What works in studios works in cars.

There are other brands of butyl based sheets. Stay away from the asphalt based sheets. I found some a few years ago for about 1/4 the brand name. Seemed to be identical. Worked excellent. Search the WEB. Don't plan on ever taking it off once stuck.

 

I'm thinking of putting dynamat under the hood. Anywhere else recommended without tearing the car apart?

Reason is that the noise is buggin' me when I'm on a call through the bluetooth in the car.

 

I'm going to pull out the back seat and under the boot carpet. I really don;t want to get into taking out consoles and carpet. I just want to reduce some of the exhaust drone at higher speeds when I have the seats folded down.

Going to the Dragon last month with a full load in the mountains, the exhaust got to be pretty annoying.

 

I recently installed sound reduction material in my 2009 R-57. I purchased everything from www.sounddeadenershowdown.com . Don was very helpful, told me what areas to attack first, provided a material list of what to buy, and did not try to oversell me to sound proof areas that would have little impact. Based on my experience, I highly recommend Don and his company. (Don Sambrook don@sounddeadenershowdown.com)

I used the aluminum backed deadeners (CLD tiles) and only covered a fraction of the surface (check out the tech info on the above website for an explanation). I then added 1/8" of closed cell foam and then the mass vinyl sound barrier. I concentrated on the rear boot area, the rear wheel housings, area under the rear seat, and behind the side panels in the back seat area.

With this alone the reduction in road and tire noise was very noticable. I then installed the material in the doors and the effect is amazing. It is a convertible so I don't expect it to sound like a Lexas but the other day on the interstate after a rain - the lack of the tire noise on wet pavement was amazing. The doors now close with the feel of a 7 series BMW.

The whole car feels more solid and when you tap on the outside of the door it sounds like a bank vault. Well, not that sollid - but much better than stock. I finished one door and you could tap on each door and the difference in the sound when you tapped was huge.

The radio sounds better as the speakers are not competing with so much outside noise.

I was sensitive to weight and kept the overalll weight gain pretty low. It is the mass vinyl at about a pound per square foot that weighs the most. I can't detect any difference in responsiveness or acceleration (it has 172 HP after all )

I am pleased with the results.

 

Dynamat does not block noise. It adds mass that reduces a panels tendency to resonate. Good stuff. ( Although I also found cheaper clones). To muffle noise, you need to add an absorption material. Do a bit of googling for sound control products.

I did the outer skins behind the rear speakers, floor under where the rear seat was, floor under the rear deck. I added a fiber mat under the seat space and an additional one between the rear side inner panels and the body.

I guess I could recommend a different muffler. Stock MCS is just fine.