How Thick Are Acoustic Wall Panels?
Acoustic wall panels come 1 to 4 inches thick. In a home studio, you need at least 4 inches at the main reflection points. GIK's panel thickness guide calls 2 inches the effective minimum for speech and recommends "at least four-inch panels for your primary reflection points" in music and recording rooms.
Thickness vs lowest frequency absorbed
Thicker panels absorb lower frequencies, because bass wavelengths are long and need more material to slow them down. Owens Corning's 703 board data sheet shows absorption at 125 Hz rising elevenfold from 1 inch to 4 inches.
| Thickness | Works down to about | Good for |
|---|---|---|
| 1 in | About 500 Hz (703 data above) | Flutter echo only |
| 2 in | 300 Hz | Voice, podcast rooms |
| 4 in | Under 100 Hz | Studio reflection points |
| 6 in | Much better under 100 Hz | Bass traps, corners |
2 to 6 inch limits from GIK's bass trap guide.
Which thickness to buy
For a music room, buy 4 inch panels, and save any 6 inch or thicker units for the corners as bass traps. Spacing a panel off the wall adds some bass absorption too; see how far off the wall acoustic panels should be. Placement and quantities are in the home studio acoustic treatment guide.
Related questions
Is 1 inch acoustic foam enough?
Only for flutter echo and harsh highs. Auralex's 1 inch Studiofoam Wedges absorb 0.13 at 250 Hz and 0.30 at 500 Hz, so they leave the low mids and bass untouched.
Are 2 inch acoustic panels good?
They work for voice and podcast rooms. GIK calls 2 inches the effective minimum for speech, but notes that 2 inch panels roll off around 300 Hz.
How thick should bass traps be?
At least 4 inches, and thicker if you have room. GIK says 6 inch absorbers add a lot more performance under 100 Hz than 4 inch ones.
More answers: Home recording FAQ