# Mass Loaded Vinyl vs Shower pan liner



## DATCAT (Aug 3, 2009)

I am curious if anyone has tried the heavy duty Vinyl shower pan liner in place of mass loaded vinyl as a sound barrier? Shower pan liner is much cheaper and available at HD/ Lowes.


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## Rudeboy (Oct 16, 2005)

DATCAT said:


> I am curious if anyone has tried the heavy duty Vinyl shower pan liner in place of mass loaded vinyl as a sound barrier? Shower pan liner is much cheaper and available at HD/ Lowes.


I bought some to do a comparison. It's roughly .25 lbs/ft². That means you'd need to use 4 layers to get the same blocking capacity as standard 1 lb/ft² MLV. Four layers makes it more expensive than MLV.


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## Greg S (Oct 21, 2009)

Having actually used both, I had to build a shower pan for a really odd shaped shower, I would say the shower liner is too thin. It is much more flexible than MLV since it needs to conform to tight angles.


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## Robin W. (Feb 18, 2010)

Has anyone found a more commercial source of MLV? It must be used in home/commercial applications as well, so you would think the amount required for a car application would make it "cheap" in the bigger picture of deadening a home/music room etc.


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## Greg S (Oct 21, 2009)

Unfortunately it is used even less in home audio than it is in car audio. Only time we would use it is when we were having a custom theater built from the floor up. That way you could build a staggered wall system and weave it between them. It actually requires special construction methods to sound isolate a room from the rest of the house and most people get really scared when they discover how much it will be, that's even if the contractor will do it.


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## DATCAT (Aug 3, 2009)

I just purchased a 100sq ft of 1lb/ft roll from this company. The roll is $115 and shipping for me was $65. Soundproofing Products and Materials for Ceiling, Walls and Floors | Sound Isolation Company

I should receive my roll on Thursday. I can update you then as to the quality.


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## Robin W. (Feb 18, 2010)

DATCAT said:


> I just purchased a 100sq ft of 1lb/ft roll from this company. The roll is $115 and shipping for me was $65. Soundproofing Products and Materials for Ceiling, Walls and Floors | Sound Isolation Company
> 
> I should receive my roll on Thursday. I can update you then as to the quality.


I'd be interested in how it performs, they actually have a distributor that's local, that is if they carry the whole product line.


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## Greg S (Oct 21, 2009)

That is actually a good price. Much better than what we used to pay when I was still doing home audio work. Of course I wasn't the buyer so I never looked around for other prices.


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## DATCAT (Aug 3, 2009)

Yea this is the best price I have found. After reading "Sound Deadner Showdown" they said to use the least expensive MLV one could find beacuse it was pretty much all the same. I actually owe it someone else who posted on another "Dumb question" that had a link to this company. It is scheduled to be delivered this Thursday and I will probably install on Saturday and Sunday. I stripped out my interior today after work and prepped for some damplifyer to be installed on Thursday and then I should be ready to lay down the MLV. You can also follow my build "93 Lexus SC400" on the in DIYMA Build logs here http://www.diymobileaudio.com/forum/diyma-build-logs/76069-93-lexus-sc400.html


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## Rudeboy (Oct 16, 2005)

DATCAT said:


> Yea this is the best price I have found. After reading "Sound Deadner Showdown" they said to use the least expensive MLV one could find beacuse it was pretty much all the same. I actually owe it someone else who posted on another "Dumb question" that had a link to this company. It is scheduled to be delivered this Thursday and I will probably install on Saturday and Sunday. I stripped out my interior today after work and prepped for some damplifyer to be installed on Thursday and then I should be ready to lay down the MLV. You can also follow my build "93 Lexus SC400" on the in DIYMA Build logs here http://www.diymobileaudio.com/forum/diyma-build-logs/76069-93-lexus-sc400.html


What I actually said was that people should look for local sources to save on shipping. Any 1 lb/ft² MLV should be functionally the same once you get it installed, but there are definitely different quality grades. So far I've found 3 that are easy to identify. The best is smooth on both sides and can't be torn by hand. The middle grade is smooth on both sides but tears easily. The lowest grade is rough on one side, tears easily, is very coarse grained and sheds dark dust.

I wouldn't expect to see a measurable difference in performance and I haven't looked into this enough to be able to comment on differences in durability. Just want to be clear that I'm not saying they are all the same.


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## DATCAT (Aug 3, 2009)

I apologize if I misunderstood your advice regarding MLV on the Sound Deadener Showdown web site. However, I did try to do what you recommended by finding a local supplier. I was not able to find one near me. Because I was unable to locate a local supplier, I posed the original question starting this thread asking if anyone had experience with using a vinyl shower pan liner vs. MLV. Thanks for helping with this thread as well as others by lending your considerable experience in noise abatement.


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## Rudeboy (Oct 16, 2005)

DATCAT said:


> I apologize if I misunderstood your advice regarding MLV on the Sound Deadener Showdown web site.


No problem. In practical terms, your interpretation is fine. Just wanted to make it clear that there are differences. People can decide for themselves if they care about them. We're definitely not talking about Peel & Seal versus Dynamat Xtreme differences


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## lucas569 (Apr 17, 2007)

post your findings! very interested...


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## DATCAT (Aug 3, 2009)

FedEx delivered the roll of MLV tonight. I spent most of today installing Damplifyer. I have had a massive friggin headache all day so I have been kinda slow. I should have the MLV installed by Saturday or Sunday. I did check out the product a bit. It is a bit spongy and seems to be abe to be torn by hand. On a side note the company I purchased this from forgot my order the first time I ordered on Monday and then when they sent my make up shipment they did't include the tape they said I would "HAVE" to have to install. I'm not real happy with them right now.


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## swong46 (Sep 25, 2009)

ooh let us know how well they work


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## DATCAT (Aug 3, 2009)

The MLV material seems to be pretty easy to work with. It is easy to cut and fairly flexible. I was able to cover the back deck and the rear quarter panel walls. I should have the rest of the carpeted area covered tomorrow.

Here is a couple pics of the product.


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## DATCAT (Aug 3, 2009)

I finished installing the MLV today and put the interior back in. I am not able to drive the car for a few more days because the engine management computer is being repaired. Installation was tedious but not difficult. I went through more than one roll of heavy duty tape. I taped all the edges to ensure I minimized noise seepage from around the barrier.


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## Juanhanded (Apr 3, 2010)

You're trying to deaden sound,right?

Are you going to put it on the windows?


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## mvw2 (Oct 2, 2005)

I found some foam backed MLV for less then $1 per sq.ft. and 1 lb./ft, used unfortunately, not a new product from a store. The guy I bought it from got it from a friend who bought it for home audio use from somewhere unknown and ended up not using it. The only problem is the foam is open cell, so placement and sealing becomes important. I think the home sector might offer some cost effective solutions if people knew who sells what products.


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## swong46 (Sep 25, 2009)

is there any cheap alternative to foam backed MLV?


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## DATCAT (Aug 3, 2009)

Juanhanded said:


> You're trying to deaden sound,right?
> 
> Are you going to put it on the windows?



Yes, I am trying to mitigate as much ambient noise intrusion as practical. This is my daily driver so obviously I cannot cover the windows with an opaque sound barrier without the invention of some sort of reliable autonomous auto pilot. However, I can either make the best of a lousy audio environment or I can settle for what I already have. If I, as well as others here on this forum, chose the latter there would be no need for forums such as this.


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## Rudeboy (Oct 16, 2005)

I wouldn't worry about the windows too much. Compared to sheet metal and an added barrier layer they are the weak link. This doesn't matter as much as we might think. The most aggressive and constant sources - engine, exhaust and tire/wheel hit below the glass line or hit the glass obliquely.

That leaves traffic noise. It's more of an issue, but except for very tall vehicles right next to you, distance and angle work for you again. 

It's true that vehicles could be made quieter if they didn't have windows. It's also true that they can be made much quieter despite the glass.


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## Juanhanded (Apr 3, 2010)

DATCAT said:


> Yes, I am trying to mitigate as much ambient noise intrusion as practical. This is my daily driver so obviously I cannot cover the windows with an opaque sound barrier without the invention of some sort of reliable autonomous auto pilot. However, I can either make the best of a lousy audio environment or I can settle for what I already have. If I, as well as others here on this forum, chose the latter there would be no need for forums such as this.


lol,sorry...been reading too much about soundwaves and reflection.I forgot about the ambient noise.Are you doing anything additional,like caulking or undercoating?


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## DATCAT (Aug 3, 2009)

Juanhanded said:


> lol,sorry...been reading too much about soundwaves and reflection.I forgot about the ambient noise.Are you doing anything additional,like caulking or undercoating?


It’s cool. Sorry if I was rude I was exausted after spending several days installing the damplifyer and MLV. 

I have used damplifyer on most of the sheet metal I could see with my lower interior removed. I was considering using expanding foam and shoot it to fill rear fenders and other crevices but in the end I decided to skip the foam due to the potential of making a really big mess. I focused on using the MLV to create a contiguous noise barrier from the rear deck up to the firewall. I have heard engine noise coming through the fire wall however removing the dash seemed like small improvement for the amount of work required. I have considered using an undercoating but I will evaluate if I need to go further. After I finish the doors and get the computer back I will be able to take it for a test listen.


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## DATCAT (Aug 3, 2009)

swong46 said:


> is there any cheap alternative to foam backed MLV?


The MLV product I used did not have a foam back. The product itself was $115 for 100 sq ft of 1 lbs/ sq ft. However, the shipping of a 100+ pound box was $65 from North Carolina to Florida. Also the company I purchased from did not seem too eager to sell 1 roll at a time. Their customer service left some to be desired. I had to follow up with them to get them to ship the product. Then when it arrived it didn't have the tape they told me I had to have. When I called them they didn't seem to believe me that it was missing and wouldn't ship another roll out let alone overnight it. They promised to credit account but I haven't seen the credit yet.

I would suggest checking out Sound Deadner Show Down, he seems to be a good resource for MLV without foam as well. http://www.sounddeadenershowdown.com/cgi-bin/index.cgi


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## DATCAT (Aug 3, 2009)

I got the computer back into my car today. I was able to start it up and take it for a drive. The doors are not finished so lots of noise was coming in through them but the rest of the car was considerably quieter than before I installed the MLV. I think that this MLV gets thumbs up for performance. I would guess noise reduction of 80%-90% from when the back seat was out while building the sub enclosure. I should finish the doors over the next few days and I will update with opinions.


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## chithead (Mar 19, 2008)

Hmmm I'm not too far from Charlotte. Gonna have to check these people out.

Thanks!


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