Question 1

Where should wall absorbers be placed?

Accepted Answer

At the first reflection points: on side walls at the height of the talker or loudspeaker, behind the desk or monitors, and on walls between workstations. Long parallel hard walls cause flutter echoes, where one absorber on a single side is often enough. The ceiling lowers the overall level, the wall damps the targeted reflections.

Question 2

How many wall absorbers or how much area do I need?

Accepted Answer

A rule of thumb is 0.15 to 0.25 m² of high-performance absorber per square metre of floor area, starting at the ceiling and complemented by the wall. A 25 m² room therefore needs about 4 to 6 m². For a reliable design, reverberation time is calculated, and the reverberation calculator uses the stored measurement data.

Question 3

Should acoustic panels be mounted with or without an air gap?

Accepted Answer

Directly on the wall, panels work mainly at mid and high frequencies. An air gap from mounting on a frame or battens markedly improves the low-mid range. Which αw value applies depends on the mounting type, so the datasheet states whether it was measured directly or with a gap behind the panel.

Question 4

Can wall absorbers be printed with a motif?

Accepted Answer

Yes. The cover fabric or printed image on an acoustic panel is sound-transparent and cosmetic, while the porous core behind it does the absorbing. A printed acoustic image therefore works acoustically as long as it has a porous core. What matters is not the motif but the core material and the stated αw value.

Question 5

What fire class should wall absorbers have?

Accepted Answer

The decisive figure is the fire class, from A1 (non-combustible) to F. In ordinary living and office spaces it is rarely mandatory, but it is required in escape routes and certain public buildings. You can filter by minimum fire class in the search.

Question 6

What is the difference between a real absorber and an acoustic image?

Accepted Answer

A real wall absorber has a porous core, such as mineral wool, polyester fibre or melamine foam, and reaches αw 0.8 to 1.0. A decorative picture without a porous core absorbs almost no sound. An acoustic image works only if a porous core sits behind the printed fabric, shown by the stated αw value.

	Effect	Typical αw	Look	Best for
Textile / fabric-covered panel	Broadband absorption via a porous core	0.8–1.0	Free choice of fabric colour, calm surface	Offices, meeting rooms, practices
Melamine / foam panel	Very light, strong at mid and high frequencies	0.7–1.0	Open-pored, often profiled	Studios, quick retrofits
Perforated panel / wood	Resonator effect, tunable via the hole pattern	0.5–0.9	Visible wood surface, premium	Representative rooms, living spaces
Acoustic art (with porous core)	Targeted, works only with a porous core	0.5–0.9	Photo or art print as the motif	Decorative retrofits, small areas

Wall absorbers and acoustic panels for walls

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Where is the best place for wall absorbers?

Mount directly on the wall or with an air gap?

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