![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Cinema soundproofing, for instance, must consider 50-80 Hz sound transmission, which may not be relevant in hospitality and multi-family applications. It does not tell you the wall soundproofing ability at very low frequencies, which are not included in the STC calculation. Meanwhile, STC is really just an “approximation” of how much sound a wall blocks. Somebody spending millions of dollars on a condo may expect to be able to listen to the stereo or TV without having to constantly apologize to neighbors. Some litigation refers to “commercially reasonable” expectations of the clients. An STC 50 wall may be sufficient for apartment-to-apartment, but may be well below the expectations of a high-end condo. Remember that STC ratings are not the only determinant when deciding how to design a wall. When tested in the field, an STC rating of a wall assembly will almost always be lower than the lab test due to human error in the field. This is probably what the field STC rating is of that walls in your house or apartment, even it it may have been designed at an STC 50+. What is a Good STC Rating? Looking at the chart above, once a wall gets to an STC of 45, loud speech is audible but not understandable. High STCs may also be achieved by using a vinyl barrier (such as mass loaded vinyl) in the wall to improve soundproofing performance, especially with metal stud wall assemblies. By utilizing soundproofing membranes and other material on the market, you can achieve these STCs at prices that weren’t previously possible with conventional construction methods. Be sure to compare apples-to-apples, since some products may advertise an STC, but change the underlying wall assembly.īelow is a list of STC values for common partitions and assemblies, along with their estimated speech privacy and ideal applications in the real world. There are numerous tools across the internet to calculate the STC of your wall design. See How to Soundproof an Interior Wall Wall STC Determination In order to achieve an STC of 50 and higher, you must stagger or double the studs (for wood stud walls), use a resilient mount (such as iso clips), and/or add multiple layers of soundproofing materials or drywall. Remember that a standard wood stud wall has an STC of 35, while a metal stud wall (25 gauge) has an STC of 44. It should be noted that this building code does not apply to hotels, offices, and other applications, which are instead generally designed per brand standards and acoustic best practices. While condos are typically over-designed to ensure that STC 50 is reached and exceeded due to the significant litigation in the condo market, apartments are rarely tested and often fall below the minimum STC 50 rating. This means that all apartments, condos, and other multi-family developments require an STC 50 rating in the wall! However, as is often seen during field STC testing, this rarely occurs. Particularly, in the International Building Code, STC 50 is required for dwelling units to adjacencies. That is because it is one of the few STC, or Sound Transmission Classification, ratings that are mandated by building code. The most common single rating search for across the internet is STC 50. Just as walls in a doctor’s office may vary with those of a daycare, you’ll also have different expectations at an affordable housing development than a high-end luxury condominium. The first step is to determine target STCs – how much sound do you need your wall to block? This is often dependent on the use-case of the room, and the expectations of the tenants. When designing or building a wall partition, it’s critical to understand what benefits you’ll get out of the wall assembly, and the associated costs and complications that come with more complex assemblies. ![]()
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