Quebster
Autocross Newbie
- Location
- Dallas, Tx
So, I wanted to write a quick review on this sound-deadening material called Soundskins. Don't ask me to compare it to dynamat, because I have no idea and haven't used it. I will tell you my impressions of Soundskins and you can take it for what it's worth.
I decided to buy a few rolls since I would have my door panels off to install some upgraded speakers anyway. Simply put, amazing! I covered probably around 50% of the outer shells of each of my doors, and covered most of the inner shells, as you can see in the pics. I also covered most of the spare tire area, and put some pieces on the actual hatch and trim pieces because I get a lot of vibrations in there from my sub.
It is creepy how much quieter the car is as a whole, I still am not used to it and it and am still weirded out by it when I drive. It is very noticeable, especially when I compare where my volume for music would normally be before applying them, vs. where I have it set now (at least a couple of clicks on the steering wheel quieter) because road noise is much less prominent. The music very easily carries over the roadnoise now... Literally cannot hear the roadnoise when music is playing. This as a whole makes the ride quieter, more comfortable, and your music sound better. To put it another way, I drove around with just these on without my door panels on and it sounded like the door panels were still on. So then, take that and actually add the door panels back, and it's that much quieter.
Basically, I would 100% recommend these if you care about your music, or if you want a more comfortable (quieter) ride. It's not a hard project at all, just a bit time consuming. I am also notoriously slow when working on my car (ask the wife). I bought 3 rolls which was plenty to cover everything I wanted to cover (4 doors, spare tire area, pieces of hatch & trim). I got the rolls for $75 each, and they weigh 6lbs each. Different dealers could have better prices.
Also, you can request a free sample. They were VERY quick to get me a free sample, and I saw and felt the quality of the material myself before I bought them. These, along with the Soumatrix Xtase speakers which are also amazing, have been a fantastic upgrade to my car.
If you are interested in taking a stab at this yourself, I used the Power Folding Mirror install guide from USP motorsports to get the front doors off, and watched a video on YouTube of someone applying the Soundskins. The only thing not noted in removing the doors is the rear doors. It's even simpler, but the little screw that you have to turn at the bottom of the door is behind the little red reflector at the bottom.
I used two sheets of wax paper taped together. You can see through it just enough to trace stuff out. I made one "stencil" for the front doors, and one for the back. The left/right doors are exactly identical, just mirrored, so no need to trace out all 4 doors. I then put that over a soundskin and cut away. It worked fairly well, though it wasn't the cleanest install, my stenciling could use some work
Power Folding Mirror install guide from USP
YouTube video
Pic of the high-quality material, which has several layers:
All panels removed:
Speaker removed, Soundskins applied to outer shell:
Soundskins completely applied:
Speaker installed:
Spare tire area with carpet removed, before (and no, I don't normally keep all this junk back here):
Spare tire area with carpet removed, after (yes I know she needs a bath):
Some pieces on the hatch to cut down on vibrations (have noticed ZERO since installation):
Spare tire area, carpet replaced
I decided to buy a few rolls since I would have my door panels off to install some upgraded speakers anyway. Simply put, amazing! I covered probably around 50% of the outer shells of each of my doors, and covered most of the inner shells, as you can see in the pics. I also covered most of the spare tire area, and put some pieces on the actual hatch and trim pieces because I get a lot of vibrations in there from my sub.
It is creepy how much quieter the car is as a whole, I still am not used to it and it and am still weirded out by it when I drive. It is very noticeable, especially when I compare where my volume for music would normally be before applying them, vs. where I have it set now (at least a couple of clicks on the steering wheel quieter) because road noise is much less prominent. The music very easily carries over the roadnoise now... Literally cannot hear the roadnoise when music is playing. This as a whole makes the ride quieter, more comfortable, and your music sound better. To put it another way, I drove around with just these on without my door panels on and it sounded like the door panels were still on. So then, take that and actually add the door panels back, and it's that much quieter.
Basically, I would 100% recommend these if you care about your music, or if you want a more comfortable (quieter) ride. It's not a hard project at all, just a bit time consuming. I am also notoriously slow when working on my car (ask the wife). I bought 3 rolls which was plenty to cover everything I wanted to cover (4 doors, spare tire area, pieces of hatch & trim). I got the rolls for $75 each, and they weigh 6lbs each. Different dealers could have better prices.
Also, you can request a free sample. They were VERY quick to get me a free sample, and I saw and felt the quality of the material myself before I bought them. These, along with the Soumatrix Xtase speakers which are also amazing, have been a fantastic upgrade to my car.
If you are interested in taking a stab at this yourself, I used the Power Folding Mirror install guide from USP motorsports to get the front doors off, and watched a video on YouTube of someone applying the Soundskins. The only thing not noted in removing the doors is the rear doors. It's even simpler, but the little screw that you have to turn at the bottom of the door is behind the little red reflector at the bottom.
I used two sheets of wax paper taped together. You can see through it just enough to trace stuff out. I made one "stencil" for the front doors, and one for the back. The left/right doors are exactly identical, just mirrored, so no need to trace out all 4 doors. I then put that over a soundskin and cut away. It worked fairly well, though it wasn't the cleanest install, my stenciling could use some work
Power Folding Mirror install guide from USP
YouTube video
Pic of the high-quality material, which has several layers:
All panels removed:
Speaker removed, Soundskins applied to outer shell:
Soundskins completely applied:
Speaker installed:
Spare tire area with carpet removed, before (and no, I don't normally keep all this junk back here):
Spare tire area with carpet removed, after (yes I know she needs a bath):
Some pieces on the hatch to cut down on vibrations (have noticed ZERO since installation):
Spare tire area, carpet replaced
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