For projects in Bhutan
Recording studio acoustics and soundproofing in Bhutan
Two jobs that must not be confused: keeping the building out, and making the room honest inside. The first is mass and decoupling and has to be built first. The second is absorption and diffusion and can be tuned later. A very small broadcast and music sector working in rooms inside existing buildings.
- Isolation
- A measured background level, agreed before anything is bought.
- Low frequency
- Corner and boundary absorption with real depth, not surface foam.
- Early reflections
- Controlled at the mix position, and only there.
- Quote
- From a plan and a section, within 48 hours
01 / Start here
The product, described honestly, for a Bhutan brief
Two jobs that must not be confused: keeping the building out, and making the room honest inside. The first is mass and decoupling and has to be built first. The second is absorption and diffusion and can be tuned later.
A very small broadcast and music sector working in rooms inside existing buildings.
Work reaching us from Bhutan is mostly hotels and resorts, institutional buildings, assembly halls, schools, clinics, offices.
- Traditional construction Timber framing, rammed earth and masonry in buildings that must keep their character. Work has to be internal and respectful of the fabric.
- No port, no container handling Entirely by road from our plant. Lead times are short and a small consignment is genuinely economic.
- Seismic and mountainous Structures are built to move and the final road leg is steep and rough. We brace and wrap for both.
- Isolation A measured background level, agreed before anything is bought.
Full specification
Thickness, density, NRC by frequency, fire class, standard sizes and build-up detail for studio soundproofing are on the main product page. This page covers what that means for a project in Bhutan.
02 / The build-up
The stack, in the order it is installed
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Layer 1
SoundBlanket mass loaded vinyl
A limp, high density sheet that adds mass to a partition, floor or duct without adding depth. In Bhutan, electric heating and split units, with plant close to occupied rooms in compact buildings.
Wall, decoupled. Independent stud, membrane between the boards, cavity absorption, two boards. The membrane is one part of a system, never the whole answer.
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Layer 2
Acoustic panels
The full absorber range rather than one product: plain PET felt, printed felt, grooved panels and fabric finishes, chosen by how the room is used and how it has to look. In Bhutan, dzongs, monastery halls and civic rooms are tall hard volumes with long reverberation.
Ceiling first. In most rooms the ceiling is the largest untreated surface and the cheapest square metre of result.
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Layer 3
Soundproof curtains
A layered curtain with a mass loaded vinyl core, used where an opening has to stay an opening. In Bhutan, school buildings are hard surfaced with high ceilings, and halls carry assembly and performance.
Double layer at a doorway. Two curtains with an air gap where a single layer will not reach the target.
For a Bhutan practice, the useful thing is a detail you can put in a drawing set, not a brochure. See how we support architects.
03 / On the ground
The Bhutan conditions that change the answer
- Traditional construction
Timber framing, rammed earth and masonry in buildings that must keep their character. Work has to be internal and respectful of the fabric.
- No port, no container handling
Entirely by road from our plant. Lead times are short and a small consignment is genuinely economic.
- Seismic and mountainous
Structures are built to move and the final road leg is steep and rough. We brace and wrap for both.
- Hospitality at altitude
Hotels and lodges where guest room isolation matters more than anything happening inside the room itself.
- The housing stock
Concrete frame with block infill and traditional timber detailing, with hard floors and cold external walls.
- The studio and content scene
A very small broadcast and music sector working in rooms inside existing buildings.
04 / Room by room
Where the money goes on a Bhutan project
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Isolation
A measured background level, agreed before anything is bought. Timber framing, rammed earth and masonry in buildings that must keep their character. Work has to be internal and respectful of the fabric.
- Acoustic foam and BassBloc, 1800 x 900 mm
- Soundproofing materials, 1800 x 900 x 20 mm, 100 kg per cubic metre, NRC 0.85
- Acoustic panels, Cut pattern in PET felt, adds visual rhythm without changing the absorber
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Low frequency
Corner and boundary absorption with real depth, not surface foam. Entirely by road from our plant. Lead times are short and a small consignment is genuinely economic.
- Acoustic foam and BassBloc, 20 mm
- Soundproofing materials, Mass, then decoupling, then cavity absorption, then sealing
- Acoustic panels, ASTM C423
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Early reflections
Controlled at the mix position, and only there. Structures are built to move and the final road leg is steep and rough. We brace and wrap for both.
- Acoustic foam and BassBloc, 100 kg per cubic metre
- Soundproofing materials, ASTM E90 for the barrier, ASTM C423 for the absorber
- Acoustic panels, 9 to 24 mm, 1220 x 2440 mm standard, up to 2440 x 4270 mm, 1200 to 3600 GSM
Designers get colour, pattern and CNC options with the absorption figure attached to each. See how we work with interior designers.
04 / Climate and durability
Why the climate in Bhutan changes the material, not the target
Bhutan is hot summers, mild winters and a distinct wet season, and that narrows the material list before acoustics is discussed.
PET felt handles the wet months without absorbing moisture or feeding mould. Timber and wood wool want a ventilated cavity and a stable indoor RH.
The failure we design against here is wet-season humidity behind linings.
Consultants get the raw data, not a sales sheet. That is the whole of our side of the job, and it is set out under working with acoustic consultants.
06 / Worth knowing
What we watch go wrong on jobs like this
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Buying foam to solve an isolation problem
Small on the drawing, expensive on site, and almost always found after handover.
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Treating the room before the shell is isolated
This is the one that comes back as a second fit-out rather than a snag.
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Killing the room completely and calling it controlled
A room can be over-treated. Past the target it stops sounding controlled and starts sounding dead, and you paid for that.
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Treating it as a generic Bhutan job
Timber framing, rammed earth and masonry in buildings that must keep their character. Work has to be internal and respectful of the fabric.
05 / Logistics
What the route into Bhutan actually looks like
| Ships from | Palwal, Haryana, India |
|---|---|
| Arrives at | Overland through Phuentsholing, then road to site |
| Dispatch | 4 to 7 working days |
| Freight | Road via the India border |
| Support | Drawings, build-ups, BOQ and material that arrives complete |
Standard items dispatch in 4 to 7 working days. Grooved panels and custom colours take longer, and we say so before you order, not after.
Overland by road through the India border, then on to site. No sea leg and no port handling.
Questions from Bhutan projects
What makes recording studio acoustics and soundproofing different in Bhutan?
A very small broadcast and music sector working in rooms inside existing buildings. Entirely by road from our plant. Lead times are short and a small consignment is genuinely economic.
Where should the budget go first on a Bhutan project?
Isolation. A measured background level, agreed before anything is bought. Low frequency. Corner and boundary absorption with real depth, not surface foam.
Do you have an office or installation team in Bhutan?
No. We manufacture in India and supply into Bhutan. We give you drawings, build-ups, a BOQ and material that arrives complete, and we will tell you plainly when a job needs a local contractor we cannot be.
How does material get to a Bhutan site?
ships from: Palwal, Haryana, India, arrives at: Overland through Phuentsholing, then road to site, dispatch: 4 to 7 working days. Standard items dispatch in 4 to 7 working days. Grooved panels and custom colours take longer, and we say so before you order, not after.
What goes wrong most often on this kind of project?
Buying foam to solve an isolation problem. Treating the room before the shell is isolated.
What do you need from us to quote?
A plan, a section through the critical partition or ceiling, and what the room is for. From that we can give a build-up and a BOQ rather than a price per square foot.
Next step
Send a plan and a section, get a real build-up
A plan and a section is enough. We will come back with a build-up, a BOQ and a delivered date, and we will say so if what you are asking for will not work.