Trunk rattle + dB meter suggestions

[Terrum 10+ year member]

After upgrading from 750w to 2kW in my hatchback, trunk rattles have become a lot more excessive, but before I go investing hundreds into Dynamat, I was wondering if there's some cheap/temporary solution I can use that will allow me to figure out how much of the sound I can deaden. I saw somewhere that body towels or pillows were suggested but I'm not sure.

Currently my sub is firing towards the rear/trunk. When I face it towards the front of the car, the rattles are moderately less, although regardless of the direction the sub is firing, I noticed that it is louder when I put my rear seats down - so I thought I'd experiment to figure out what the best position would be for the sub to get the best output.

Therefore, alongside temporary/experimental sound deadening suggestions, I'm also looking for a cheap but reliable dB meter (or a recommendation for what I can use instead of buying a dedicated dB meter) which doesn't necessarily have to be accurate, but good enough to show different numbers so that I can tell, without having to rely on my ears, which position is louder. I am wondering if the dB meter apps for Android phones (mine is a Galaxy S8) are, whilst probably inaccurate, good enough to tell if there's a reliable difference in volume?

Anyway thank you so much for reading and I look forward to any discussions!

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[jrpotter724]

Whats up? From experience sound deadener is your cheapest and best solution in my opinion. yes it ***** to spend several hundreds of dollars on sound deadening. A decent db meter will work if you are just trying to find the loudest postion for your sub. hope this helps.

 

[metalheadjoe 10+ year member]

New, thicker door seals are the best fix for rattling panels.

I wouldn't trust a meter app. If you're looking for maximum, inaudible improvement, you need an accurate tool.

 

[hispls 5,000+ posts]

I am wondering if the dB meter apps for Android phones (mine is a Galaxy S8) are, whilst probably inaccurate, good enough to tell if there's a reliable difference in volume?

They are probably accurate within the limits of the microphone in your phone, but that's a pretty big limiting factor and I'd doubt if it's good for anything much more than 100dB.

Least expensive sensor would be the one that Will over to makeitlouder.com sells. You MUST own a good DMM to read it and it will be as accurate as your volt meter.

 

[Terrum 10+ year member]

Thanks all for your responses!

In regards to the dB meter suggestions, I ended up using my Blue Yeti microphone which supposedly can handle up to 120dB and I'll use REW on my laptop to record a sine sweep and then move my sub around to see which position gets the best results. I'll of course update this thread accordingly.

As for the trunk rattle, I tried stuffing some old towels under the trunk have seals on the trunk itself which seemed to help a little (probably because of the weight it has added to the trunk more than anything). I do not think thicker seals will help with that, now maybe if I replace the seals onto the door itself it may help. Either way great suggestion and I look forward to anymore suggestions anyone can give