Quick answer: Heavy curtains help a little with echo, mostly on high sounds and only where they hang. Acoustic panels are thicker and denser, so they soak up voices and more of the bass, and you can put them on any wall or the ceiling. For a room that really rings, panels do far more. Curtains are a good extra, not the fix.

Key takeaways

  • Heavy curtains help a little, mainly with high sounds.
  • Panels soak up voices and more bass.
  • Use both: curtains on glass, panels on bare walls.

How curtains help

Thick, heavy curtains with deep folds soak up some sound. They are great over glass, which bounces sound strongly. Thin sheers and blinds do very little.

Why curtains are not enough

Curtains only cover windows. Echo also comes from bare walls and the ceiling. Fabric is thin, so voices pass through and bounce off the glass behind. See how to fix bad acoustics in a room.

Not sure what your room needs? Send us a photo on WhatsApp or request a free quote. We'll tell you how many panels, where they go and the price. See our acoustic panels for homes and recent projects.

Curtains vs panels infographic

How panels compare

Panels are 25 to 50 mm thick, made to soak up sound. One panel does more than a much larger curtain. You can place them exactly where sound bounces. See do acoustic panels really work.

Curtains vs acoustic panels diagram

Best use of each

Use curtains over big windows and glass doors, drawn when you need quiet. Use panels on bare walls facing each other, and on the ceiling in big rooms. Together they cover every hard surface in the room.

Cost

Heavy curtains are priced by size and fabric. Panels cost from S$185 each supplied and installed (50 mm, standard fixings included), about S$255 per m². A living room that needs 4 to 6 panels comes to S$740 to S$1,110 installed.

In offices

Curtains are rare in offices. For glass meeting rooms, panels on the solid walls and ceiling work best. A 6 × 4 m meeting room usually needs 8 to 12 panels. See reduce echo in glass meeting rooms.

Getting the most from curtains

Choose heavy, lined fabric. Hang them wider than the window, with deep folds. Let them reach the floor. Keep them drawn when you need quiet, such as during calls or movies.

Where panels beat curtains

Panels win on bare walls facing each other, the wall behind a desk, and the ceiling. These are where echo really builds. A curtain cannot reach them.

What we see on real jobs

In a living room, keep the curtains and add 4 to 6 panels on the bare walls. The two together make the room feel calm.

Get a straight answer for your room

WhatsApp a photo of the room (+65 8930 1905) and tell us what you use it for: calls, TV, music or mixing. We'll suggest a layout, a colour and a price, including no-drill options where your walls allow.

WhatsApp us a photo · Request a free quote · See prices

Related reading