Cinetile or other black ceiling tile recommendations?

That's not a bad price for what it is, but even the 1-inch thick tiles are too thin to do anything useful for frequencies below maybe 1 KHz. However, you could lay 3 to 12 inches of thick fluffy fiberglass above the tiles, and that would be pretty good.

--Ethan

I've been communicating with a rep from ISC on eBay about possibly purchasing their product. I've asked about how stiff they are and how easy it is to cut with a utility knife. Here is his reply:
I haven't made a ceiling tile decision yet, so I'm interested to hear any feedback as well. BTW, I'm also considering Armstrong mineral panels, but I hate how they crumble.

Don't know if you have looked at the ceilume tiles before or not. I believe they offer all their tiles in black.

Definitely take them up on their offer to ship you 3 free samples as their tiles are not what most people expect when they think of a traditional ceiling tile. Also, they have usually added a 5% rebate coupon in with the free samples in the past, which can add up to a few dollars.

I used the black Stratford design on my theater and am happy with the results.



-Suntan

I have two cases of cinetile on order right now and will post my impressions when they arrive. I looked at the ceilume tiles. They're very attractive and available in a number of different styles, but out of the box they're also light reflective and by themselves are of little use in terms of sound absorption. One neat option available with the ceilume products, is the capability of using translucent tiles with an additional diffusion panel for lighting applications.

I just recieved my cinetiles, opened up one box ( not quite ready for installation yet ) and I really like them. The facing adds a bit of stiffness. The finish is very matte, kind of like a smooth felt and really looks like a textile fabric. I held one up at an oblique angle towards a window, and there's almost no light reflection. I ordered the 5/8" thickness and plan on layering more unfaced insulation on top of them once they're in the grid.

I think i will order the cinetile tomorrow. I need 48 They will be replacing black armstrong tiles that i bought a few years ago. The armstrong tiles really suck. They crumble and the ones i bought are not solid black just white tiles with black paint on them. They sometimes rattle. I thought i stopped the rattling but it is back. I am hoping the cinetiles willl not rattle since they are so light.

I too had Armstrong mineral fiber tiles, which started out white in a black grid when we bought the house. I painted them, and they required repeated touch-ups to get rid of every last spec of white....never had a problem with them rattling, I just wanted to get started on some proper acoustical treatments, and the Armstrong tiles had been ruined by water from ice-damming along with my PJ and screen. Thank goodness for insurance with replacement value!

The Cinetiles should be essentially immune to rattling, especially if you layer more insulation on top as I plan on doing. Unfaced 703 panels can be found for even less than the single panel cost of Cinetiles at an equivalent thickness.

I placed the order this morning 3 boxes of 16. The armstrong tiles are a real pain to maintain. I am constantly running new wires and things in the ceiling. Every time i move the tiles they crumble and crack and they are never the same again.
I cant wait to toss the armstrong tiles and install these. Thanks for the tip on the insulation. I will check it out tonight at HD.

I also placed an order and received them yesterday. I haven't pulled them out, but they look pretty good in the box. Yellow fiberglass with a cloth fabric face.

Finished my ceiling last night. These tiles are great. Easy to install compared to the messy ceilling tiles i took out. They look much better than the white armstrong tiles that i painted black. They make the room sound better too. No more rattling ceiling.
I cant recommend them enough.

I am just about finished switching out my HT drop ceiling.

I had white Armstrong mineral ceiling tiles which would reflect light and bounce around from bass. I wound up having to place wood on some of the worst bouncing tiles to try and reduce the bouncing.

I have switched out ~80 tiles and the difference is dramatic. The light reflection has been reduced but what it really nice it that the sound in the room has been improved dramatically and the tiles do not bounce along with the bass.

UPS did decide to damage some tiles but ISC has been wonderful to work with to get replacements.

I am glad I went this route instead of trying to paint the Armstrong tiles.

I found these ceiling panels awhile ago and thought I'd share as a quick search shows they've never been mentioned on this site before. It's a product from Armstrong called "Capz" and come in a black "SPECTRA Tech Black" color. The hole finish caps can be ordered in a multitude of colors. Along with the usual grid ceiling mounting these panels also have a stud/cap mounting which looks like could also be used for behind wall, on-wall, or extended from wall placement for a unique look assuming it's acoustic properties could be used to effectively counter some room issues.

Unfortunately the product was out of stock from every supplier and distributor I spoke with so could not get a sample and gave up. If anyone here has experience with these panels I'd love to hear your thoughts on them.

Below is a link to one of the products brochures and I've also attached three pdf files I obtained from Armstrong of the products sound absorption test reports. Each file depicts a different mounting.

http://www.armstrong.com/common/c200...iles/56342.pdf

Here's another link to a page which provides more info.

http://www.armstrong.com/commceiling...icle46152.html

 

Capz 1.pdf 128.849609375k . file

 

Capz 2.pdf 128.8466796875k . file

 

Capz 3.pdf 135.0126953125k . file

I'm surprised so many people are using Ceilume for HT ceilings given their reflective properties. Are there any alternatives out there (but for a drywall ceiling not drop) that look as good as ceilume stratford tiles?

What do you mean?

I have black Stratford in my theater and I don't think they are that reflective.

-Suntan

A couple of posters have made that statement including rto in this thread above. I'm getting a sample but "that reflective" might be too reflective. It would be nice if they made them with light absorbing material like velvet similar to whats on the frame of many HT screens.

Well, if you have your screen right up against your ceiling, you're probably going to be disappointed with any available building product.

You could always prep and spray paint them with a different tone. But honestly, I doubt you'd find a paint that comes across any flatter.

As for velvet on the ceiling, can't say as I've seen anything like that... ...and I don't think I would want to.

-Suntan

Thanks for the follow-up. I spoke to the Ceilume guy and he would classify the tiles as eggshell not matte, so there is some reflection. On your last point, haha; maybe something like velour is a better choice of terms but I meant a fabric thats light absorbing...

Just an update on this for those interested. Awhile back I had received a sample of the ceilume tile in black (for a regular ceiling not drop/suspended), and the middle square was just too reflective for my liking. So, here is where I came out on treating my ceiling for both audio and video:

1. Ceiling was painted a custom shade of flat medium/dark brown (Benjamin Moore forgot the name but goes with rest of the room and wife liked it).

2. Front half of ceiling I treated with Auralex metro fusors which were spray painted matte black and installed in a diamond pattern in a design recommended by Auralex with a nice stained wood frame enclosing them.

3. Very front of room above screen, I finally found a place that carries foam panels which can be custom painted - so I ordered 0.5" Thick (2'x4') Flat Faced Natural Light Gray Melamine which they painted in custom latex flat black and put them across the ceiling right up against the screen - so 12 feet across and 2 feet out. I only did 0.5 inch since I wasn't looking for absorption but really just to minimize reflections from the brown paint and really up the contrast. Site is Acoustical Surfaces Inc.

Results are stunning and looks great. Biggest improvement in sound was putting those diffusors on the ceiling -- really opened up the soundstage in my small 12.5 by 21 ft dedicated theater and looks really cool too! AND its easy to tell what an improvement the panels make -- prior to treatment you could see the light from the projector reflecting off the front part of the ceiling, put up the panels while the projector is on and that reflection disappears.