PET felt has become one of the most specified acoustic materials in commercial and residential interiors, and it’s not just because it looks good. The material is made from recycled PET fiber, pressed into a dense, soft sheet that’s genuinely effective at absorbing sound rather than reflecting it.
Acoustic felt manufacturers, including EASYfelt, have published absorption data showing PET felt reaching NRC values as high as 0.85 under optimized testing conditions — a strong result for a material that’s also easy to specify in color, texture, and finish.
The combination of real acoustic performance and design flexibility is why felt has largely replaced older acoustic materials like foam in projects where the finish is visible.
What NRC actually tells you
The Noise Reduction Coefficient (NRC) is a single number, averaged across common speech frequencies, that describes how much sound a material absorbs versus reflects. A rating near 0 reflects almost everything; a rating near 1 absorbs almost everything. It’s a useful shorthand — but it’s the result of a specific test, not a fixed property of “PET felt” as a category.
Thickness changes it. Density changes it. And critically, so does how the panel is mounted — which is exactly where a single published number stops being enough to specify from.
Why the mounting matters as much as the material
The same PET felt panel will test differently depending on how it’s installed, and it’s worth understanding before specifying, not after:
● Flush-mounted panels, fixed directly to a hard wall, absorb well at mid and high frequencies — the range most speech and general room noise falls into.
● Panels mounted with an air gap behind them — suspended, furred out, or hung — typically extend absorption further into lower frequencies, because the gap gives low-frequency waves more room to work against the material.
● A v-groove or textured surface increases the felt’s exposed surface area compared to a flat panel of the same thickness, which can improve absorption without adding material.
● A printed fabric wrap changes the visual, but the felt underneath is still doing the acoustic work — the wrap’s own porosity determines how much it affects the result.
None of this makes one configuration “better” across the board. It means the right configuration depends on the frequency range that’s actually a problem in the space, and on the finish the project needs.
Where this shows up in the Collection
FRAME+HANG accepts PET felt as an insert material in multiple finishes — flat, v-groove, or wrapped in printed fabric — mounted to the wall or suspended with HANG. That range exists because the right acoustic configuration for a hotel corridor isn’t the same as the right configuration for an open-plan office ceiling cloud, even when the base material is the same felt.
Instead of specifying a generic acoustic panel and hoping it fits, designers can choose the felt finish and mounting method as part of the same framing system already in the project.
What to ask before specifying
Before specifying your PET felt order here are a few questions to ask:
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What frequency range is the actual complaint — low mechanical hum, or mid-range speech and chatter?
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Is the application flush-mounted or suspended with an air gap?
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Does the space call for a flat, v-groove, or fabric-wrapped finish?
The material is a strong starting point either way — the configuration is what determines whether it solves the specific problem in the room.
PET felt earns its place in acoustic design on real material performance. What determines whether it performs well in a given room isn’t the felt alone — it’s the felt, the thickness, and how it’s mounted, working together.
Request specification support for FRAME+HANG, or explore acoustic insert options for your next project.