I stumble upon this site and Oberon's old post when I google for laminated glass and noise. Oberon mentioned that "using one thicker (3/16') and one thinner (1/16') lite in an IG construction will also help deaden sound because each lite is 'transparent' to a different frequency and each lite will then attenuate the frequency that the other lite 'passed'.". What's a lite? Is it just a piece of glass? Would using different thickness be useful on a laminated glass as well?

I live in Taiwan and length is measured in millimeter(mm). I am mainly looking for laminated glass. 5mm + interlayer + 5mm and 5mm + interlayer + 3mm are more common. 5mm + interlayer + 8mm is not unheard of either, although more expensive. I am assuming the thicker the better, but I'm not sure about the STC ratings and if the money justifies it.

I've also heard from local window vendor (mom & pop shops) that frame often matters more than glasses and he recommends me a 8mm monolithic window. I'm getting more and more confused. The local mom & pop window shops usually do not know about the STC ratings on the products they sell. I probably have to call up the makers to know the details.

The most common thickness of laminated glass in North America is probably 3mm / .76mm / 3mm.

Impact products increase the interlayer to 2.29mm and might use any glass thickness from 3mm to 6mm depending on the application.

Using different thicknesses of glass in a laminated make-up will have some affect on sound propagation. Monolithic laminated glass at any make-up will be a noticeable improvement over a single lite of annealed glass. A laminated glass make-up of 3mm / .76mm / 5mm should perform very well in sound application.

Your mom and pop shop folks are not correct when they say that the frame is more important than the glass make-up - however, a tight frame and rigid construction will be much better than a loose frame and sash assembly.

If the window leaks air, it will pass sound.

Thanks