Auralex alternatives

Hi guys, I did some research and it seems that Auralex slabs are plain old 30-40kg m^3 density, open cell, polyurethane. So, I have gone hunting around locally for some similar products. I have found a few local manufacturers who can give me the same sized slabs for considerably less, but I have a few questions first... 1. How important is convolution? 2. What is a decent pore count? 3. Is hardness important? I basically have the following choices... density m^3 30 - Lots of colours available, 60 pores per 25mm 32 - Combustion modified, ugly dark grey, 70 pores per 25mm 32 - Combustion modified, ugly dark grey, 70 pores per 25mm, CONVOLUTED 40 - Waiting for pore count specs 42 - Waiting for pore count specs Before you jump on me... I've chosen foam as I have asthma and these panels will be going in my bedroom (directly above my bed head actually haha). Hence, the risk of rockwool debri floating around my room isn't exactly enticing! Also, foam would be a lot easier, because I'm terrible at anything DIY.

the aussie equivalent of auralex is Sonex. http://www.soundacoustics.com.au/ BTW - you can paint foam with a spray gun. ;) cheers john

Are they cheap though? IE. can you get a 150cm x 100cm x 10cm slab for $160? :D Also, wouldnt the paint cover the pores therefore stopping as much sound from getting in? :S Another question just popped up. Rather than starting a new thread, it is probably wise to ask here! I also have bad eye sight (awesome genes huh?) so I need to sit close to my computer screen. How bad is it to have your speakers behind your computer screen? I thought the comb filtering from it would be bad, so I just put up with having my speakers 60cm apart (terrible stereo!) level with the front of my computer screen. I have two speaker stands that I can sit 40cm from my desk which lets me have a perfect equilateral triangle, but my screen is about 10-20cm infront of them and about 20-30cm from each speaker. I'll take photos if needed! :)