good morning,
Although I am not recommending a particular window, or a particular company, I will offer a few comments on soundproofing, or how to make a quieter window. Hopefully, these comments will help you a bit when researching the best possible solution for your noise issue.
Windows are rated as to their ability to deaden or attenuate sound based on something called an STC or Sound Transmission Class. Walls and other building components use the same system, but here we are considering windows.
STC is an average of an object's ability to attenuate sound across the entire sound frequency spectrum. STC does not provide specific frequency-deadening information which is really what is needed if you want to block a specific type of unwanted noise; for example traffic noise.
As humans we are born with the ability to hear from approximately 20 to 20,000 hertz. Hertz, or Hz, is how sound frequency is measured - like electricity is measured in volts, for example.
By the time we are teenagers, however, we have generally lost the ability to hear above about 13,000hz which as I remember is something mother always warned us about - going deaf - or was it stop or you'll go blind? I always get those confused.
Anyway, traffic noise is generally a low frequency sound, and unfortunately, low frequencies are much harder to attenuate (opposite of amplify) or block than are higher frequencies...consider how often you hear the base sounds from the neighborhood kid's car stereo and not the higher pitch tunes when he is coming down the street.
Loud neighbor's can be higher frequency or lower frequency depending on what sort of noises they are making. Loud voices are relatively easy to block. Noisy dogs are a bit more difficult. Lawn equipment or power tools become quite difficult. Loud music, refer back to the comment on the neighborhood kid driving down the street.
When considering windows, there are generally three options available for maximum possible sound attenuation.
First is laminated glass.
Second is a wider airspace between the lites.
Third is using two lites of different thickness in the IGU or Insulating Glass Unit.
Fourth would be a combination of all three.
Airport windows, for example, will generally have laminated glass on both sides of the IGU in an aluminum frame and with a "maximum" airspace between the lites. In an airport the primary concern is sound attenuation and energy efficiency is secondary. I mention this because the width of the airspace and the choice of window framing material affects both sound and energy efficiency.
Some folks will suggest triple pane glass for its sound deadening ability. And while triple pane is a slight improvement over standard double pane at lower frequencies due to the additional density of the extra lite, overall there is no difference in STC rating between triple and double pane provided that the overall airspace between the panes is constant between the two constructions. In other words, consider a triple pane with two 1/4" airspaces and a dual pane with a single 1/2" airspace...both using 1/8" glass...the STC will be identical if the IGU's are the same dimensions.
What I suspect you saw on HGTV was a product called Heat Mirror. The Heat Mirror folks have a suspended plastic sheet between two lites in an IGU and they claim that this suspended sheet of plastic makes their window superior to any other window on the market in just about everyway you can imagine, up to and including performing minor surgeries if needed. Are the claims true? Yes and no, the energy perfomance numbers for heat mirror are amazing, and the product does have some very nice sound perfomance numbers as well. But, the Heat Mirror product specifically recommended for sound attenuation also has a huge gap between the lites and the suspended film. When folks talk about how good this product is at blocking sound (I have also seen it discussed on HGTV, but I don't know if it was the same show or not that you sae, of course), they love to talk about that suspended piece of plastic. What they never mention (at least I have not seen) is that the real value is the width of the airspace combined with the make up of the unit.
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 a company like Soundproof Windows will do is build what is essentially a laminated glass storm window and install it over your existing window.
I have a few issues with some of the things they say on their website concerning energy performance improvements that they claim, and the amount of sound that they claim they will block. I also think that they charge a premium for their product, but if done correctly, then it will work quite well.
If you decide on installing a new window, then remember that, as always, the quality of the construction and especially the installation cannot be overstated! Based on the size of the unit, fixed (not an operator)is a definite advantage when attempting to stop noise from coming in your house.
A fixed, non-operable, window will often show significant improvement over an operating window which is one reason why the soundproof folks do so well. They install a fixed "storm" and make sure that the original window is also tight...it does work.
A few numbers for comparison (glass only, not a specific window construction):
A 1/4" monolithic lite has an STC of 31.
A 1/4" laminated lite has an STC of 35.
A 1/2" (overall width - airspace width is 1/4") IGU has an STC of 28, lower than a single sheet of 1/4" glass. Surprised? If anyone is curious, I can explain the principle behind that one.
Increase the airspace in the IGU to 3/8" from 1/4" and the STC increases to 31, or the same as a monolithic 1/4" lite!
One disclaimer, generally speaking, in the real world few monolithic windows are made using 1/4" glass.
Replace one of the 1/8" monolithic lites in the IGU mentioned above with a 1/4" laminate, and the STC jumps to 35, which happens to be the same as the monolithic laminate alone. If anyone is wondering, it is that pesky, narrow airspace of 1/4" that is the problem. Again, I can talk more in depth about that if anyone is interested.
In the same laminated glass / IGU make up, that I just mentioned, if we increase the airspace to 1/2", then we jump the STC to 39.
And, finally, if we want to get really serious, increase the airspace to 4" and use laminated glass on both sides of the airspace and we get an STC of 53, or airport-style sound deadening. Now before anyone gets overly excited, the cost of such a construction is rather significant! ;-)
Hope this made at least some sense!
Wonder if anyone made it this far?
Q
