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SAIF SIDDIQUI
091110025
APRIL 2013
DECLARATION
Date:
SAIF SIDDIQUI
091110025
CERTIFICATE
(i)
(ii)
(iii)
Recommended
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
SAIF SIDDIQUI
091110025
Table of Content
Declaration ................................................................. Error! Bookmark not defined.
Acknowledgement ...................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined.
Table of Content .................................................................................................... 4
Chapter-1.
Synopsis .......................................................................................... 7
1.1
Title ................................................................................................................. 7
1.2
1.3
Aim ................................................................................................................. 8
1.4
Objectives........................................................................................................ 8
1.5
Scope .............................................................................................................. 8
Chapter-2.
Introduction .................................................................................... 9
2.1
2.2
2.3
2.4
Chapter-3.
3.1
Classrooms .................................................................................................... 35
3.2
3.3
Office ............................................................................................................ 38
3.4
Studio ............................................................................................................ 39
3.4
Theatre .......................................................................................................... 40
Chapter-4.
Chapter-5.
5.2
5.3
Floors ............................................................................................................ 46
5.4
Stringers ........................................................................................................ 49
5.2
Ceilings .......................................................................................................... 50
5.3
Walls ............................................................................................................. 52
5.4
Doors ............................................................................................................ 54
5.5
Windows ....................................................................................................... 57
Chapter-6.
Conclusion .................................................................................... 60
Chapter-1. Synopsis
1.1 Title
Architectural Acoustics And Its Treatment
1.2 Introduction
Architectural acoustics refers to the control of sound and vibrations within buildings.
Although architectural acoustics was first applied to opera houses and concert halls,
this branch of acoustical engineering applies to any enclosed area, whether concert
halls, office spaces, or ventilation ducts.
The acoustics of rooms are often considered to ensure speech intelligibility and
privacy. One thing that can affect speech intelligibility is standing waves. A standing
wave results from a sound wave reflected 180 degrees out of phase with its incident
wave, which often occurs for at least one specific frequency when two walls are
placed parallel to each other. To avoid this, many rooms are designed with angled
walls. A second potential cause of poor speech intelligibility is reverberation. This
effect can be reduced through porous absorbing materials. Examples of these include
glass or mineral fibers, textiles, and polyurethane cell foams. Since the absorption of
each material is different for different frequencies of sound, the materials used often
vary based on the intended purpose of the room, though compound partitions, or
layered combinations of different materials, make more effective absorbers. A third
common technique for room acoustics is the use of masking. Masking is the canceling
or drowning out of other sounds. Although this raises the overall sound pressure,
masking can make irritating noises less distracting and add speech privacy As these
examples highlight, room acoustics are a regular part of architectural design.
Reducing ventilation noise serves as another example of applied architectural
acoustics. Many heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems have silencers.
Silencers can actively cancel noise by electronic feed forward and feedback
techniques, or muffle the sound by either having sudden changes in cross section or
walls with absorbent linings.Architectural acoustics involves the control of sound for
ventilation, rooms, and anything else indoors.
.
1.4 Aim
To study the architectural acoustical designing of spaces.
1.5 Objectives
1.6 Scope
Since this is an architectural report, the literature study will cover study of acoustics
in an architectural space. This research will provide basic background on
Introduction to sound, as well as insights into acoustical designing of spaces
principles and noise reduction techniques.
1.7 Methodology
Literature survey
1. Basics of acoustics
2. Various acoustical treatments
3. Relevant case studies.
Chapter-2. Introduction
2.1 Acoustics
Acoustics is the interdisciplinary science that deals with the study of all mechanical waves in
gases, liquids, and solids including vibration, sound, ultrasound and infrasound. A scientist
who works in the field of acoustics is an acoustician while someone working in the field of
acoustics technology may be called an acoustical or audio engineer. The application of
acoustics can be seen in almost all aspects of modern society with the most obvious being the
audio and noise control industries.
10
three centuries earlier which, in turn, probably had their origins in Pythagoras who
first developed the subject around 530 BC. Vitruvius dealt with acoustics from several
points of view. First he introduced harmonics an obscure and difficult branch of
musical science, especially for those who do not know Greek. This science explained
the pitch of notes and the intervals between them in the Greek musical scale, as well
as why some combinations of notes are concordant and others discordant. Next
Vitruvius discussed sound in the auditorium in particular the need for sound of all
pitches to travel from the stage to the ears of every member of the audience by a
direct route, in the manner of waves created by a pebble thrown into water. This led
logically to both raked seating and the semi-circular plan. He advised against vertical
reflective surfaces that would prevent sound reaching the upper tiers of seats since
this particularly impairs the intelligibility of word endings which, in Greek and Latin,
are vital to comprehension. Such reflected waves, he wrote, can also interfere with the
direct waves and distort sounds for the listener. These explanations differ remarkably
little from how we would put it today. Thirdly, Vitruvius explained that the site of a
theatre itself must be carefully selected taking account of acoustics: it must not have
an echo, nor give reflections that can lead to direct (incident) and reflected sounds
interfering.
Vitruvius also discusses the use of sounding vessels nowadays called Helmholz
resonators, after the nineteenth-century German physicist who explained how they
function which, he says, reinforce certain frequencies of the human voice and can
increase intelligibility. These open-ended vessels were made of bronze and tuned to
six notes of the chromatic scale. Two sets of six were arranged beneath a tier of seats
symmetrically either side of the centre line of the theatre. If the theatre were
particularly large, two additional sets of vessels should be installed in higher rows,
each a few semi tones lower in pitch a total of thirty six different notes. Vitruvius
admits he knows of no theatres that had actually been built in Rome with sounding
vessels. The reason, he explains, is that the many theatres that are constructed in
Rome every year contain a good deal of wood which does not lead to the same
problems with reflections as stone. Also, he says, the timber panels themselves can
resonate in a manner similar to the air in a sounding vessel and so improve
intelligibility. As to the effectiveness of sounding vessels, they are known today not to
improve intelligibility and that is probably why they were not used in Rome. Whether
11
the Roman theatres were as good as the Greek ones, we do not know, but there is no
doubt that both were designed with great understanding of acoustics and expertise in
using this understanding to achieve demonstrably better results.
One final recommendation from Vitruvius on acoustics was for a senate house. The
height of a senate house should be half the width of the building, he says, and
coronae, or cornices, made of woodwork or stucco, should be fixed half way up the
inside faces of the walls around the entire room. Without these, he says, the voices of
men engaged in discourse are lost in the high roof. With coronae, the sound of the
voices is detained before rising and so is more intelligible to the ear.
12
in
showing
ray
diagrams
to
visualise
sound
paths.
Fig. 3.2 Ray diagrams for different theatre plans; (Patte 1782, Plate 1)
13
14
lecture theatre of 9300 cubic metres down to an office of just 35 cubic metres. From
the results he derived the equation for which his name is well-known giving the
relationship between the reverberation time (RT), of a room, in seconds, its volume
(V), in cubic metres, and the area (A), in square metres, of sound-absorbing surfaces
in the room. (1) Sabine used this equation to give an objective means of comparing
different auditoria and, in particular, to compare the proposed design for the new
Boston Music Hall with the Leipzig Gewandhaus, on which its overall shape was
based, and the old Music Hall in Boston. He was able to specify, for the first time, the
precise degree of sound absorption in the interior of the new Boston hall needed to
achieve the same reverberation time as the Leipzig Gewandhaus whose seating
capacity it exceeded by 70%, and volume by 40%. Sabines predictions were accurate
and the acoustic of the new hall was widely praised. He had fulfilled his goal of
overcoming the unwarranted mysticism that then surrounded the subject of
architectural acoustics and, most importantly, achieved the calculation of
reverberation in advance of construction. Sabine was soon being approached by the
owners of various types of room to advise on how to rectify their acoustic problems.
Often this followed the failed attempts by others to deal with the problems. Sabine
noted the persistent use of a traditional but wholly ineffective remedy which involved
stretching a grid of steel wires in the top of a church, theatre or court room which
suffered too much reverberation on the mistaken believe that the wires would resonate
and absorb sound. In New York and Boston he had seen theatres and churches with
just four or five wires stretched across the room while in other auditoria several miles
of wire had been used, all without the slightest effect. As part of his diagnosis of
acoustic problems he would sometimes plot a contour map showing the distribution of
the sound intensity. This helped him identify the source of the worst sound reflections
from the walls and ceiling and hence reduce them by using sound-absorbing panels or
adding decorations that would break up strong reflections from large plane surfaces.
Sabine also turned his attention to the design of new theatres and how best to create a
near-uniform acoustic experience for every member of the audience. To help him in
these studies he used the newly-perfected
schlieren method of photography to show sound waves passing through air in twodimensional models of auditoria (Fig.2). He was thus able to show in plan and
15
section, how sound waves were reflected and broken up as they emanated from the
stage into the auditorium. Outside the field of building structures this was probably
the first use of a scale model to investigate the engineering behaviour of a building.
Fig 3.3 Photographs showing the progress of sound waves through a model of a theatre.
The development of design methods for the acoustics of auditoria has followed the
same pattern observed in other branches of building engineering design. Initially
designers used their own experience to observe and improve their art and collected
their experience in the form of simple design rules which could be passed on to other
designers. In acoustics this approach was known in ancient times and has continued
even into the twentieth century. The technical difficulty of measuring acoustic
phenomena delayed a truly scientific approach to understanding acoustics until the
late eighteenth century (over a century later than for structural engineering). The first
scientific concept in acoustics, defined in quantitative terms by Sabine in the 1890s,
was the reverberation time whose relationship to the dimensions of a room was
expressed as an empirical quantity known as the absorptivity of the surfaces of the
room. This approach remains the most important in acoustic design today. The testing
of scale models together with the use of non-dimensional constants was developed in
acoustics simultaneously with their use in the design of building structures, first in the
1930s and more widely in the 1960s. Their use consolidated the understanding of
acoustic phenomena and laid the foundation for creating mathematical models using
computers.
2.3
16
2.3.1
Propagation of sound
When sound is moving through a medium that does not have constant physical
properties, it may be refracted (either dispersed or focused).
2.3.2
Perception of Sound
17
dogs can perceive vibrations higher than 20 kHz, but are deaf to anything below
40 Hz. As a signal perceived by one of the major senses, sound is used by many
species for detecting danger, navigation, predation, and communication. Earth's
atmosphere, water,
and
virtually
any physical
phenomenon,
such
as fire,
rain, wind, surf, or earthquake, produces (and is characterized by) its unique sounds.
Many species, such as frogs, birds, marine and terrestrial mammals, have also
developed
special organs to
produce
sound.
In
some
developed
species,
culture
these
and
technology (such as music, telephone and radio) that allows them to generate, record,
transmit, and broadcast sound. The scientific study of human sound perception is
known as psychoacoustics.
2.3.3
Physics of Sound
The mechanical vibrations that can be interpreted as sound are able to travel through
all forms of matter: gases, liquids, solids, and plasmas. The matter that supports the
sound is called the medium. Sound cannot travel through a vacuum.
Sound is transmitted through gases, plasma, and liquids as longitudinal waves, also
called compression waves. Through solids, however, it can be transmitted as both
longitudinal waves and transverse waves. Longitudinal sound waves are waves of
alternating pressure deviations from the equilibrium pressure, causing local regions
of compression and rarefaction, while transverse waves (in solids) are waves of
alternating shear stress at right angle to the direction of propagation.
Matter in the medium is periodically displaced by a sound wave, and thus oscillates.
The energy carried by the sound wave converts back and forth between the potential
energy of the extra compression (in case of longitudinal waves) or lateral
displacement strain (in case of transverse waves) of the matter and the kinetic energy
of the oscillations of the medium.
18
Figure 3.3 Sinusoidal waves of various frequencies; the bottom waves have higher frequencies
than those above. The horizontal axis represents time.
Sound waves are often simplified to a description in terms of sinusoidal plane waves,
which are characterized by these generic properties:
Wavelength
Wave number
Amplitude
Sound pressure
Sound intensity
Speed of sound
Direction
Sometimes speed and direction is combined as a velocity vector; wave number and
direction are combined as a wave vector.
Transverse
waves,
also
known
as shear waves,
have
the
additional
19
2.3.5
Measurement of Sound
Reverberation
enclosed space, when a sound source stops emitting
an
energy,
it takes some time for the sound to become inaudible. This prolongation of the sound in the
20
Reflections
Reflected sound strikes a surface or several surfaces before
receiver. These reflections can have unwanted or even
consequences. Although reverberation is due to continued
reflections, controlling the Reverberation Time in a space does
space
will
be
free
from
problems
from
reaching the
disastrous
multiple
not ensure the
reflections.
Reflective corners or peaked ceilings can create a megaphone effect potentially causing
annoying reflections and loud spaces. Reflective parallel surfaces lend themselves to a unique
acoustical problem called standing waves, creating a fluttering of sound between the two
surfaces.
Reflections can be attributed to the shape of the space as well as the material on the surfaces.
Domes and concave surfaces cause reflections to be focused rather than dispersed which can
cause annoying sound reflections. Absorptive surface treatments can help to eliminate both
reverberation and reflection problems.
Noise
Reduction
Coefficient
(NRC):
The Noise Reduction Coefficient (NRC) is a single-number index for rating how absorptive a
particular material is. Although the standard is often abused, it is simply the average of the midfrequency sound absorption coefficients (250, 500, 1000 and 2000 Hertz rounded to the nearest
5%). The NRC gives no information as to how absorptive a material is in the low and high
frequencies, nor does it have anything to do with the materials barrier effect.
can
21
2.4
Noise
In relation to sound, noise is not necessarily random. Sounds, particularly loud ones, that
disturb people or make it difficult to hear wanted sounds, are noise. For example,
conversations of other people may be called noise by people not involved in any of them;
any unwanted sound such as domesticated dogs barking, neighbours playing loud music,
portable mechanical saws, road traffic sounds, or a distant aircraft in quiet countryside, is
called noise.
Acoustic noise can be anything from quiet but annoying to loud and harmful. At one
extreme users of public transport sometimes complain about the faint and tinny sounds
emanating from the headphones or earbuds of somebody listening to a portable audio
player; at the other the sound of very loud music, a jet engine at close quarters, etc. can
cause permanent irreversible hearing damage.
Sound intensity follows an inverse square law with distance from the source; doubling the
distance from a noise source reduces its intensity by a factor of four, or 6 dB.
22
2.4.1
Reverberation time
With this theory described, the reverberation time can be dened. It is the time for the
level of energy to decrease of 60 dB. It depends on the volume of the room V and the
equivalent
absorption area a :T60 =0.16V
a Sabine formula
This reverberation time is the fundamental parameter in room acoustics and depends
trough the equivalent absorption area and the absorption coefficients on the frequency. It
is used for several measurement :
Measurement of an absorption coefficient of a material
Measurement of the power of a source
Measurement of the transmission of a wall
A wall must extend to the structural deck in order to achieve optimal isolation.
Walls extending only to a dropped ceiling will result in inadequate isolation.
Sound will travel through the weakest structural elements, which, many times, are
the doors or electrical outlets.
When the mass of a barrier is doubled, the isolation quality (or STC rating)
increases by five, which is clearly noticeable.
Installing insulation within a wall or floor/ceiling cavity will improve the STC
rating by about 4-6 dB, which is clearly noticeable.
Often times, specialty insulations do not perform any better than standard batt
insulation.
Metal studs perform better than wood studs. Staggering the studs or using dual
studs can provide a substantial increase in isolation.
Increasing air space in a wall or window assembly will improve isolation.
Case Study
23
Location:
Area
of
Newspaper
concern:
Space
between
office
CEO
office
building
and
boardroom
Additional information: Noise usually travels through spaces at several different points.
Controlling only one point is like trying to save a sinking boat by patching only one hole
when 10 holes exist. You must be thorough to ensure effective results.
Questions to ask client:
Client feedback:
The CEO is distracted by noise from the boardroom when there are meetings in
progress. There are also confidentiality issues.
The wall does not go up to the deck, it ends at the dropped ceiling.
There are no penetrations other than the door.
The noise could be going around the wall by means of the door.
The materials used in this space are carpet, painted drywall and acoustic tile on the
ceiling. There are two return air ducts about two feet apart, separated only by the
wall.
Confidentiality is an issue to some degree, but not a security problem.
Evaluation: In this particular project, there was a door and a window between the two
spaces and the ceiling did not go up to the deck. To improve the acoustics, an
upgraded sealer was added to the doors and a flexible, vinyl barrier was placed on top
of the ceiling above the two spaces (since the wall could not be extended to the deck).
Creating a completely confidential space is very difficult and extremely expensive.
Since confidentiality was an issue, but not a security matter, this improvement proved
successful.
If further improvements were needed, the next step would be to install a sound
masking
system.
24
essential, a very expensive door was installed. This door had an STC rating of 65, but
the surrounding walls had an STC rating of 50. In this case, the walls served as the
weakest point, rather than the door. Its important to note that the isolation quality of
an assembly is dictated by the weakest element of the assembly.
Typically, the noise transfer will go through the weakest structural element, such
as the door, window or ventilation duct.
The isolation provided by a door is only as good as the extent to which it is sealed.
If air can get around or under the door, so can sound.
The majority of exterior noise enters through the windows. Dual-pane windows
with increased air space can improve isolation.
If the noise cannot be reduced to a satisfactory level, consider trying to mask the
annoying noise with a more pleasant noise such as a water feature.
Case Study
Location:
Private
residence
Area of concern: A neighbors pool motor created an annoying hum that could be heard in
the
master
bedroom.
25
Additional information: In this case, the first thing to do is to check the weakest points,
such as windows and doors. Windows can be replaced with upgraded varieties, or
acoustical inserts can be added for further control. Originally, acoustic absorption was
mistakenly added to the inside of the room. This actually made the problem worse.
Although the noise level within the room decreased, the absorption did nothing to reduce
the
exterior
noise.
Where does the noise seem to be coming from? Under the door? Through the
window? Through the ceiling? Etc.?
Client feedback:
An annoying hum is heard in the master bedroom. It interrupts sleep and interferes
with other activities such as watching television and reading.
The noise is coming from the motor from the neighbors pool pump.
The windows are upgraded and an acoustic sealant has been applied to the doors.
Vibration dampening was also used to control the noise. This solution completely met the
client's needs. Additional comments: There are certain noises that are difficult to control at
the source, such as traffic noise. In such cases, look to control the noise at the path by
erecting a barrier, such as a wall. Vegetation provides little, if any, noise reduction. If air
can pass through, so can sound.
When controlling noise within a space, there are usually two main problems to remedy:
a noisy space due to reverberation or a noisy
You have to at least double the absorption in a space before there is a noticeable
difference. Every time you double the absorption, the reverberant noise field is
reduced by 3 dB, which is classified as just perceptible.
The improvement will not be as noticeable as you get closer to the noise source.
Case Study 1
Location: Retirement Village
Area of concern: Multi-purpose clubhouse
Additional information: The original thought was that the sound system needed to be
upgraded or fixed because it wasnt working properly. Further review showed that it
was the lack of absorption in the room, not the sound system that was causing the
problems.
27
What materials are used in this room? Drywall? Wood? Carpet? Tile?
Client feedback:
The room is too loud whenever there is a group in it, especially during dinners.
The room is used for large dinners, performances, presentations, and other group
activities.
The original assumption was that the problem was the sound system, but we dont
have problems hearing announcements when the room is quiet. It must be a noise
issue within the room itself.
Drywall and carpet are used throughout the room. Draperies and curtains are used
on the stage.
Evaluation: After speaking with the client and visiting the site, it was obvious that a lack
of absorption was causing the excessive noise in the room. Frequently, in a situation such
as this, a reflective ceiling, which is a large area that will project noise back down to the
floor,
causes
majority
of
problems.
Addressing the ceiling alone would improve the noise level, but would not protect
performers from the problematic reflections called slap-back*. There are a variety of
products available for such applications. The products you choose are dependent upon the
look and feel of the room and your budget. In this case, acoustics improved as a result of
adding material to the ceiling (to control the overall noise) and acoustic wall paneling to
the
back
wall
(to
control
slap-back
and
the
overall
reverberation
time).
*Slap-back = A reflective back wall will reflect, or slap, the noise back to the source
causing a delay.
28
Case Study 2
Location:
Area
Headquarters
of
for
concern:
large
Credit
credit
card
card
company
processing
center
Additional information: The first step in solving a problem related to equipment noise is to
call the manufacturer. Sometimes there is a problem in the installation or in the equipment
operation. Certain pieces of equipment have a retrofit noise reduction kit that can be
purchased
to
reduce
problems.
What materials are used in this room? Drywall? Wood? Carpet? Tile?
Client feedback:
The processing center houses equipment that generates noise at 85-90 dB.
Workers are annoyed by this noise and the company is on the borderline of an
OSHA violation.
This room facilitates automated printing and folding of statements and stuffing
envelopes.
It is the loudest when all of the equipment is operating, which is during business
hours.
29
the equipment itself. The level of improvement is related to the reverberance of the space.
The more reverberant a space is, the more dramatic the possible improvement. For this
project, the space was not too reverberant, so the improvement would not be remarkable,
but it would be noticeable. Hanging vinyl-covered acoustic baffles from the ceiling,
particularly the areas directly above the equipment, controlled the noise from emanating
within the space, but did not reduce the noise level for the equipment operator (though it
did help the other operators).
If adding absorption does not provide enough noise control, it might be necessary to
isolate the noisy areas from the quieter areas. Doing so would result in the implementation
of a hearing protection program for those employees working in the unavoidably louder
areas. In this case, enclosing the equipment with an acoustic shield (of plexi-glass)
reduced the noise level for the operator by about 10 dB. The combination of the absorptive
material and the acoustic shield reduced the overall noise by about 4 dB for all employees
in the area, which met the clients needs and brought them into OSHA compliance.
are
some
possible
solutions.
By doubling the distance from a noise source, the level is reduced by 6 dB, a clearly
noticeable amount. The reduction will not be experienced to this extent with a line source,
such
as
railroad
or
freeway
(the
reduction
is
around
to
4-1/2 dB).
A barrier must block the line-of-sight between the source and the receiver in order to be
effective.
You will typically not need a barrier with a surface weight/density greater than fourpounds/square foot, as long as there are no openings in the wall.
30
The noise wall must be continuous with no openings to be effective. If air is going
through the wall, so will sound.
Vegetation, such as trees and bushes, provides very little, if any, noise reduction.
Case Study
Location:
Area
of
Cemetery
concern:
column
burial
area
with
meandering
path
Additional information: This space needed to facilitate a solemn and contemplative setting while
minimizing distractions from a nearby street. Originally, a concrete block wall was used, but the
results
were
not
sufficient.
Client feedback:
The cemetery is next to a relatively busy road. The traffic noise is distracting to visitors
who expect a quiet, intimate setting.
Aside from the traffic noise, there are no other major noise sources in the area.
A concrete block wall was used, but the results were not sufficient.
The desired result is a relaxed, meditative atmosphere that is aesthetically consistent with
the rest of the space.
Evaluation: Since it was not feasible to increase the barrier wall height, a sound
masking system (that is typically used in an office environment) was implemented in
this case. To blend in with the atmosphere, rock speakers that generated pink noise
were placed along the meandering path. Water features served as additional
atmosphere enhancers, and helped to make the masking system sound more natural.
31
These fountains also eliminated hot and cold zones and created a consistent noise
through the entire space. Water features alone would only work when a visitor was
standing
directly
next
to
the
water.
Additional comments: In many cases, the best outdoor solution is a barrier wall.
Other solutions include encapsulating a noise source (such as an emergency
generator) and adding distance between the receiver and the noise source.
Weakness: The NIC rating is highly dependent on the field conditions of the tested space.
Because of this, the tested rating might not be achieved in other spaces or projects.
noise
impact.
32
Recording studios
Lecture halls
Performance halls
Courtrooms
Libraries
Worship centers
Educational facilities
For some areas, such as machine shops or kitchens, it is not essential to maintain a
particularly low NC level.
NC Level Strength: It is important for design professionals to specify NC ratings to
protect their designs (within reason specifying an acceptable NC level does not have
to be a burden on the budget). Doing so speaks to your reputation as a responsible
architect
or
designer
and
limits
your
liability.
NC Level Weakness: NC does not account for sound at very low frequencies. In spite
of numerous efforts to establish a widely accepted, useful, single-number rating
method for evaluating noise in a structure, a variety of techniques exist today. The vast
majority of acoustic professionals use the NC standard, but it is still important to be
aware of the other acceptable methods that do account for low frequency levels,
including (but not limited to):
33
Balanced Noise Criteria (NCB) is based on the ANSI threshold of audibility for
pure-tones and is defined as the range of audibility for continuous sound in a
specified field from 16 Hz to 8000 Hz.
rates
partition's
or
material's
ability
to
block
airborne
sound.
Definitions:
in
single
number.
34
Classrooms
Tips/Considerations
Numerous studies demonstrate how chronic noise exposure (i.e., noise found in
the community, as well as noise to which we are voluntarily exposed)
negatively impacts education. For more information, readProgressing the
Learning Curve.
Consider the impact of noise from nearby freeways, busy roads, train tracks and
other transportation- or industrial-related sources. Identify noise sources in the
vicinity and assess the possible impact. Based on this assessment, take the
proper steps to minimize or eliminate the potential problem.
35
Even if everything else is controlled perfectly, the space might not be usable if
the background noise (e.g. HVAC system) is too loud. To help protect your
design, the NC level should not exceed 25 to 35. When specifying NC, specify
an actual rating, such as NC 25, rather than a range, such as NC 25-30.
Although specifying a lower number will ensure minimal background noise, it
might be cost prohibitive to achieve. Be realistic about the amount of
acceptable noise and the project's budget when specifying an NC level.
3.2
Concert Hall
Tips/Considerations
o
It is vital to control the reflections from the back wall. If you don't
control them, the presentation could reflect off the back wall and "slap
back" to the presenter(s). This won't necessarily impact the audience,
36
but could be disastrous and distracting for the people on stage. Because
of this, it's usually necessary to splay or tilt the back wall to avoid slap
back. A concave back wall could compound this problem. If you can't
avoid a concave back wall, it's imperative that it be treated with
absorptive material.
o
Some concert attendees have sued (and won) over experiencing hearing
loss at a concert. Beware of potentially dangerous, excessive noise
levels. Some venue operators regulate the noise levels to help alleviate
the potential noise impact on surrounding areas and on the audience.
Especially outdoors, be concerned about exterior noise impact on the venue. Often this
will decide the location of the site. For instance, be aware of surrounding airports
(flight paths), freeways, railroads and industrial sites.
3.3
Office
37
Tips/Considerations
o
o
o
o
o
38
Client Expectations: There is a large range of acceptable isolation levels for office
spaces. Transmitted noise that would be tolerable for some projects can be very
annoying for others. The annoyance potential is based on individual sensitivities,
confidentiality issues, and the level of privacy to which the users are accustomed. It is
important to understand your client's needs in regard to privacy and confidentiality
expectations in order to design a space that is best suited for their individual needs.
3.4
Studio
Tips/Considerations
o
39
Note: Absorption and diffusion materials only help the interior acoustic environment
and do not help with isolation.
3.5
Theatre
Tips/Considerations
o Recommended reverberation time is 1.0-1.5 seconds (might be higher
for some auditoriums).
o Although the seating area will provide absorption, thereby reducing the
reverberation time, you will most likely need to add absorptive
materials to the other surfaces within the space.
o It is vital to control the reflections from the back wall. If you don't
control them, the presentation could reflect off the back wall and "slap
back" to the presenter(s). This won't necessarily impact the audience,
but could be disastrous and distracting for the people on stage. Because
of this, it's usually necessary to treat the back wall with an absorptive
material. A concave back wall could compound this problem. If you
can't avoid a concave back wall, it's imperative that it be treated with
absorptive material.
o Splay or use irregular surfaces on the walls to avoid flutter echoes.
Parallel reflective surfaces can allow sound to "ricochet" back and forth
between the surfaces. This potentially annoying condition is referred to
as standing wave or flutter echo. It is avoided by constructing nonparallel surfaces or by adding absorptive materials to the surface(s).
o Consider faceting the ceiling to help with sound dispersion.
o Control the reverberation time on the stage. Ideally, the reverberation
time in the stage area should be the same as in the house. Since the
stage area might have a higher ceiling than the rest of the auditorium,
more absorptive materials might be required in this area. Frequently, the
back wall of the stage, and possibly one or two of the side walls, is
treated with an acoustically absorptive material, typically black in color.
40
o
o
audience size.
Noise from the lobby area can be disruptive. Be sure openings such as
doorways are properly sealed. Consider a vestibule door system.
Persons seated deep under a balcony might experience auditory
distortion. To avoid this, the balcony should be no deeper than twice its
height. Ideally, the balcony should not be any deeper than its height.
Even if everything else is controlled perfectly, the space might not be
usable if the background noise (e.g. HVAC system) is too loud. To help
protect your design, the NC level should not exceed 20 to 35. When
specifying NC, specify an actual rating, such as NC 20, rather than a
range, such as NC 20-30. Although specifying a lower number will
ensure minimal background noise, it might be cost prohibitive to
achieve. Be realistic about the amount of acceptable noise and the
project's budget when specifying an NC level.
Beware of potential outdoor noise impacting your space. For example, is your location
near a flight path, a railroad or freeway? If so, you might have to pay critical attention
to blocking this noise. To do so effectively, you must address not only the STC or
isolation quality of the exterior wall, but also for the possibly weaker building
elements, such as the windows, doors and HVAC systems.
Acoustical Foam
Acoustic foam is an open celled foam used for acoustic treatment. It attenuates
airborne sound waves by increasing air resistance, this reducing the amplitude of the
waves. The energy is dissipated as heat. Acoustic Foam can be made in several
different colors, sizes and thickness.
Acoustic foam comes in a variety of sizes and can be attached to walls, ceilings, doors,
and other features of a room to control noise levels, vibration, and echoes.
Many acoustic foam products are treated with dyes and/or fire retardants.
Uses
The objective of acoustic foam is to improve the sound quality by removing residual
sound in any space. This purpose requires strategic placement of acoustic foam panels
on walls, ceiling and floors, effectively eliminating all resonance within the room.
Acoustic enhancement
For this reason, acoustic foam is often used in recording studios. The purpose is to
reduce, but not entirely eliminate resonance within the room. This is achieved by
placing similar sized pieces of foam, often in the shape of cones or triangles, on
opposite walls.
Acoustic foam is a lightweight material made from polyurethane foam either polyether
or polyester, and also extruded melamine foam. It is usually cut into tiles often with
pyramid or wedge shapes which can be placed on the walls of a recording studio or a
similar type of environment and act's as a sound absorber aimed to enhance the sound
quality within a room,
Acoustic foam reduces or eliminates echoes and background noises by controlling
the reverberation that sound can make by bouncing off walls. This type of sound
absorption is different than soundproofing, which is typically used to keep sound from
escaping a room.
Acoustic foam deals more with the mid and high frequencies. To deal with lower
frequencies, much thicker pieces of acoustic foam are needed; large pieces of acoustic
foam are often placed in the corners of a room and are called acoustic foam corner bass
traps.
Usage
Wood and metal studs and joists construction framing members with which most of
you are familiar. The most common framing for walls is either 2x4 wood studs or 3.5
metal studs.
Which is more cost effective metal or wood will largely depend on the relative
price of wood and steel in different parts of the country. For acoustical purposes, metal
42
does offer resiliency benefits worth considering for maximum benefit. For those of you
that are not used to building things, bear in mind when figuring your dimensions that
lumber is not really the actual dimensions indicated by the name. For instance, a 2x4 is
not; it is actually 1"x3". A 2x6 is
1"x5", etc.
Gypsum wallboard (GWB, drywall, SheetRock) is commonly available in
and " thicknesses. It is far and away the most common building material in North
America for interior finish construction. Unless you have a home built prior to the
1950s, you probably have gypsum board finish to your walls and ceilings. (Plaster on
lathe was much more common
and incidentally much better for sound isolation than gypsum board in homes prior to
the construction boom of the 1950s.) Of particular interest to acoustics and
construction with
gypsum board is the Gypsum Board Construction Handbook, published by the United
States
Gypsum Company.
Plywood is usually " (but is available in a variety of thicknesses from larger lumber
yards) and is either available with flat edges, or with tongue and groove edges for tight
floor construction.
The Particleboard family:
Low density fiberboard, or LDF, is typically called chipboard. Its the stuff out of
which most inexpensive, DIY furniture is made. 15
o Medium density fiberboard, or MDFis more typical of shelving and loudspeaker
enclosures. It has some very good acoustical properties and we like using it for many
varied applications.
o High density fiberboard, or HDF, is also available, but is quite rare and quite
heavy.
Very high-end cabinetry will often employ HDF.
o Oriented strand board, or OSB, is often used in residential construction as a lowcost floor underlayment.
43
o Straight up particleboard is usually a version of LDF, but can also be the name
given to a higher grade of OSB.
Other materials we make mention of include gypsum board screws of various
thread sizes and lengths, construction adhesives including vinyl flooring adhesive,
silicone caulk, etc.
5.2
Soundboard is often misunderstood, so I will try to set the record straight here. Many
people mistakenly use the term to describe materials like regular gypsum board or even
particleboard.
This is not accurate. Soundboard is actually a trademarked name for a brown,
compressed paper board that is usually or " thick and is manufactured by the
Celotex Company. The best way to describe it for you here is to say that it is a lot like
a sheet of Masonite orpegboard, only thicker and a bit softer. A similar material is
Homasote. If you describe
Soundboard or Homasote to your building materials supplier, he or she can probably
direct you to it. It is pretty dense, so it makes a good layer in a multi-layered wall
configuration. In conjunction with layers of " gypsum board, " particleboard or
MDF and SheetBlok, it is really effective at blocking the transmission of sound. (It
should be noted that when compared side by side with gypsum board, Soundboard is
not quite as good in a straight up STC comparison. Click here for an illustration. It is
not clear what sort of performance Homasote offers versus gypsum board or
Soundboard. Bearing that in mind, Soundboard is good if you want to change up the
composition of the layers in your construction. This will dissipate resonances well.
However, for sheer mass, gypsum board is a much more cost-effective alternative.)
Blueboard is also a very misunderstood material. This is typically expanded
polystyrene thats been dyed blue, though there are also pink versions available. Its all
the same mostly useless in terms of acoustical isolation. The density of the material
is very low and the material itself is closed-cell foam. Thus, there is no mass benefit to
be gained for isolation and no absorptive benefit to be gained when using it in wall
cavities. Unless there is a specific code requirement for this type of material in your
construction, we would encourage the use of glass fiber or mineral fiber insulation
44
has a density somewhere between 0.7 and 1.0 pounds per cubic foot (pcf) and usually
comes in rolls.
It is very effective at minimizing cavity resonances (resonances that occur in the air
16spaces between framing members). It is the minimum insulation that should be used
in the walls, ceiling and floor of any studio construction.
Board insulation is available from the various companies that specialize in the
in , 1 or 2 thicknesses. There is usually and FRK backing on one side and a black
scrim facing on the other. Used inside ducts, this type of material can help minimize
turbulent airflow noise in HVAC systems. Since the black scrim facing contains the
fibers, it can also be used as a low-cost wall absorber. It should be noted that the
thick material is rare. The 1 thick material is very common and is the minimum that
should be considered for any acoustical application.
45
5.3
Floors
Figure show good designs for those of you who have the vertical space to spare and
need to float your floor (and your walls). These are perfect when studio and control
room are both going to rest on common floor, either wooden or concrete slab. If yours
is concrete, consider (carefully)cutting a gap in the concrete between the two rooms
first, then proceeding as shown. Cutting the slab is o minor undertaking, but you will
be relieved to know that if you decide to do it, hexapods not need to be any wider than
the width of the saw blade. The cut must bisect the entire slab. If you are unfamiliar
with the structural ramification doing this, please consult a local expert. It cannot held
responsible
if
your
building
caves
in
.
Figures 3.1show 2x6 joists and2x4 walls, but if you819do not have the space you can
use 2x4s, 2x3s or even 2x2s for the floor. The specific material used may not matter as
much as the proper implementation of the materials. I.e., the general method stays the
same. The preference if you have the space is 2x6 or larger because they allow for
more trapped air space and better overall decoupling. It is advisable to caulk all edges,
seams and corners (as wells any penetrations more on that elsewhere) particularly
where different materials meet. Leave about a gap in parallel seams and
perpendicular corners and use our new acoustical sealant, Stopgap. (StopGap is an
approved substitute for gypsum board mud. Tape and finish as you normally would.)
If for whatever reason you cannot build your wall/floor exactly as pictured, be it a
space limitation, lack of funds, etc., first try to grasp the concepts used in the
46
construction pictured. If you are serious about wanting to stop sound transmission, it is
imperative that you isolate the sources of sound from the structure. Air and mass are
your friends. Give strong consideration to making a layer of SheetBlok part of your
floor sandwich.
The sill plate (bottom framing member of the wall) actually rests on two layers of
SheetBlok to decouple it from the existing or floated floor. In a perfect world it would
be preferable to glue the
SheetBlok to the bottoms of the wall plates and joists instead of nailing it; in fact,
wherever possible throughout the framing, glue any materials you can together rather
than nailing or screwing them. The reason gluing is always recommended is that the
adhesive itself will contribute some degree of sound isolation, too. Nails or screws
serve as bridges acoustically and transmit sound from one layer to theother too well, so
you want to avoid them whenever possible. Pick screws over nails (preferably used in
conjunction with glue) because they form a tighter bond that yields fewer resonances.
Example:
We suggest gluing the particle board down and caulking the seams and boundaries.
Repeat for each layer, gluing one atop the next. This makes fewer penetrations than if
you screwed down each layer.
If you must screw the layers (this is very often the practical reality), be aware that it is
not the end of the world. Just be sure to go with the absolute least number of screws
possible. We recently completed a build-out on a new facility. You should be aware
that most drawlers will simply use as many screws as they think is necessary. Even
as often as every 4! This is far too many for acoustical purposes. So keep an eye on
any hired help and let them know that as few screws as they can get away with is
preferred. Same goes for when you are anchoring the walls to an existing floor (Figure
3.1b). If you must bolt, screw or otherwise secure the sill plate, use the least number of
connection points that you can get away with. And if you are anchoring to concrete
slab, look into spending a little extra on isolated bolt mechanisms. These devices
provide rubber grommets for the solid bolt to go through so it does not come into direct
contact with your sill plate, thereby maintaining the level of decoupling you need!
When layering, subsequent sheets of material should be rotated 90 degrees so no seams
line up (see Figure 3.2; this staggering applies to wall, ceiling and floor materials) and,
47
if used, the preferred tongue and groove (T&G) materials should be glued together at
each T&G joint. As mentioned previously, all seams regardless of material used
must be sealed up tight with something like Stopgap. Where applying baseboard or
other trim you can line the bottom of it with foam weather-strip tape to help decouple it
from the floor if you are installing flat flooring like vinyl or parquet instead of
carpeting. Naturally, if you are installing carpet, your carpet pad should be the thickest
and densest you can afford and accommodate from a space standpoint; 8#, 1/2"
rebound carpet pad hasworked well for us under certain types of carpet like plush or
Berber, while " ComfortWear-200(made by GFI and sold under a variety of trade
names; it is usually purple or blue and has a honeycomb pattern embossed on one side)
works well under short-pile commercial-type carpet. Where your raised floor meets the
existing walls, it is better to build it in such a way that the two have a slight physical
separation (note the airspace in Figure 3.1b), but if you must attach them, run
Stopgap at the juncture first before attaching the final wall layer.
Do you have pretty good isolation except for when, say, someone plays piano or
acoustic drums?
Instead of constructing an entirely new floor, you can fashion an effective riser using
Platfoam to put on the floor under the offending instrument. A prefabricated riser is
also available, the HoverDeck. This also applies to those of you in basements who
do not want to frame new floors as earlier described. Kenny Aronoff and many other
famous users are using our PlatFoam and HoverDeck. The amount of extra sound
isolation you gain, as well as the dramatic improvement in the purity of the instrument
that rests on the riser, make either of them an all-around winner! KennAronoff is so
impressed with his riser that he now has them in the entire major recording markets
with his identical drum kits so no matter where he is playing, he can be on an Auralex
riser. How's that for an endorsement.
Auralex also offers a small, portable riser called the GRAMMA (patent-pending).
GRAMMA stands for Gig and Recording Amp and Monitor Modulation Attenuator,
and it is designed to float guitar cabinets, bass rigs, subwoofers, studio monitors, stage
monitors and more for greatly improved isolation and purity of tone. Tower of Power,
Lee Roy Parnell and many other famous recording artists are using GRAMMAs onstage and in the studio and LOVING them! If you are unable to
48
5.4
Stringers
There is quite a bit of debate about whether
adding stringers to your wall, ceiling and floor
constructionist worth the effort. We believe it is a
great benefit to run stringers at uneven intervals
between wall studs and floor and ceiling joists
before insulating them, as shown in Figure 3.7.
This helps tie the whole wall, ceiling, or floor
together so it is less likely to move and transmit
sound. As Philip Newell has pointed outing many
of his books, a stiffer construction will make it
less able to vibrate at lower frequencies. Research
is ongoing and we certainly acknowledge that
stringers may not be completely applicable to
each and every construction. However, in the context of Acoustics 101, we believe it is
a necessity. I.e., since the budget for construction is usually tight, we believe stringers
to
be
very
cost-effective
way
to
help
maximize
isolation
.
Figure 3.7 shows stringers mounted between studs or joists. Stringers are short (14"
normally if your studs/joists are 16" on center) pieces of the same material as your
joists that run perpendicular to the joists and are nailed and glued between them in a
andom, staggered fashion. It might seem like a pain putting them in, but its time well
spent. We know because we have done it. We let people talk us out of them once and
49
5.5
Ceilings
The method for controlling structure borne sound that is passing through ceilings is
much the same see Figure3.3a. Generally, we suggest layering SheetBlok and
gypsum board either over the existing ceiling, preferably hung on RC8 Resilient
Channel, or as part of a lower, separated ceiling resting atop the new walls. If you are
lucky enough to have vertical height to spare, drop dow(which, in turn, might be on top
of your new floated floor). Insulate it with n 3" and frame another ceiling resting it
only on top of your new walls Mineral Fiber and cover it with two (2) layers of "
gypsum
board
mounted
on
RC8.
If you have an unfinished existing ceiling, insulate it with Mineral Fiber, cover the
joists with two (2) layers of " gypsum board mounted on RC8(you can use "
gypsum board if you want, but has been verified to be better if space, time, funds
and motivation permit) and then drop down 3" and frame your new ceiling. In reality,
most of us fall into the "I do not have the height to spare" category. If that is you, you
should be in a situation where you need more sound isolation, but absolutely cannot
add any add a layer of SheetBlok to your existing ceiling and then add one (or two)
layers of gypsum board( or ).
Should you more gypsum board, consider adding a layer of SheetBlok Plus mounted
with our pressure sensitive adhesive. A piece of wood trim is recommended at each
vertical seam and across the top and bottom of each piece of SheetBlok Plus due to its
weight. If the black color does not match your decor, your SheetBlok Plus may be
painted with high-quality latex paint (note that you may need to prime it first).
50
In order to use it as a finish layer, obviously you should be very careful during
installation so as to not nick up the SheetBlok Plus. By the way, while the pressuresensitive adhesive (PSA) backing for the SheetBlok Plus is very strong, we definitely
recommend some type of mechanical fasteners be used, too. Plastic cap nails, screws
with grommets, furring strips at the edges, etc. have all been used with good success.
Also, for standard SheetBlok, multi-purpose flooring adhesive is recommended
because it is made for use with vinyl materials. We have not tried this type of adhesive
ourselves, so do not yell at us if it does not work for you.
No matter which method you use, the less light fixture boxes set in the ceiling, the
better: They serve as open windows to sound. Track lighting is preferred to recessed
lighting and you should StopGap any wire holes as outlined elsewhere in Acoustics
101 because holes sonically weaken a wall or ceiling. So much so that in some
instances people have virtually wasted their time. Floor lamps or surface-mounted
conduit may be your best bet. 22(Non-)Flat Ceilings
Have you ever seen pictures of world-class studios? Sure you have. Have you ever
seen one with a flat ceiling? Rarely, if ever. The reason for this is that it is widely
acknowledged that rooms with more cubic volume (space inside them) sound better
than small rooms. Why is this? Small rooms tend to sound, well, small, because they
have less space for sound waves to develop and breathe. Think about it. In a 10x10
room, a sound wave that is traveling 1130 ft/s (feet per second) can get from wall to
wall to wall to wall in no time at all. This effectively means the room does not allow
time-delayed reflections to develop; reflections that would give the room a sonic
"acoustical space" signature. Implementation of good diffusers can definitely help a
small room sound larger by properly diffusing the sonic energy in the room, giving the
sound more room and time to breathe. Further, digital delays and reverbs have
improved enormously over the last decade and we can now add our own "acoustical
space" signatures to sounds and best of all, only when we desire to have them. It is
often desirable to have a drier room and add ambience digitally rather than rely on the
room to interject the ambience. The reason for this is that there are quite a few times
when ambience is not desirable and other times when a different ambience than the
room has is desirable. Still, there are plenty of instances where a rooms ambient sonic
signature is desirable. It is for this reason we started this talk about non-flat ceilings.
Discussing room sound over lunch one time with Ross Vanilla, he hit the nail on the
51
head: "Once its on disk (or tape), theres no knob for it." Few of us have unlimited
budgets budgets big enough to allow us to buy real estate with as much square and
cubic23footage as we would really love to have. Does this necessarily and always
mean that we are forever resigned to suffer with tiny little rooms with flat ceilings? No
way. Square footage is expensive, but cubic footage is not. Look at Japan what have
they done? Because Japanese real estate is at such a premium (i.e. they have run out of
it), they have chosen to grow up instead of out. We can put the Japanese principle to
work for us in order to gain cubic volume for our rooms. Maybe to a relatively small
degree, but we can gain some amount of useful cubic space to be sure. Non-flat
ceilings are an easy way to do so. See Figures 3.3b-c for some examples of good (and
bad) ceiling designs. Also not that cathedral or A-frame ceilings can be quite
helpful in live rooms. (They are generally discouraged in control rooms due to
focusing effects.)
5.6
Walls
Unfortunately, the basic walls built in most homes and businesses are simply not dense
enough or thick enough to be good barriers to neighboring sound. This page will show
you proven methods for adding additional layers of materials to your existing walls to
make the most of them. For those of you doing new construction, these tips are
applicable as well. The choice of how to retrofit your existing walls, ceiling, etc. is
entirely
up
to
you,
your
ears
and
your
pocketbook.
Existing Walls First, determine as best you can what the materials are which comprise
your existing walls. You hope you find out that you have 2x6 walls, heavily insulated
and caulked, floated on SheetBlok, then covered with a layer of " gypsum board, a
layer of SheetBlok, a layer of " gypsum board and surface treated with Studiofoam.
52
If so, go directly to Park Place, collect $200 and have dinner at a fancy restaurant. If
not, read on. If your problem sounds severe to you and you learn that the existing wall
has no insulation in it, it is
advisable to install Auralex Mineral Fiber in it by removing the gypsum board and
placing the Mineral Fiber between the wall studs. Alternatively, you can look into
blowing insulation into the wall with a machine (see your local hardware store for
details). Having done that, the more closely you can retrofit your wall to resemble the
one shown in Figure 3.5 above, the better off you will be. You can choose to alter
materials or leave off layers, but the performance of the wall may be lessened, so
delete or change at your own risk. Naturally, you should use good construction
techniques, taping, mudding and caulking seams all the way, making sure to stagger all
seams and rotate adjoining layers 90 from each other. If you determine your problem
to be relatively minor, you might be able to get by with as little as adding one (1) more
layer of gypsum board. If you previously found out your existing wall is one layer of
" gypsum board or plaster on lathe (older homes), add a layer of SheetBlok and then
another layer of " gypsum board. Do you want to go to the trouble to fur out from
your existing wall to hang your new wall boards on? We think so. It is neither a waste
of time nor money and, if you have both, we would encourage it...but with a twist. At
least cover the faces of the furring strips with strips of SheetBlok (it is considerably
more effective to actually mount a layer of SheetBlok across the faces of the furring
strips versus just putting strips of SheetBlok on the furring strips' faces, but it also costs
more). Then mount RC8 across the furring strips. Then mount a layer of gypsum
board to the channels. Construction If you have the opportunity to build your space
taller, allowing for a false/lowered ceiling and giving your studio more cubic space,
then you are indeed lucky. If thats the case, there are a few things to note that you
might implement to improve on the wall/ceiling described above. You should
definitely build a "room within a room," meaning that there is air space and no
physical contact between the exterior walls and the new walls of your studio! There is
no substitute for doing it this way. You can build just one wall and can add layers to
the wall until you are blue in the face and poor as Pattys pig, but chances are that you
will never achieve the level of sound transmission control you will if you go the extra
mile and build a room within a room. You know what they say about an ounce of
prevention being worth a pound of cure? In the practice of acoustics, an ounce of
53
5.7
Doors
Isolation The best common doors to use are exterior grade, solid-core wood (slab)
doors that are flat, without moldings. Also common, but more expensive, are
commercial and/or exterior grade insulated steel doors. You can add SheetBlok to one
or both sides of either type of door before installing the knob to provide additional
transmission loss, then Studiofoam over the SheetBlok. If you have the inclination, you
54
can make a door sandwich out of two (2) solid-core doors and a couple layers of
SheetBlok in the middle (this is the sort of thing Eddie Van Halen did at his 5150
studio). If you desire to have the ability to lock your door, be sure you can find a
knob/lock that will work with your thicker-than-normal door. Double doors (backtoback) are of some benefit if they are
(a) attached to physically separate door jambs that are floated, and
(b) are as far apart as possible given the constraints of your framing structure.
Build your walls and double doors in such a way as to give you as much dead air
space between the doors as possible.Figure 4.1 shows methods of installing back-toback doors for single and double framed walls. Alternate your door knobs and hinges
left to right. You can add surface moldings to your slab doors if you want to dress them
up. Install Studiofoam on your doors especially the sides that face each other. This
absorbs any resonance that might occur between them. The biggest reason that doors
are poor in the area of sound control often has little to do with the physical
construction of the doors themselves (if you are using one of the types outlined above).
The weakest link in most door systems is that they are not sealed well with the floor
below them or with the frame around them. You must use a compressed rubber
threshold below your door and you must make sure that wherever the door shuts and
would normally contact the door jamb it meets foam 2930 weatherstrip tape or a rubber
55
gasket. Magnetic seals can also be used, like you would find on a refrigerator door. For
those requiring the ultimate in door seals, you might contact Zero International. They
specialize in door seals that do a fantastic job of blocking sound.
If you are looking to save yourself a considerable amount of time (and headaches), you
might consider simply specifying some sound-rated doors right into your studio. While
they are expensive, sound-rated doors give you far superior performance to anything
you could do with a single door on your own. Manufacturers of high-quality acoustical
doors include:
56
Airlocks
Many of you will be building studios in your basement and sound traveling up your
stairwell may prove to be a problem. If possible, enclose your stairway and put a good,
solid-core door at the bottom to keep most of your sound out of the stairwell. In
addition, or if enclosing the stairway just is not feasible, apply as much 4" Studiofoam
in the stairwell as possible to absorb as much ambient sound as you can, thus making
less sound available to travel upstairs. Stairwells tend to resonate quite a bit, so if you
are enclosing and adding a door, do everything you can to float or at least really bulk
up your new construction. If building an airlock or sound-lock (a small room
separating one sound-critical space from another and into which each of those rooms
doors opens), float everything you can, use SheetBlok copiously and treat the walls and
ceiling with the thickest Studiofoam you can afford. If you have the know-how to build
a window into the door or you can afford a sound-rated door with a window built-in
this sound-lock can often serve as a vocal or isolation booth.
5.8
Windows
5.8.1 Exterior
Often, it is relatively easy to add in a second window if you are already building a
second wall.If you are going to do this, i.e., install a second pane of plate, insulated, or
laminated glass,make sure the panes are as far apart as possible, are parallel to each
other,
and
never
touch
wood
framing
of
your
new
wall.
The windows should only come into contact with SheetBlok, foam weatherstrip tape
(FrostKing 3/4" wide by 7/16" thick, closed-cell, heavy-duty, interior/exterior
recommended) or StopGap. You
can either route out grooves for the glass to fit it or just block it in with small wood
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slats. Line the frame of the air space with Studiofoam to absorb standing waves and
throw some packets of silica gel in between the panes to absorb the condensation that
invariably forms there. See the Interior section below for more information. Clear
SheetBlok in use at Perfect Sound Studios
Examples of exterior window isolation:
1. We recently helped drummer-extraordinaire, Kenny Aronoff, design and construct
his new studio. Kenny had already purchased and installed some decent windows, but
was concerned that they might not be as soundproof as he needed them to be. We sent
a couple members of our Engineering department down to Kenny's place and were
pleasantly surprised when his testing showed that the windows were "soundproof
enough.
2. Around the same time, we helped Joe Kasko with his new facility, Perfect Sound
Studios. (As it turns out, Joe is actually a friend of Kenny's. Small world!) When we
were brought into the project, conventional windows had already been installed. They
were not quite good enough to prevent sound from leaking out and bothering the
neighbors behind the studio. In lieu of trashing the windows and losing the investment
that had already been made, personnel devised and Joe implemented some "plugs"
for the window openings using Clear SheetBlok, 1x3s and other materials. The results
were great and our testing showed that they cut the level of sound transmission
dramatically. When installed, the window plugs still afford the ability to see outside as
shown in Figure 4.2. (But not perfectly because Clear SheetBlok is not as perfectly
clear as glass). [Worth noting is that Perfect Sound Studios has implemented the full
Auralex arsenal from construction products to absorbers and diffusers (some of the
coolest painted T'Fusors we have seen). The place looks and sounds awesome ]
5.8.2 Interior
A double window between a control room and a studio is often used because singlepaned windows are very poor at stopping sound. You want to try to keep the panes
parallel to each other to maximize the dead air space between them and you do not
want to use three panes because using three panes actually lessens the contiguous dead
air space. If you must angle your glass, angle only one pane, 31not both, and make it a
slight angle going up. Note that if you cannot angle the glass by at least 8, you are
probably wasting your time anyway. No matter how you decide to construct your
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window, a good way to really clean your glass prior to installation is to mix 1 drop
Ivory
dish
soap
gently
with
one
(1)
gallon
distilled
water.
Or just use a Windex -type glass cleaner. Do a good job because you are going to have
to live with any smudges for a long, long time! Wearing cotton or rubber gloves while
installing the glass is recommended. Figure 4.3 shows the preferred method of
constructing your double-paned window. Make sure glass never touches wood and
float the whole construction on SheetBlok to isolate it from your control room and
studio walls. Throw a couple packets of silica gel into the dead air space to absorb
unwanted moisture that could fog your windows. Line the inside perimeter of the dead
air space with Studiofoam to help cut down on resonance. And just so we are all on the
same page in terms of the different types of glass:
Plate glass is simply a solid piece of glass. This type of glass typically has the worst
performance in terms of sound isolation.
Insulated glass is actually two (2) thin pieces of plate glass separated by an airspace.
There is an airtight frame around the glass and this type of glass is a pretty good
performer in terms of isolation. You can also find insulated glass that fills the space
between with an inert gas like argon. This does offer you an advantage since the speed
of sound in argon is different from that of air. This is known as an impedance
mismatch and can give you a slightly better STC.
Finally, the best glass performer, in terms of sound isolation, tends to be laminated
glass. Laminated glass is much like insulated glass, except in lieu of a airspace, there is
a laminate i.e., a clear glue. This is an even better impedance mismatch than that
provided by the insulated glass. We strongly encourage the use of laminated glass for
any studio. A final note about glass block: Glass block is often desirable when natural
light is welcome, but prying eyes are not. Glass block tends to be a great sound
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performer. There are typically two varieties: Solid block and hollow block. The neat
thing is there is not much of a performance difference between the two because the
hollow block is actually evacuated. This happens when the two pieces of glass are
superheated to fuse them together and form the hollow block. The air trapped inside
the cavity is also at thousands of degrees when the block is formed. As it cools, the
volume of the cavity is constant, but the temperature drops considerably. When this
happens, the pressure drops to next-to-nothing (Boyles Law for you propeller-heads),
which we call, for all intents and purposes, a vacuum. Since sound cannot pass through
a vacuum, this is very advantageous for sound control.
Chapter-6. Conclusion
Acoustics has become a very important part of our building envelopes. The total urban
scenario has resulted in increased noise levels in the surrounding which lead to
discomfort in ones own shelter. Acoustic design shall be made mandatory for
architects and constructionists for comfortable living of dwellers. Both and active and
passive acoustical techniques and treatments ranging from minimal to economical to
luxurious are available depending upon the monitory investments. Acoustics should
not be ignored while designing a building but it shall lead the designer to a better place
of living.
Chapter-7. References
http://www.measuretronix.com/files/news/Section_3_-_Building_Acoustics.pdf
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Architectural_acoustics
http://www.acoustictrade.com/pdf/acoustictrade_brochure.pdf
http://www.jeacoustics.com/library/pdf/ConSpec_Apr90_Concert_Halls.pdf
http://www.kineticsnoise.com/interiors/pdf/Interior2.pdf
http://www.acousticsfirst.com/
http://www.thefreedictionary.com/noise
http://www.acoustics.org/archacouintrotoot.pdf
http://ebookbrowse.com/architectural-acoustics-0311-pdf-d97024642
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http://www.acoustics.com/project_remedies.asp
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