Interiors + Sources December 2017
Acoustics 101 for Architecture & Interiors | A primer on basic theory and the latest technologies for building sciences.
The world is louder and brighter than ever before. Speakers and lights emanate from every person’s cell phone and every storefront on every street corner. Concerts are louder than airplanes and Times Square is literally as bright as the sun, day or night. How do we adapt to this ever-growing age of electronics and its corresponding auditory overload?
In this new 12-part series on acoustics, we will discuss how to design for an increasingly louder world. We’ll cover acoustic theory (traditional to quantum) and the latest in building science technologies. As a brief primer let’s discuss the most salient questions which effect nearly everyone: What is Acoustics and why does it matter?
What is acoustics?
Acoustics is the science of sound. On an everyday level, it is the field of study which deals with sound and vibration, from creation to control. On a more complex level it’s a subdivision of physics, focusing on the wave behavior of sound energy: propagation, control, materials, and more recently, quantum mechanical behavior. Acoustics as a business can involve consulting to solve a specific goal, design to create a specific architectural environment or product, and testing to measure and collect scientific data on anything acoustically relevant.
In the world of architecture and interiors, the most typical situation most designers face on a daily basis involves what is known as electro-acoustics and room acoustics. Electro-acoustics is a specific subset of the field in more than half the sound energy is created by electronic transducers (loudspeakers). Room acoustics is also a division of acoustics, focused primarily on the behavior of sound within interior spaces versus underwater, outdoors, or underground areas. The combination of electro-acoustics & room acoustics encompasses everything from home theatre to stereo systems, conference rooms, offices and transportation. It is a unique combination of physics, thermodynamics and material science.
Why does acoustics matter?
As a visually dominant species with an obsession for electronic devices, humans tend to overlook acoustics in our daily lives. Notable cases are large office spaces populated by cubicles, unintelligible schoolrooms, and concerts exceeding the volume of a jet airplane.
Like many other sciences, acoustics has great potential to effect people in many ways from positive to negative. Everyone has heard music that makes them want to dance out of pure joy and elation. Likewise, everyone has sat at a dinner table where they couldn’t understand anything the person next to them was saying. Intelligibility, cognition and perception are critical elements of acoustics in architecture and interiors.
The goal of well designed acoustical environments is to have people remember that they had a great concert or dinner with phenomenal music or conversation in a beautiful space. Sadly, more often than not, people’s memories are of an expensive concert that was too loud and a dinner with phenomenal people that could not be heard clearly or understood enough to have a meaningful conversation.
The purpose of this 12-part series is to share knowledge; to give architects and interior designers enough basis of knowledge to properly assess a project for acoustical scope of work, budget, and impact. The most common issue today is when an acoustic-centric project is initially underestimated, causing downstream issues in budget, timeframes, and ultimately, acoustical performance. Unfortunately, acoustics is given very little attention during architectural schooling, resulting in generations of architects forced to learn it on the job, costing clients time, money, and quality. Thankfully, a new awareness of acoustics in the public eye has created the need for greater education and effective solutions in the design and construction fields.
Next month we’ll start with the basics of acoustics, ranging from traditional classical mechanics to the latest in quantum acoustics. Along the way we’ll review widespread challenges, applied technology, products and case study projects.
DHDI is a Research, Design + Build Firm providing design and consulting services for Architecture + Acoustics since 1998. Clients include Universal Music Group, Yahoo Music, Microsoft Studios, Linked In, Kanye West, U2, Cher and many more. The ZR Acoustics® design paradigm and related line of products were invented by CEO and Principal Acoustician Hanson Hsu. | Deltahdesign.com