Building Design for Sound and Acoustics Overview of Sound Control

Building, Design for Sound and Acoustics, Overview of Sound Control
It is important to understand the fundamentals of the different methods and materials that are used for controlling the sound quality in the interior of a space for proper design and planning. If you’re really serious about completing the project successfully, then you must care about the comfort and satisfaction of the residents and other occupants of your facility. Often you are not able to convey a message intelligibly to an audience as a result of poor acoustics of the venue. There are occasions when the audience cannot understand a word of what is being said. Excessive reverberation or echo is usually the reason for poor sound quality. The positive thing is that the situation can be changed.
Types of Sound Control Materials
In general almost all rooms are built with materials that are highly reflective, for examples, concrete, drywall, glass, metal, wood, etc. This calls for sound control products of high quality. The treatments generally used for improving the quality acoustic control in any room can be grouped into four types:
Reflective: If a space is too dull addition of reflective surfaces will add brightness to the room.
Absorptive: Excess echo can be removed by absorbing reflections of middle and high frequencies.
Diffusive: Direct reflections can be removed by diffusing their frequencies to get a balanced sound.
Bass Traps: Improve the overall quality by removing undesirable bass resonance of low frequency.
Balance between reverberation and absorption of sound
Too much of reverberation and excess of sound absorbing panels are both not advisable. The former will make the room sound like a cave with too much of reflected sound, while the latter make the room dull and lifeless. With proper balance you can enjoy vocal & musical performances better. This is possible by ensuring good quality of sound inside a room. The only way to achieve optimum sound quality is by sticking to the basic principles of sound control and room acoustics. It is necessary to keep in mind that the interior design should be in harmony with the placement of products of acoustical treatment of the room. A good design has superior appearance as well as good sound quality.
NRC rating
The widely used measurement rating for effectiveness of sound control materials is the Noise Reduction Coefficient (NRC) rating. Similar to STC ratings the NRC ratings deal with the frequencies between 125 Hz and 4000 Hz. The difference between the ratings is that the NRC refers to the ability of the materials to absorb sound as against containing it. The NRC is a one digit index used for rating the absorptive level of a material. This industry standard is from zero (totally reflective) to 1.00 (totally absorptive). A rating of 1.0 indicates that all the sound hitting the material is absorbed by it. That means excellent sound control.
Many products are available with claims of good sound absorption qualities. Experts recommend Glass Fiber Boards as a good choice from point of view of cost and ease of installation.

Boiler Room Sound Problem solved by soundproofing products and materials

Boiler Room Sound Problem
Boiler rooms create a lot of noise. They are not only the source of multiple noises but the rooms consist of walls and ceilings with hard surfaces. The noise generated by the boilers has no escape route and hence the sound waves will be just reflecting from one surface to another. As a result of these multiple reflections, the actual sound pressure built up in the room will exceed the sum total of the sound produced by the boiler and its parts. Therefore, what is needed for resolving the sound problem is a product that will effectively assist the present walls in preventing the sound from leaking out of the room and also will absorb the reverberation within the room.
How Sound is Blocked/Absorbed
The foremost among the very effective products for boiler room acoustic solution is the Melamine composite acoustical panel. This is manufactured from the very familiar acoustical foam that has Mass Loaded Vinyl (MLV) as the core. This is a technology developed as an alternative to lead. When sound waves encounter vinyl, which is a dense material, the vinyl is made to vibrate slightly. Sound energy is converted into heat energy. The sound thus gets blocked.
MLV panels possess an STC (sound transmission coefficient) rating of 27. This means that sound at 27 dB cannot pass through them. This is an average of low, middle, and high frequencies. But it must be remembered that at lower frequencies, sound can pass through almost any material. The foam on the surface of melamine composite panels is soft and helps to reduce the reverberation and echo in the room. The NRC (noise reduction coefficient) of MLV panels is .85 meaning that eighty-five percent of the sound will be absorbed. Melamine composite panels are available in thickness of 1.375 inches with an STC value of 27 and NRC 0.85 costing around $ 11.00 per square foot.
Other Products
Another panel that is worth considering for boiler room noise control is known as the sound silencer panel. This is made of polypropylene bead board. They are cheaper than the melamine composite panels but are not so effective. These panels are available in thickness of one inch and has STC rating of 9 and NRC 0.45 costing $4.50 per square foot. A 2 inch panel with STC of 13 and NRC 0.70 costs $6.50 per square foot.
Yet another choice for eliminating echo is a composite panel made of cotton as the base and aluminized mylar as a facing. It comes in thickness of 1 inch having NRC 0.90 and the STC 17. It costs $7.00 per square foot.
You may choose the best panel for your acoustic requirement. Of course, the budget for your project is the other deciding factor.

Best Active Noise Control Noise-cancelling headsets

Best Active Noise Control
Noise-cancelling headsets or headphones are new developments in the emerging technologies and technically they are known as active noise control headphones and headsets. How does this new technology work? If we find out how this system works it may answer some more questions as to how this was made possible. In that process we may also learn about some more devices that are using this technology. This technique is called noise-cancelling feature.
The DECT technology
To start with let us find out what are the purpose and advantages of having active noise control system. Another term used to identify this technology is ‘anti noise’ as its purpose is to minimize the background noise during a conversation with someone over the phone. It is also called DECT technology (Digital Enhanced Cordless Telecommunication). Phones using DECT technology will be using the noise controlling system and that would ensure the phone conversation will be totally free of any disturbance created by background noises. The technology limits the background noise detected thereby improving the quality of sound being received from the preferred source. Already many industries are using this technology extensively. It is very much useful in online teaching through Skype where teachers and students have headsets incorporating active noise control technology so that the teaching sessions are more effective.
Advantages of Noise-Cancelling Microphone
It is the desire of most people today to have a microphone to be used as a phone (mobile or cordless). You see people taking calls when they are walking on the streets. It is likely that some of these calls are of important business nature or personal. It is very important to have a good signal and audio quality. Today headsets with noise-cancelling feature are available.
For BPO and call center industries it is very necessary to have headsets having noise-cancelling microphones. They have to ensure that the customer on the other end will be able to hear the agent clearly without any problem. Most online teachers advise their students to have headsets with noise-cancelling feature on its microphone for better teaching and learning conditions. Interactive gamers online also make use of this noise-cancelling microphone.
Features of a typical Noise Cancelling Microphone:
1. noise-cancelling microphone
2. over the head “headset”
3. behind the head “headset”
4. flexible headset and microphone
5. plug and play
6. soft ear piece
When you buy a headset, make sure that the headset is comfortable to wear. The headset and microphone should be adjustable. You can look for features like cord controlled switch for volume or mute. It is better if it is a cordless headset. It is advisable to test the headsets microphone before you buy it in the store itself. Also test it for the recording and sound quality using your computer.
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Benefits of using acoustic underlay for flooring in interior designing and decoration

Benefits of Using Acoustic Underlay
Benefits of using acoustic underlay for flooring have been well recognized all over the word by construction companies and they have started preferring this totally new concept. Acoustic underlayment has become so popular that their demand will continue to rise for quite a long time to come.
Soundproofing a floor plays an important role in determining the health and efficiency of those living in a room. The properties of different flooring underlays are unique and therefore the levels of sound reduction that they can achieve are also different. In order to bring down the noise levels considerably, the building companies have to take into account the total space to be covered by the sound proofing product, the effect of the airborne noise, the type of noise and above all the budgetary limits.
The Benefits Compared to Cork Flooring
Comparing the benefits of using acoustic underlay for flooring with that of cork flooring, the underlays cause only a minimum raise in floor level unlike cork flooring, which is almost as thick as carpet flooring. In most cases the underlays can replace carpets. This is very advantageous because it becomes possible to add extra soundproofing levels which while being effective, does not add to the height of the floor causing other problems due to increase of floor level during renovations.
Sound Properties of Floor
Among the important benefits of using acoustic underlay are its properties of noise reduction. The effects of noise can be very serious and annoying on buildings. The flooring underlayment can absorb the noises due to footfalls and cushion the walls and floors. It can also help to reduce the effect of airborne noises on other nearby supportive structures. It acts like weak medium for transmission of sound.
Easy to Install
An expert’s help is not required for you to install a flooring underlay. The instructions are clear and simple. You can easily fix them with a bonding adhesive or can be just laid onto floors particularly in homes. In case the traffic is going to be heavier, you may better lay an extra acoustic layer like MDF board so that the wear and tear will be less. Recycling – Acoustic underlay products as a rule can be recycled. Apart from serving their purpose as a sound insulation medium, they can, in the recycled form serve as a safe landfill material for the environment.
Building Regulations
The presence of acoustic underlayment in a building is considered as a positive factor for meeting building regulations. This is also one of the benefits of using acoustic underlay. The role played by underlayment in reducing vibrations and other factors causing instability in a building have been highlighted by the government authorities concerned.
Relief for Joint Pain
Cork flooring is a known acoustic flooring underlay. It is soft and its tender surface is good for joints make it easier when kneeling on the floor and you may not feel any pain.
Installing acoustic underlay is a long time investment. It is free from dust and microbes and good for health. Benefits of using acoustic underlay are many, though only a few are mentioned above.