Acoustics can be confusing and often difficult to understand, our new jargon buster helps to explain all the technical terms you may come across when planning your next acoustics project!

 

Acoustics 

The study of sound! (the science concerned with production, control, transmission, reception, and effects of sound) 

Absorption Class 

How well a product absorbs sound is rated on a scale from Class A to Class E, A being the best and E being the worst!  

Airborne Sound 

Sound which travels through the air, such as speech 

Baffle

A type of acoustic panel suspended vertically from the ceiling 

Ceiling Tile 

Often seen in schools, ceiling tiles are a type of acoustic product installed to an existing suspended ceiling system  

Decibel

The unit which we measure sound!  

Echo 

Cause by sound waves reflecting off a surface and back to the listener (A repetition of sound caused by sound waves reflecting off a surface) 

HVAC 

Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning systems 

Reverberation 

Caused by sound waves reflecting off multiple surfaces after the original source of sound has stopped 

Reverberation Time 

The time in seconds if takes for a sound to decrease by 60dB 

Raft 

A type of acoustic panel suspended horizontally from the ceiling  

Suspended Ceiling

A grid system installed below the buildings ceiling made up of interlocking sections which provide a gap for ceiling tiles; usually to hide HVAC systems 

Speech Clarity 

The quality of sound transfer from source to listener, it can depend on things such as reverberation time and background noise 

Sound Privacy 

Often used to describe how easy it is to hear other people’s conversations in open plan offices 

Sound Absorption 

The loss of sound energy when it meets an absorbent material such as an acoustic panel 

Soundproofing (or sound insulating)

The process of stopping sound from entering or leaving a building or room 

Impact Sound 

Sound which travels through the buildings structure, such as footsteps  

 

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