Reverberation is the persistence of sound within a room after the original sound source has stopped.Hard architectural finishes, such as glass, concrete, stone, plasterboard, and exposed ceilings, absorb very little sound energy. Instead, they allow sound waves to repeatedly bounce between surfaces, causing noise to build up and making speech muddied and difficult to understand.
Measuring Reverberation: What Is RT60?
Reverberation time is measured in seconds, most commonly using the metric RT60.
RT60 = Time required for sound to decay by 60 dB
There is no single "perfect" reverberation time for every room. The ideal target depends entirely on the room's total volume, function, and intended use:
- Conference Rooms & Classrooms: Require lower RT60 values for high speech clarity.
- Lounge Areas & Social Spaces: Can tolerate higher RT60 values while remaining comfortable.
Breaking the Bounce Cycle
Hard surfaces keep sound in circulation.
Glass, concrete, stone, and other hard finishes absorb very little sound, allowing it to bounce around the room. Acoustic absorption helps interrupt this cycle and reduce reverberation.
Introducing acoustic absorption intercepts sound waves before they bounce back into the space, allowing sound energy to decay significantly faster.
How BuzziSpace Helps Tame Reverberation
BuzziSpace assists designers and workplace managers by:
- Assessing Existing Conditions: Evaluating room dimensions and hard surface finishes to calculate current RT60 levels.
- Simulating Improvements: Modeling how adding absorptive wall, ceiling, and furniture elements will reduce decay time and optimize speech clarity.
