REVERBERATION 9] Reverberatien time -seconcs. K 3000 «kHz = 3kHz © 10 kHz Frequency Hz, TS Reverberation time measured with pure sine signals at low frequencies reveals slow sound decay (long reverberation time) at the modal frequencies. These peaks apply only to specific modes and are not representative of the room as a whole. High modal den- sity, resulting in uniformity of distribution of sound energy and randomizing of direc- tions of propagation, is necessary for reverberation equations to apply. (Beranek,! and Schultz.?) Now that the loudness of peaks and valleys have been explored, let's examine the decay of sound. Exciting the 1, 0, 0 mode at 24.18 Hz, the the source is inte upted and we get a long rever- heration time of 2.4 seconds. Similar slaw decays are ahserved at 25.27 Hz, 42.76, 48.37, and 56.43 Hz with faster decays (shorter reverberation times) in between. The decays at the modal frequencies are decay rates characteristic of individual modes, not of the room as a whole. Long reverberation time implies low absorbance, and short reverber- ation time implies high absorbance. It is difficult to believe that the sound absorbing qualities of the walls, floor, and ceiling vary this much within a frequency range of a few herlz. For the 1, 0, 0 mode, only the absorbance of the two ends of the room comes into play; the four other surfaces are not involved at all. Kor the 0, 0, 1 mode, only the floor and142 CHAPTER SEVEN coiling are involved. All we have done in this low-frequency range is to measure the decay rate of individual modes, definitely not the average condition of the room. We see uow why there is Wal big question wark over applying We concept of reverberation time to small rooms having dimensions com- parable to the wavelength of sound. Schultz states that reverberation time is a statistical concept “in which much of the mathematically awkward details are averaged out.”? In small rooms these details are not averaged out. ‘Tha raverheration time farmnlas af Sahine, Ryring, and others are based on the assumption ofan enclosed space in which there is highly uniform distribution of sound energy and random direction of propa- gation of the sound. At the low-frequency points of Fig. 7-1, energy is distributed very unevenly and dizection of propagation is far from ran- dom. After the room was treated, reverberation time measurements: followed the broken line, but statistical randommess still does not pre- vail below 200 Hz even though modal frequencies are brought under some measure of control. Growth of Sound in a Room Referring to Fig. 7-2A, let us consider a source $ and a human receiver Hin asvoun. As source 3 is suddenly euergized, svuud Wavels vulward from $ in all directions. Sound travels a direct path to H and we shall consider zero time (sce Fig, 7-28) as that time at which the direct sound reaches the ears of listener H. The sound pressure at H instantly jumps toa value less than that which left S due to spherical divergence and small losses in the air. The sound pressure at H stays at this value until reflection R, arrives and then suddenly jumps to the D+ R, value Shortly thereafter R, arrives, causing the sound pressure to increase a bit more. The arrival of each successive reflected component causes the level of sound to increase stepwise. These additions are, in reality, vector additions involving both magnitude and phase, but we are keeping things simple for the purposes of illustration. Sound pressure at receiver H grows step by step as one reflected component afler another adds to the direct component. The reason the sound pressure at H does not instantly go to its final value is that sound travels by paths of varying length. Although 1,130 ft/sec, theREVERBERATION [99 A A § » | z a A c a 5 g a The buildup and decay of sound in a room. (A) The direct sound arrives first at time = 0, reflected components arriving later. (B) The sound pressure at H builds up stepwise. (©) The sound decays exponentially after the source ceases. speed of sound, is about the muzzle velocity of a .22 caliber rifle, reflected components are delayed en amount proportional to the dif- ference in distance between the reflected path and the direct path. The buildup of sound in a room is thus relatively slow due to finite transit time. The ultimate level of sound in the room is determined by the energy going into the source 5. The energy it radiates (less than the input by