Acoustics in a high school gymnasium.

Abstract

A high school gymnasium constructed with unintentionally interesting acoustics was recently scheduled for a new sound reinforcement system. It was determined that the sound reinforcement system would be of little consequence until the architectural acoustics of the space were addressed. The gymnasium was constructed of entirely concave shapes which resulted in severe sound focusing. The space was extremely reverberant and exhibited many distinct, distracting reflections. Impulse responses were made in the space and computer models were made. The goal was to find a solution to reduce unwanted reflections and shorten the reverberation time. Since this project was for a public school with limited funds, utmost importance was placed on a solution that would be economical and uncomplicated to install. Acoustical analysis and auralizations of the space in its current condition and the projected performance of recommendations were compared to find an effective, cost‐efficient solution the school board could implement to improve the architectural acoustics before the sound reinforcement system was added.