Assessment of speech intelligibility in large auditoria case study: kuwait state mosque

Abstract

Extensive sound measurements have been conducted to assess the speech intelligibility within the main prayer hall (MPH) of the Kuwait State Mosque. Traditionally acoustical absorbing materials are used to enhance a poor speech intelligibility in a large auditorium. In this paper, however, a totally electronic approach is adopted to enhance the speech articulation in the MPH. Adaptive equalizers, as well as other advanced techniques have been adopted to enhance the overall response. The layout of the sound reinforcement system and the loudspeakers’ orientations were modified in order to minimize perturbations usually caused by reflections of sound waves and other interfering effects. These solutions have revealed a substantial improvement in speech intelligibility over the original environment of the Mosque. This paper describes the measurements of speech intelligibility in MPH, the problems associated with the original layout of the sound reinforcement system, and the effect of the relevant modifications on the improvement of the speech intelligibility in MPH.