Glass as an aid and as a challenge in acoustics treatment

Abstract

A new installation for a broadcast center that included recording and transmission studios had to be constructed in an all transparent glass facade building in a major street in Mexico City. Together with all the acoustical specifications requested and needed for proper response of the studios, it was also requested from the very beginning of the project that the building facade could not be modified at all, i.e., all the glassing could not be obstructed in at least a couple of meters from the edge of the building in order to preserve the look of the building as it was originally constructed. This meant that enough sound insulation for the studios and control rooms as well as the short reverberation times, and resonance control needed by the acoustic conditioning treatment had to be attained with plenty of glass area, which could not be moved, plus all the glassing needed for visual communication between rooms to allow for normal operation of the studios. Construction details and results are presented.