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Acoustic Insulation or Conditioning, What Does My Room Really Need?

When selecting our musical instruments, amplifiers, effects rack, monitors, audio interfaces, etc … we are generally extremely selective.  since for some of us, it would be unacceptable to put at risk the quality of our sound.  But how is it that many times even having the most ideal equipment we find a not so optimal result? We immediately begin to judge our purchase, or worse even our ears or abilities. When that answer might be in front of us…  on the sides and behind, That’s right. The Acoustics of our Room.

We must remember first that sound is the interpretation that our brain makes through the ears of a set of vibrations (sound waves) propagating in a suitable medium, in our case most common air.  And acoustics is the response of those vibrations to a certain sensation.    Let’s talk about these sound waves.

These., are taking a tour of the entire room, before reaching our ears, colliding on all surfaces, and absorbing many elements of the environment. It is for that reason that we always listen with different characteristics, even if it is the same sound source, for example. , the difference we can find when listening to our violin in an auditorium as we would in our room. Or the sound of our voice in a classroom, unlike how it is heard in a bathroom, another example, would be when we hear the same sound source in the same room before and after a move (that is, without the furniture and then with all of them) but,  acoustics not only tells us about what happens inside a room but also how the outside can influence our sound source and vice versa. For example. , if our room has a window facing the street, all external sound filtration influences.  Similarly, if our case were that the room we are taking as a reference is inside a small house, and our sound source affects the other environments that adjoin it. By paying attention to these details, we can realize that audio as the result depends on many factors. And paying attention to all of them is of the utmost importance so that our final result is the desired one.  So, we return to our initial question What do I really need? to give a more concrete answer to this, let’s rather than define the difference between the concepts of insulation and acoustic conditioning.  So, let’s see…

Conditioning Acoustic

When we talk about acoustic conditioning, we refer to everything related to treatments, techniques, tools, or any type of system that allows us to control, improve or modify the interior of the enclosure with which we want to interact, always in order that our sound source to capture or capture is as close to the natural or desired sound.

 

Sound Insulation

This could basically be conceptualized, as controlling what comes out and enters noise/sound to our enclosure. Through materials, treatments, techniques, and any type of system that allows control and/or absorption.

In other words, sound insulation would be the level of sound attenuation that exists between the enclosure and the outside.

 

Having these definitions, we approach a clearer way to our response; we can address with greater knowledge the problems that have always surrounded our enclosure. Attacking key points such as, for example, if we talk about acoustic conditioning our objectives would be, to control the reverberation times present in the space, (these may vary, depending on the type of work to be done or the enclosure that we are conditioning, but in general they are short times that seek homogeneity in the frequencies)

Also, one of our objectives within acoustic conditioning would be to attack these problematic frequencies. The bass frequencies are special, these tend to accentuate the corners of the room. and they generate a really distorted sound image of how the low frequencies are sounding through our monkeys (this is one of those reasons why many times we hear our sound mix so different at home and then when playing it on some device .  we can not deceive our ears anymore), it is for this last reason that I would like to mention one more objective within this article, about acoustic conditioning, this one talks about., the diffusion of reverberation.  This supports us in such a way that we can hear in a very clear way the direct sound of our monitors and that the reverberation resulting from them does not interfere in a counterproductive way with the rest of the room.

 

Developing this topic in detail becomes a broad task, and very interesting since within the acoustic conditioning we will find, then. In short, everything that happens within a receptor, speaking of acoustics.

 

 

But what if our problem is out of it? That’s where the targets to attack related to sound insulation come in.

This seeks that none of the external sounds interfere with the work that is done inside the enclosure, because let’s say that we are creating a kind of “hermeticism”, likewise we take care that unwanted sounds do not leave our room to the outside.

To achieve this sometimes-structural modifications are needed since they influence many things like, what material are the walls of our enclosure made of, if we have windows, if our windows are sealed or not, the material of our door, etc … to achieve the desired point of isolation.

 

This is a really challenging mission, but with this, I do not want to say that it is out of our reach, we can try with different treatments and materials if they are and are placed in the right places and go little by little to achieve significant advances.

Now that we have a wider view, we can define in a slightly clearer way what happens in our room, and thus reach a conclusion about What does my room need? This does not mean that both can not be combined, sometimes the output can be a hybrid between both acoustic solutions. The most important thing is to know the difference to know how and in what way to attack the key points and to be able to obtain the most natural, optimal, or desired sound source.

 

Written By: Maria Fernanda Medina is from Tegucigalpa Honduras. She has a BA in Acoustic Technology and Digital Sound from the Galileo University in Guatemala City. Maria Fernanda has mainly worked in live audio field as a freelancer, and with audio rental companies. Developing herself in the Backline, Stage manager, and Production. Both international concerts and national festivals. “Currently, my passion is for audio and social commitment that I feel with my country, that has guided me in the dissemination and education. I’m enjoying this facet of my life that I get to explore more every day

Headphones / Headphones – How to Choose the Ideal? 

Choosing our ideal headphones is usually a topic that binds us, and we tend to resort to the first direct recommendation that comes our way, whether it is from our friends, experts in the field, or the first thing that comes to us online, which is not that bad, but; how could they know exactly what we are looking for or, rather, what we are listening to?

The first question we must ask in order to find our perfect headphones is what do I need them for? Due to their characteristics, not all of them are optimal for the same functions.

The objective of this article is that at the end of it we will be able to identify and understand the specifications that each presents. And thus having sufficient criteria to be able to select the headset that we really need.

Let’s start by talking about their sizes …

Over ear: They completely cover the ears, without a doubt a favorite of recording studios and console monitoring. These offer us, in addition to greater coverage, also comfort to be able to use them for a long time, they are usually more robust headphones and consequently a little more expensive.

On ear: This is a medium size, it barely covers the diameter of our ears, they are more popular for listening to music on mobile devices, with some alterations in certain frequencies in order to make certain music more attractive to our senses, they are also popular with DJ’s because they are easier to take off and put on during the event.

These are usually a little cheaper and made of lighter materials, but with certain losses in sound quality. Mainly if what we are looking for is a flatter sound.

In ear: In-ear or intraural headphones, are those that go inside the cavity of our ear, by small we do not mean that they are of lower quality, there are many brands, styles, and prices. (as in all) These due to their size have the characteristic of isolating the ambient sound much more. Ideal for personal monitoring or also in its less professional and much cheaper version for use on mobile devices.

Let’s continue with the technical characteristics.

Frequency: When we talk about frequency, we mean how wide is the reproduction range in our earphone potential, that is, what is the frequency range that these reproduce. Taking into consideration that, no matter how healthy a human ear is, it will not be able to perceive more than 20 Hz to 20khz, there is not much to worry about at this point since most headphones have, if not a range very close to this it will be rather up to one that surpasses it. If you ask yourself the latter, you will see. Some very demanding people not only want to listen but to feel those extra frequencies in their bodies as well.

Sensitivity: In summary, this would be the ability of headphones to convert electrical impulses into audible sounds, the higher the value, the louder the headset is measured in decibels, a recommended value would be between 100 and 105 dB.

Impedance: We are going to understand this characteristic in a simpler way, as the energy (electricity) that our headphones need to produce sound. This is measured in ohms, the lower the impedance, the less energy they need to function, and the higher the impedance the higher the demand. This is not to say that the higher impedance headphone has better sound, although it is true that operating with higher energy makes it less prone to signal failures, interference, or unwanted noise. Of course, we must be aware that the preamplifier to which we are going to connect our headphones knows how to receive their impedance. So, before purchasing our headphones, we must check the impedance of our equipment. If our equipment works in a low impedance, 30-ohm headphones will be perfect, and if our equipment is of a high impedance of 30 ohms onwards they will be ideal.

And before deciding one last question …

Open or closed headphones?

Just when we feel that we have found our ideal headset, the store technician asks us, or we find ourselves in the specification list with the characteristic of…, open or closed? And we go back to zero, but it really is not that complicated.

Let’s see, a Semi-Open or Open Headphone is one that lets part of the sound we are listening to escape. Ideal for mixing since it gives us a much more real feeling of space. It does not encapsulate sound.

On the other hand, Closed Headphones isolate the ambient sound, concentrating only the sound source in the headphones, recommended for live audio, also for the recording studio. But then because the closed one is and not ideal for mixing. I explain.

The ideal is an open one if you are in a space without external noise and with ideal acoustic treatment. Since the closed will create a reverb within the same earphone. But in case of having a lot of external noise and a room without treatment, it is a great option.

Headphones are the extension of our ears; we must try to make a successful, and above all personalized choice.

So now, which headset are you going to buy? Don’t hesitate and go for it!

Maria Fernanda Medina, from Tegucigalpa Honduras. I studied a BA in Acoustic Technology and Digital Sound at Galileo University in Guatemala City. I have mainly worked in ​​the live audio field as a freelancer, and with Audio rental companies. Developing myself in the Backline, Stage manager, and Production area. Both in international concerts and national festivals. Currently, my passion for audio and the social commitment I feel with my country have guided me in the dissemination and education. A facet that I explore and enjoy more every day.

 

 

Auriculares/Audífonos ¿Cómo escoger el ideal?

Escoger nuestros auriculares ideales suele ser un tema que nos lía, y tendemos a recurrir a la primera recomendación directa que se nos cruce en el camino, ya sea de nuestros amigos, expertos en el tema o lo primero que se nos presenta por internet, lo cual no es que esté mal, pero. ¿Como ellos podrían saber exactamente que buscamos o, más bien dicho ¿que escuchamos?

La primera pregunta que debemos resolver para poder encontrar nuestros auriculares perfectos es ¿para que los necesito? Y si, porque debido a sus características no todos son óptimos para las mismas funciones.

El objetivo de este artículo es que al finalizarlo seamos capaces de identificar y comprender las especificaciones que estos presentan. Y así tener el criterio suficiente para poder seleccionar el auricular que verdaderamente necesitamos

Comencemos hablando de sus tamaños…

Over ear: son aquellos que cubren por completo los oídos, sin duda un favorito de los estudios de grabación y monitoreo en consola.

Estos nos ofrecen además de mayor cobertura, también comodidad para poder estar con ellos un tiempo prolongado suelen ser auriculares más robustos y por consecuencia  un poco más costosos.

On ear: este es un tamaño medio, apenas cubre el diámetro de nuestras orejas, son más populares para escuchar música en dispositivos móviles, con algunas alteraciones en ciertas frecuencias con el objetivo de hacer más atractiva cierta música a nuestros sentidos, también son populares con los DJ´s, por ser más y fáciles de quitar y poner durante el evento.

Estos suelen ser un poco más económicos y de materiales más livianos, pero con ciertas pérdidas en calidad de sonido. Principalmente si lo que buscamos es un sonido más plano.

In ear: o auriculares intraurales, son los que van dentro de la cavidad de nuestra oreja, por pequeño no queremos decir que son de menor calidad, los hay de muchas marcas, estilos y precios. (como en todos) Estos por su tamaño tienen la característica de aislar mucho más el sonido ambiente. Ideales para monitoreo personal. O también en su versión menos profesional y mucho más económica para uso en dispositivos móviles.

 

un audífono se define por mucho más que su tamaño, así que podemos guiarnos únicamente por esto a la hora de escoger el nuestro, debemos principalmente conocer que los construye por dentro y es por eso por lo que ahora…

seguimos con las Características técnicas

Frecuencia: Cuando hablamos de frecuencia nos referimos a que tan amplio es el rango de reproducción en nuestro potencial auricular, osea cual es el rango de frecuencia que estos reproducen. Tomando en cuenta. Que, por más saludable que esté un oído humano no podrá percibir más de 20 Hz a 20 Khz, no hay mucho de qué preocuparnos en este punto ya que la mayoría de los auriculares tienen, si no un rango muy cercano a este será más bien hasta uno que lo sobrepase. Si se preguntan esto último, verán.  Algunas personas muy exigentes no solo desean escuchar, si no sentir esas frecuencias extras en su cuerpo también.

Sensibilidad: En resumen, esta sería la capacidad que tienen los auriculares de convertir los impulsos eléctricos en sonidos audibles, entre más alto sea el valor más fuerte sonora el auricular este se mide en decibeles un valor recomendado estaría entre 100 y 105 dB

Impedancia: Vamos a entender de una manera más sencilla esta característica, como la energía(electricidad) que necesitan nuestros auriculares para producir sonido. esta se mide en ohmios, entre menor sea la impedancia menos energía necesitan para funcionar y a mayor impedancia su exigencia es más alta. Con esto no queremos decir que el auricular de mayor impedancia tiene mejor sonido, si bien es cierto que al funcionar con mayor energía lo hace menos propenso a fallas de señal, interferencia o ruidos no deseados. Eso sí, debemos estar consientes que el preamplificador al cual vamos a conectar nuestros auriculares sepa recibir la impedancia de estos. Así que, antes de adquirir nuestros auriculares debemos revisar la impedancia de nuestro equipo. Si nuestro equipo trabaja en una baja impedancia unos auriculares de 30 ohm nos quedarán perfectos, y si nuestro equipo es de alta impedancia de 30 ohm en adelante serán ideales.

Y antes de decidir una última pregunta…

¿Auriculares abiertos o cerrados? 

Justo cuando sentimos que encontramos nuestro auricular ideal nos pregunta el técnico de la tienda, o nos encontramos en la lista de especificaciones con la característica de…, ¿abierto o cerrado? Y volvemos a quedarnos en cero, pero realmente no es tan complicado.

Veamos, un Auricular Semiabierto o Abierto, es aquel que deja escapar parte del sonido que estamos escuchando. Ideales para mezclar, ya que nos brinda una sensación del espacio mucho más real. No encapsula el sonido.

En cambio, los auriculares cerrados aíslan el sonido ambiente, concentrando únicamente la fuente de sonido en los auriculares, recomendados para audio en vivo, y también estudio de grabación. Pero, entonces porque el cerrado es y no ideal para mezclar. Te explico.

Lo ideal es un abierto, siempre y cuando estés en un espacio sin ruidos externos y con un tratamiento acústico ideal. Ya que el cerrado creará una reverberación dentro del mismo auricular. Pero en caso de tener mucho ruido externo y un cuarto sin tratamiento es una gran opción.

Los auriculares son la extensión de nuestros oídos, debemos procurar hacer una elección acertada y sobre todo personalizada.

Así que, ahora, ¿Qué auricular vas a comprar? No lo dudes más y ¡anda por el!

Maria Fernanda Medina Desde Tegucigalpa Honduras. Estudié una licenciatura en Tecnología Acústica y Sonido Digital en la Universidad Galileo de la Ciudad de Guatemala. He trabajado principalmente en el campo del audio en vivo como autónomo y con empresas de alquiler de audio. Desarrollándome en el área de Backline, Stage manager y Producción. Tanto en conciertos internacionales como en festivales nacionales. Actualmente, mi pasión por el audio y el compromiso social que siento con mi país me han guiado en la difusión y educación. Faceta que exploro y disfruto más cada día.

 

Teatrófono; La cultura al alcance de todas las clases sociales

En el siglo XIX el teatro y la opera eran conocidos por ser entretenimiento exclusivo de la alta sociedad, sin embargo, las personas con menos poder adquisitivo no ignoraban su existencia y era claro que deseaban poder disfrutar de estos espectaculos.

Esta necesidad fue la que impulso al ingeniero e inventor francés, Clement Ader, en la invención de su ambicioso y novedoso proyecto. Ya que el no comprendía porque la cultura no podía estar al alcance de todas las personas. Todo un revolucionario de aquellos tiempos.

Así que, como le era imposible llevar a todas las personas al teatro, llevo el teatro a todas las personas. Creando lo que se conocía como teatrófono. Y bueno estamos de acuerdo que no es el nombre mas creativo o bonito, pero sin duda era la herramienta que cumplía con todo lo que Ader buscaba.

Esta tecnología consistía en transmitir por medio de líneas telefónicas, osea en tiempo real. El audio de la presentación que se estuviera realizando en el teatro, y vaya que el sabia lo que estaba haciendo, ya que hacia apenas un año atrás había estado directamente involucrado en la incorporación de todas las líneas telefónicas en Paris, así que podemos decir que estaba en su campo.

¿Pero como es que esto funcionaba?, pues se colocaron aproximadamente 80 transmisores telefónicos, repartidos en todo el escenario. El objetivo era crearles esa sensación tridimensional a sus cerebros, lograr que los oídos de los receptores estuvieran lo mas inmersos posibles en el ambiente del teatro o recinto donde se estuviera realizando la transmisión. (Estamos hablando de la creación de un sistema binaural muy adelantado a su tiempo.)

Diagram of the théâtrophone prototype at the Opera, during the World Exhibition in Paris

luego esta señal es enviada a una enorme  ̈central telefónica ̈ donde las señales son seleccionadas y enviadas hasta el receptor de destino.

Este receptor se encontraba en los domicilios, era muy parecido a un teléfono. Pero su mayor diferencia es que este no contaba con micrófono, solo tenia un par de auriculares, uno para cada oreja. Continuando con la lógica que el sonido fuera lo mas inmersivo posible.

Aun llevándolo a las casas y haciéndolo mucho mas económico, esta opción seguía no estando al alcance de todos. y nadie podía parar esta misión educativa y sobre todo tan buen negocio. El teatrófono se podía encontrar en los mas populares bares y restaurantes de la ciudad. Y por una moneda de 50 céntimos se podía escuchar 5 minutos del recital que se estuviera presentando o por 1 franco podías escuchar 10 min. Y así tener a un mundo mas conectado.

 

Y si era tan buena idea entonces, ¿Por qué murió el teatrófono?, es que este no murió. Evoluciono, la tecnología fue avanzando y con ella llegaron maneras mas sencillas de comunicarnos, de ofrecer servicios parecidos a este y muchos mas accesibles. Ya era muy costoso mantener un sistema como el teatrófono comparado con las nuevas tecnologías. pero no podemos olvidar la historia y los inventos que nos han ayudado a llegar a donde estamos, si hoy en día disfrutamos de plataformas digitales como spotify, Apple music o hasta el mismo YouTube es gracias a ideas innovadoras como estas.

Y nosotros, ¿Qué legado le estamos dejando a nuestras futuras generaciones? ¿de que manera nuestras innovaciones podrían evolucionar en los próximos siglos?

Fuentes: https://tecnovortex.com/un-invento-adelantado-a-su-epoca-el-teatrofono/ https://smartech.gatech.edu/bitstream/handle/1853/50196/Droumeva2005.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowe d=y https://hipertextual.com/2020/05/spotify-siglo-xix-teatrofono referencias y links externos de https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Théâtrophone

Maria Fernanda Medina, de Tegucigalpa Honduras. Estudie una Lic. En Tecnología Acústica y Sonido Digital en la Universidad Galileo de la Ciudad de Guatemala he ejercido mayormente en el área de audio en vivo. De manera independiente, Y con empresas de alquiler de Audio. Desarrollándome en el área de Backline, Stagemanager y Producción. Tanto en conciertos internacionales como festivales nacionales . actualmente, mi pasión por el audio y el compromiso social que siento con mi país me han encaminado en la divulgación y educación. Faceta que exploro y disfruto cada dia mas.

 

Theatrophone – Culture within the reach of all social classes

 

In the 19th century, theater and opera were known to be exclusive entertainment of high society, however, people with less purchasing power did not ignore their existence and it was clear that they wanted to be able to enjoy these shows.

It was this need that prompted the French engineer and inventor, Clement Ader, to invent his ambitious and novel project. Since he did not understand why culture could not be available to all people. A true revolutionary of those times.

So, since it was impossible for him to bring everyone to the theater, he brought the theater to everyone. Creating what was known as a théâtrophone. And well we agree that it is not the most creative or beautiful name, but it was undoubtedly the tool that he was looking for

This technology consisted of transmitting through telephone lines, in real-time. The audio of the presentation that was taking place in the theater, and boy did he know what he was doing since just a year ago he had been directly involved in the incorporation of all the telephone lines in Paris, so we can say that was in his field.

But how did this work? Approximately 80 telephone transmitters were placed, distributed throughout the stage. The objective was to create that three-dimensional sensation in their brains, to make the ears of the receivers as immersed as possible in the environment of the theater or venue where the transmission was taking place. (We are talking about creating a binaural system well ahead of its time).

This signal is then sent to a huge “telephone exchange” where the signals are selected and sent to the destination receiver.

This receiver was in the homes, it was very similar to a phone. But its biggest difference is that it did not have a microphone, it only had a pair of headphones, one for each ear. Continuing with the logic that the sound was as immersive as possible.

Even taking it to the houses and making it much cheaper, this option was still not available to everyone. And nobody could stop this educational mission and above all, such a good business. The theater phone could be found in the most popular bars and restaurants in the city. And for a 50 cent coin, you could listen to 5 minutes of the recital that was being presented or for 1 franc you could listen to 10 min. And so have a more connected world.

 

 

And if it was such a good idea then, why did the theatrophone die? It didn’t die. It evolved, technology was advancing and with it came easier ways to communicate, to offer services similar to this, and many more accessible. It was already very expensive to maintain a system like the theater compared to new technologies. But we cannot forget the history and inventions that have helped us get to where we are if today we enjoy digital platforms such as Spotify, Apple Music, or even YouTube itself, it is thanks to innovative ideas like these.

And we, what legacy are we leaving for our future generations? How could our innovations evolve in the coming centuries?

Sources:

https://tecnovortex.com/un-invento-adelantado-a-su-epoca-el-teatrofono/

https://smartech.gatech.edu/bitstream/handle/1853/50196/Droumeva2005.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y

https://hipertextual.com/2020/05/spotify-siglo-xix-teatrofono

References and external links from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Théâtrophone

Maria Fernanda Medina is from Tegucigalpa Honduras. She received a BA in Acoustic Technology and Digital Sound at the Galileo University in Guatemala City. She works in Live Sound as a sound engineer, backline tech, and production.

 

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