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DICTIONARY OF ACOUSTIC TERMS
A- T!"#$ A test between two components or rooms. For example, a
test between two diferent pre-amplifers. For the test to be
scientifcally valid the levels should be matched.
AC%$ See Dolby Digital.
A&&!'!()*&!$ he !re"uency response !unction o! acceleration#!orce.
Also $nown as inertance
A&+,"#-& E.-""-+*$ he detected energy that is generated when
materials are de!ormed or brea$. For rolling element bearing analysis,
it is the periodic energy generated by the over rolling o! particles or
%aws and detected by the display o! the bearing %aw !re"uencies.
A&+,"#-& -./!0)*&!$ &'()*+ , -./-0-12 , m$s acoustic ohm 345a6
s#m78 ---o! a sur!ace, !or a given !re"uency, the complex "uotient
obtained when the sound pressure averaged over the sur!ace is
divided by the volume velocity through the sur!ace. he real and
imaginary components are called, respectively, acoustic resistance and
acoustic reactance.
A&+,"#-& .)#!(-)'$ Any material considered in terms o! its acoustical
properties. 9ommonly and especially, a material designed to absorb
sound.
A-(1+(*! "+,*0$ Sound that arrives at the point o! interest, such as
one side o! a partition, by propagation through air.
A-(2+3 (!"-"#)*&!4 (: -./-0-12, m$s acoustic ohm 345a6 s#m78 ---the
"uotient o! the air pressure diference across a specimen divided by
the volume velocity o! air%ow through the specimen. he pressure
diference and the volume velocity may be either steady or alternating.
A-(2+3 (!"-"#-5-#6$ 3-./-7-12, m$s rayl#m 345a6 s#m78 ---o! a
homogeneous material, the "uotient o! its specifc air%ow resistance
divided by its thic$ness.
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A.1-!*&!$ he acoustic characteristics o! a space with regard to
reverberation. A room with a lot o! reverb is said to be ;live;, one
without much reverb is said to be ;dead;.
A.1-!*# *+-"!$ he composite o! airborne sound !rom many sources
near and !ar associated with a given environment. <o particular sound
is singled out !or interest.
A1"+(/#-+*$ =n acoustics, the changing o! sound energy to heat.
A1"+(/#-+* C+!7&-!*#$ he !raction o! sound energy that is
absorbed at any sur!ace. =t has a value between > and 1 and varies
with the !re"uency and angle o! incidence o! the sound.
A&+,"#-&"$ he science o! sound. =t can also re!er to the efect a given
environment has on sound.
AES$ Audio ?ngineering Society.
A./'-8&)#-+* F)&#+( 9:;$ he amount o! mechanical gain o! a
structure when excited at a resonant !re"uency. he ratio o! the
amplitude o! the steady state solution 4amplitude at resonance8 to the
static de%ection !or the same !orce F. he amplifcation !actor is a
!unction o! the system damping. For a damping ratio @'> 4no damping8
the amplifcation !actor is infnite, !or @'1 4critically damped8 there is
no amplifcation.
A./'-#,0!$ he instantaneous magnitude o! an oscillating "uantity
such as sound pressure. he pea$ amplitude is the maximum value.
Acoustic amplitude is measured and expressed in three ways:
Displacement 4commonly in mils 5$-
5$8, Aelocity 4commonly in =n#Sec 5$8, and Acceleration 4commonly in
gs (.S8. Amplitude is also the y-axis o! the vibration time wave!orm
and spectrum, it helps defne the severity o! the vibration.
A*)'+<$ An electrical signal whose !re"uency and level vary
continuously in direct relationship to the original electrical or acoustical
signal.
A*!&=+-&$ Bithout echo.
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A*!&=+-& &=).1!($ A room designed to suppress internal sound
re%ections. Csed !or acoustical measurements.
A(#-&,')#-+*$ A "uantitative measure o! the intelligibility o! speech,
the percentage o! speech items correctly perceived and recorded.
A(#-8&-)' R!5!(1!()#-+*$ (everberation generated by electrical or
acoustical means to simulate that o! concert halls, etc., added to a
signal to ma$e it sound more li!eli$e.
A(-#=.!#-& .!)* "+,*0 /(!"",(! '!5!'$ D! several related sound
pressure levels measured at diferent positions or sound pressure
levels measured at diferent positions or diferent times, or both, in a
specifed !re"uency band, the sum o! the sound pressure levels divided
by the number o! levels.
ASA$ Acoustical Society o! America.
AS>RAE$ American Society o! Eeating, (e!rigerating, and Air-
9onditioning ?ngineers.
A"6*&=(+*+,"4 N+*"6*&=(+*+,"$ Fre"uencies in a vibration
spectrum that exceed sha!t turning speed 4S8, but are not integer or
harmonic multiples o! S. Also commonly re!erred to as non-
synchronous.
A##)&?$ he beginning o! a sound, the initial transient o! a musical
note.
A##!*,)#!$ o reduce the level o! an electrical or acoustical signal.
A,0-1'! @(!A,!*&6 ()*<!$ he range o! sound !re"uencies normally
heard by the human ear. he audible range spans !rom F>E@ to
F>,>>>E@
A,0-+/=-'!$ A person who is interested in sound reproduction.
A,0-#+(6 A(!)$ he sensory area lying between the threshold o!
hearing and the threshold o! !eeling or pain.
A,()'$ Eaving to do with the auditory mechanism.
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A5!()<! (++. )1"+(/#-+* &+!7&-!*#$ otal room absorption in
sabins or metric sabins, divided by total room sur!ace area in
consistent units o! s"uare !eet or s"uare meters.
A5!()<! "+,*0 /(!"",(! '!5!'$ D! several related sound pressure
levels measured at diferent positions or diferent times, or both, in a
specifed !re"uency band, ten times the common logarithm o! the
arithmetic mean o! the s"uared pressure ratios !rom which the
individual level were derived.
AB-)' M+0!$ he room resonances associated with each pair
o! parallel walls.
A-3!-<=#-*<$ A !re"uency-response ad*ustment o! a soundlevel meter
that ma$es its reading con!orm, very roughly, to human response.
)&?<(+,*0 *+-"!$ <oise !rom all sources unrelated to a particular
sound that is the ob*ect o! interest. Gac$ground noise may include
airborne, structureborne, and instrument noise.
)C!$ A movable barrier used to achieve separation o! signals !rom
diferent sources. he sur!ace or board upon which a loudspea$er is
mounted.
)*0/)"" 8'#!($ A flter that attenuates signals both below and above
the desired passband.
)*03-0#=$ he total !re"uency range o! any system. Csually
specifed as something li$e: F>-F>,>>>E& plus or minus 7 db.
)""$ he lower range o! audible !re"uencies.
!).-*<$ he phenomenon o! sound being emitted within a
comparatively small solid angle. his characteristic becomes more
acute as the !re"uency increases.
!)#"$ 5eriodic %uctuations that are heard when sounds o! slightly
diferent !re"uencies are superimposed.
-*),()'$ A situation involving listening with two ears.
++.6$ /istening term, re!ers to an excessive bass response that has
a pea$4s8 in it.
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(+)0 1)*0 *+-"!$ Spectrum consisting o! a large number o!
!re"uency components, none o! which is individually dominant.
(-<=#$ /istening term. Csually re!ers to too much upper !re"uency
energy.
6#!$ A term used in digital systems. Dne byte is e"ual to H
bits o! data. A bit is the elemental ;high; or ;low; state o! a binary
system.
C!/"#(,.$ he cepstrum is the !orward Fourier trans!orm o! a
spectrum. =t is thus the spectrum o! a spectrum, and has certain
properties that ma$e it use!ul in many types o! signal analysis. Dne o!
its more power!ul attributes is the !act that any periodicities, or
repeated patterns, in a spectrum will be sensed as one or two specifc
components in the cepstrum. =! a spectrum contains several sets o!
sidebands or harmonic series, they can be con!using because o!
overlap. Gut in the cepstrum, they will be separated in a way similar to
the way the spectrum separates repetitive time patterns in the
wave!orm. Iearboxes and rolling element bearing vibrations lend
themselves especially well to cepstrum analysis. he cepstrum is
closely related to the auto correlation !unction.
C=)**!' )')*&!$ =n a stereo system, the level balances between le!t
and right channels. 5roperly balanced, the image should be centered
between the le!t-right spea$ers. =n a hometheaterJ system, re!ers to
achieving correct balance between all the channels o! the system.
C=)()&#!(-"#-& -./!0)*&! +@ #=! .!0-,.$ -./-F-12, m$s rayl
345a6 s#m8 - the specifc normal acoustic impedance at a point in a
plane wave in a !ree feld. =t is a pure specifc resistance since the
sound pressure and the particle velocity are in phase and it is e"ual in
magnitude to the product o! the density o! the medium, p, and the
speed o! sound in the medium, c. =ts value when the medium is air at
F> degrees
9elsius and 1>1.FK $5a is 017 m$s rayl 45a-s#m8,
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C'-//-*<$ (e!ers to a type o! distortion that occurs when anamplifer is
driven into an overload condition. Csually the;clipped; wave!orm
contains an excess o! high-!re"uency energy. he sound becomes hard
and edgy. Eard clipping is the most !re"uent cause o! ;burned out;
tweeters. ?ven a lowpowered amplifer or receiver driven into clipping
can damage tweeters which would otherwise last virtually !orever.
C+=!(!*&!$ 9oherence is a number between one and @ero, and is a
measure o! the degree o! linearity between two related signals, such as
the input !orce o! a structure related to the vibration response to that
!orce. 9oherence is thus a twochannel measurement, and does not
apply to single-channel measurements o! vibration signatures. =n a
!re"uency response measurement o! a mechanical structure, i! the
structure is linear, the coherence will be one, but i! there is some
nonlinearity in the structure or i! there is noise in a measurement
channel, the coherence will be less than one.
he dual-channel FF analy@er is able to measure the coherence
between the two channels, and it is a use!ul tool in determining good
!rom noisy or meaningless data.
C+=!(!*&! F,*&#-+*$ 9oherence is a !unction o! !re"uency that
measures amount o! power in the response 4output8 that is caused by
the power in the excitation 4input8. =! it is 1>>L coherent, the value is
1.
C+'+()#-+*$ /istening term. A visual analog. A ;colored; sound
characteristic adds something not in the original sound.
he coloration may be euphonically pleasant, but it is not as accurate
as the original signal.
C+.1 8'#!($ A distortion produced by combining an electrical or
acoustical signal with a delayed replica o! itsel!.
he result is constructive and destructive inter!erence that results in
pea$s and nulls being introduced into the !re"uency response. Bhen
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plotted to a linear !re"uency scale, the response resembles a comb,
hence the name.
C+./'-)*&!$ 18 Fre"uency response !unction o! displacement#!orce.
Also $nown as Dynamic 9ompliance. F8
5roperty o! a confned gas proportional to its volume and inversely
proportional to its density.
C+./(!""-+*$ =n audio, compression means to reduce the dynamic
range o! a signal. 9ompression may be intentional or one o! the efects
o! a system that is driven to overload. =t is also the portion o! a sound
wave in which molecules are
pushed together, !orming a region with higher-than-normal
atmospheric pressure.
C(-#-&)' 1)*0$ =n human hearing, only those !re"uency components
within a narrow band, called the critical band, will mas$ a given tone.
9ritical bandwidth varies with !re"uency but is usually between 1#M and
1#7 octaves.
C(-#-&)' D)./-*<$ he smallest amount o! damping re"uired to return
a system to its e"uilibrium condition without oscillating.
C(-#-&)' D-"#)*&!$ he distance !rom a sound source at which direct
sound and reverberant sound are at the same level.
C(-#-&)' F(!A,!*&6$ he !re"uency below which standing waves
cause signifcant room modes.
C(+""-#)'?$ Cnwanted brea$through o! one channel into another. Also
re!ers to the distortion that occurs when some signal !rom a music
source that you are not listening to lea$s into the circuit o! the source
that you are listening to.
C(+""+5!( @(!A,!*&6$ =n a loudspea$er with multiple radiators, the
crossover !re"uency is the 7-dG point o! the networ$ dividing the signal
energy.
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C,#+D @(!A,!*&6$ D! an anechoic wedge or set o! wedges, the lowest
!re"uency above which the normal incidence sound absorption
coeNcient is at least .OO>.
C6&'!" /!( "!&+*0$ he !re"uency o! an electrical signal or sound
wave. .easured in Eert@ 4E@8.
D)./$ o cause a loss or dissipation o! the oscillatory or vibrational
energy o! an electrical or mechanical system.
D)./-*< F)&#+( +( D)./-*< R)#-+$ he ratio o! actual damping in a
system to its critical damping.
D$ See decibel.
D 9A;$ A sound-level meter reading with an A-weighting networ$
simulating the human-ear response at a loudness level o! 0> phons.
D 9;$ A sound-level meter reading with a G-weighting networ$
simulating the human-ear response at a loudness level o! P> phons.
D 9C;$ A sound-level meter reading with no weighting networ$ in the
circuit, i.e., %at. he re!erence level is F> u5a.
D!&)0!$ en times any "uantity or !re"uency range. he range o! the
human ear is about 7 decades.
D!&)6 ()#!$ d, --12, dG#s--!or airborne sound, the rate o! decrease o!
vibratory acceleration, velocity, or displacement level a!ter the
excitation has stopped.
D!&-1!'$ 0---the term used to identi!y ten times the common
logarithm o! the ratio o! two li$e "uantities proportional to power or
energy. 4See level, sound transmission loss.8 hus, one decibel
corresponds to a power ratio o! 1>>.1.
D!#!(.-*-"#-&$ A type o! signal whose spectrum consists o! a
collection o! discrete components, as opposed to a random signal,
whose spectrum is spread out or ;smeared; in !re"uency. Some
deterministic signals are periodic, and their
spectra consist o! harmonic series. Aibration signatures o! machines
are in general deterministic, containing one or more harmonic series,
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but they always have nondeterministic components, such as
bac$ground noise.
D-)/=()<. 4also diaphragmatic8: Any sur!ace that vibrates in
response to sound or is vibrated to emit sound, such as in microphones
and loudspea$ers. Also applied to wall and %oor sur!aces vibrating in
response to sound or in transmitting sound.
D-D!(!*#-)#-+*$ =n vibration analysis, diferentiation is a
mathematical operation that converts a displacement signature to a
velocity signature, or a velocity signature to an acceleration signature.
=t is per!ormed electronically on an analog signal or can be per!ormed
digitally on a spectrum.
Diferentiation is an inherently noisy operation, i! per!ormed on an
analog signal, adding a signifcant amount o! high !re"uency noise to
the signal, and is generally not used very much in machinery vibration
analysis. =t is not inherently noisy i! it is done digitally on the FF
spectrum. See also =ntegration, which is the inverse o! diferentiation.
D-D()&#-+*$ A change in the direction o! propagation o! sound energy
in the neighborhood o! a boundary discontinuity, such as the edge o! a
re%ective or absorptive sur!ace.
D-D,"! 8!'0$ An environment in which the sound pressure level is the
same at all locations and the %ow o! sound energy is e"ually probable
in all directions.
D-<-#)'$ A numerical representation o! an analog signal. 5ertaining to
the application o! digital techni"ues to common tas$s.
D-/+'!$ An open-bac$ spea$er that radiates sound e"ually !ront and
rear. he !ront and rear waves are out o! phase and cancellation will
occur when the wavelengths are long enough to ;wrap around;. he
answer is a large, wide baQe or to enclose the driver creating a
monopole.
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D-(!&#-5-#6 -*0!B 9DI;$ he diference between sound pressure level
in any given direction in the acoustic !ar feld and the average sound
pressure level in that feld.
D-"&(!#! F+,(-!( T()*"@+(.$ he mathematical calculation that
converts, or ;trans!orms; a sampled and digiti@ed wave!orm into a
sampled spectrum. he !ast Fourier trans!orm, or FF, is an algorithm
that allows a computer to calculate the discrete Fourier trans!orm very
"uic$ly. See also Fast Fourier rans!orm.
D-"#+(#-+*$ Anything that alters the musical signal. here are many
!orms o! distortion, some o! which are more audible than others.
D-5!(<!*&!$ he spreading o! sound waves which, in a !ree feld,
causes sound pressure levels in the !ar feld o! a source to decrease
with increasing distance !rom the source.
D+'16 D-<-#)'$ =s a fve-channel system consisting o! le!t, center, right
and le!t rear, right rear channels. All processing is done in the digital
domain . Cnli$e Dolby 5rologic in which the rear efects channels are
!re"uency limited to approx. 1>>- P>>E@, Dolby Digital rear channels
are specifed to contain the !ull F>-F>Rh@ !re"uency content. he A97
standard also has a separate subwoo!er channel !or the lowest
!re"uencies.
D+'16 E(+'+<-&$ =s a !our-channel system consisting o! le!t, center,
right and rear channel, 4the single rear channel is usually played
through two spea$ers8.
DTS$ Digital heater System. A multi-channel encoding#decoding
system. Csed in some movie theaters. Also now included in some
home-theater processors. A competitor to Dolby Digital.
DSE$ Digital Signal 5rocessing. DS5 can be used to create e"uali@ation,
compression, etc. o! a digital signal.
DFD$ Digital Aideo Disc or Digital Aersatile Disc. A relatively new
standard that see$s to combine better-thanlaser- disc "uality video
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with better-than-9D "uality audio in a disc the si@e o! a 9D. (e"uires
special players. Seems to be a
viable candidate to replace both /aser Discs and 9Ds, but the *ury is
still out.
D6*).-& >!)0(++.$ he ability o! an audio device to respond to
musical pea$s. For example, an amplifer may only be capable o! a
sustained 1>> watts, but may be able to achieve pea$s o! F>> watts
!or the !raction o! a second re"uired !or an intense, "uic$ sound. =n this
example the dynamic headroom would e"ual 7 dG.
D6*).-& ()*<!$ he range between the loudest and the so!test
sounds that are in a piece o! music, or that can be reproduced by a
piece o! audio e"uipment without distortion 4a ratio expressed in
decibels8. =n speech, the range rarely exceeds 0> dG, in music, is
greatest in orchestral wor$s, where the range may be as much as PK
dG.
D6*!$ he !orce that will accelerate a 1-gram mass at the rate o! 1
cm#sec. he old standard re!erence level !or sound pressure was .>>>F
dyne#s". cm. he same level today is expressed as F> micro pascals, or
F> u5a.
E&=+$ A delayed return o! sound that is perceived by the ear as a
discrete sound image.
E&=+<()."$ A record o! the very early reverberatory decay o! sound
in a room.
EES$ ?arly, early sound. Structure-borne sound may reach the
microphone in a room be!ore the air-borne sound because sound
travels !aster through denser materials.
EFC$ ?nergy-!re"uency curve.
EFTC$ ?nergy-!re"uency-time curve.
E*"!.1'!$ .usicians must hear each other to !unction properly, in
other words ensemble must prevail. Difusing elements surrounding
the stage area contribute greatly to ensemble.
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EA,)' '+,0*!"" &+*#+,($ A contour representing a constant loudness
!or all audible !re"uencies. he contour having a sound pressure level
o! 0> dG at 1,>>>E@ is arbitrarily defned as the 0>-phon contour.
EA,)'-G!($ A device !or ad*usting the !re"uency response o! a device
or system.
EA,)'-G)#-+*$ he process o! ad*usting the !re"uency response o! a
device or system to achieve a %at or other desired response.
ETC$ ?nergy-time curve.
E,/=+*-&$ 5leasing. As a descriptive audio term, usually re!ers to a
coloration or inaccuracy that none-the-less may be sonically pleasing.
EB#!*"-+*$ Eow extended a range o! !re"uencies the device can
reproduce accurately. Gass extension re!ers to how low a !re"uency
tone will the system reproduce, high-!re"uency extension re!ers to how
high in !re"uency will the system play.
F)( 8!'0$ hat part o! the sound feld in which sound pressure
decreases inversely with distance !rom the source. his corresponds to
a reduction o! approximately M dG in level !or each doubling distance.
F)"# F+,(-!( T()*"@+(. 9FFT;$ he FF is an algorithm, or digital
calculation routine, that eNciently calculates the discrete Fourier
trans!orm !rom the sampled time wave!orm.
=n other words it converts, or ;trans!orms; a signal !rom the time
domain into the !re"uency domain.
F!!01)&?4 )&+,"#-&$ Cnwanted interaction between the output and
input o! an acoustical system, e.g., between the loudspea$er and the
microphone o! a system.
F-!'0 "+,*0 #()*".-""-+* &')""4 FSTC$ Sound transmission class
calculated in accordance with 9lassifcation ? 017 using values o! feld
transmission loss.
F-!'0 #()*".-""-+* '+""4 FTH$ Sound transmission loss measured in
accordance with Annex A1 o! est .ethod ? 77M.
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F').! "/(!)0$ A measure o! the time it ta$es !or %ame to spread.
9ompared to red oa$, whose Flame Spread =ndex 4FS=8 is 1>> in
accordance with AS. ? H0. he infll o! =A9 sound absorptive metal
panels has an FS= o! F>.
F')*?-*< #()*".-""-+*$ ransmission o! sound !rom the source to a
receiving location by a path other than that under consideration.
F'!#&=!(-M,*"+* C,(5!$ Dur sensitivity to sound depends on its
!re"uency and volume. Euman ears are most sensitive to sounds in the
midrange. At lower volume levels humans are less sensitive to sounds
away !rom the midrange, bass and treble sounds ;seem; reduced in
intensity at lower listening levels.
FTC$ Fre"uency-time curve.
FFT$ Fast Fourier rans!orm. An iterative program that computes the
Fourier rans!orm in a shorter time. =t converts, or ;trans!orms; a signal
!rom the time domain into the !re"uency domain.
F-0!'-#6$ As applied to sound "uality, the !aith!ulness to the original.
F-'#!(4 =-<= /)""$ A flter that passes all !re"uencies above a
cutof !re"uency.
F-'#!(4 '+3 /)""$ A flter that passes all !re"uencies below a certain
cutof !re"uency.
F-'#!(4 1)*0 /)""$ A flter that passes all !re"uencies between a low-
!re"uency cutof point or a high-!re"uency cutof point.
F',##!($ A repetitive echo set up by parallel re%ecting sur!aces.
F+,(-!(4 I!)* )/#-"#!$ he !amous many-talented French engineer,
mathematician, and one time president o! ?gypt, who devised the
Fourier series and Fourier rans!orm !or the conversion o! time
!unctions into !re"uency !unctions and vice versa.
F+,(-!( T()*"@+(.$ he mathematically rigorous operation which
trans!orms !rom the time domain to the !re"uency domain and vice
versa. See also Fast Fourier rans!orm.
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F+,(-!( A*)'6"-"$ Fourier analysis is another term !or spectrum
analysis, although it generally re!ers to analysis using an FF analy@er.
he application o! the Fourier trans!orm to a signal to determine its
spectrum.
F(!! 8!'0$ An environment in which a sound wave may propagate in
all directions without obstructions or re%ections.
Anechoic rooms can produce such an environment under controlled
conditions.
F(!A,!*&6$ he measure o! the rapidity o! alterations o! a periodic
signal, expressed in cycles per second or E@.
F(!A,!*&6 (!"/+*"!$ he changes in the sensitivity o! a circuit
,device, or room with !re"uency.
F+(&!0 F-1()#-+*$ he oscillation o! a system under the action o! a
!orcing !unction.
F,!' &+*#(-1,#!0$ A measure o! temperature rise in %ame as a
!unction o! the time compared to red oa$ whose !uel contribution index
4F9=8 is 1>> in accordance with AS. ? H0. he infll o! =A9 sound
absorptive metal panels has an FS= o! 1K.
F,*0).!*#)'$ he lowest !re"uency o! a note in a complex wave !orm
or chord.
F,"-+* J+*!$ All re%ections arriving at the observerSs ear within F> to
0> msec o! the direct sound are integrated, !or !used together, with a
resulting apparent increase in level and a pleasant change o!
character. his is the Eaas ?fect.
K)-*$ o increase in level. he !unction o! a volume control.
K()-*$ /istening term. A sonic analog o! the grain seen in photos. A
sort o! ;grittiness; added to the sound.
K()#-*<4 0-D()&#-+*$ An optical grating consists o! minute, parallel
lines used to brea$ light down into its component colors. he principle
is now used to achieve difraction o! acoustical waves.
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K()#-*<4 (!2!&#-+* /=)"!$ An acoustical difraction grating to
produce difusion o! sound.
>))" !D!&#$ See !usion @one. Also called the precedence efect.
Delayed sounds are integrated by the auditory apparatus i! the !all on
the ear within F> to 0> msec o! the direct sound. he level o! the
delayed components contributes to the apparent level o! the sound,
and it is accompanied by a pleasant change in character.
>)(0 (++.$ A room in which the sur!aces have very low values o!
sound absorption and are there!ore highly re%ective.
>)(.+*-&"$ Also called overtones, these are vibrations at !re"uencies
that are multiples o! the !undamentals. Earmonics extend without limit
beyond the audible range. hey are characteri@ed as even-order and
odd-order harmonics. A second-order harmonic is two times the
!re"uency o! the !undamental, a third order is three times the
!undamental, a !ourth order is !our times the !undamental, and so
!orth. ?ach even-order harmonic: second, !ourth, sixth, etc.-is one
octave or multiples o! one octave higher than the !undamental, these
even-order overtones are there!ore musically related to the
!undamental. Ddd-order harmonics, on the other hand: third, f!th,
seventh, and up-create a series o! notes that are not related to any
octave overtones and there!ore may have an unpleasant sound. Audio
systems that emphasi@e odd-order harmonics ten to have a harsh,
hard "uality.
>!)0(++.$ he ability o! an amp to go beyond its rated power !or
short durations in order to reproduce musical pea$s without distortion.
his capability is o!ten dependent on the power supply used in the
design.
>!)(-*< S!*"-#-5-#6$ he human ear is less sensitive at low
!re"uencies than in the midrange. urn your volume $nob down and
notice how the bass seems to ;disappear;. o hear low bass re"uires an
16
ade"uate S5/ level. o hear FKE@ re"uires a much higher S5/ level
than to hear FK>E@.
>!(#G$ the unit o! !re"uency, abbreviated E@. he same as cycles per
second. he name is in honor o! Eeinrich Eert@, an early Ierman
investigator o! radio wave transmission.
>!'.=+'#G (!"+*)#+($ A reactive, tuned, sound absorber. A bottle is
such a resonator. hey can employ a per!orated cover or slats over a
cavity.
>-<=-/)"" 8'#!($ See flter, high pass.
>6"#!(!"-"$ <on-uni"ueness in the relationship between two variables
as a parameter increases or decreases. Also called deadband, or the
portion o! the systemSs response where a change in input does not
produce a change in output.
>6"#!(!"-" D)./-*< 9>6"#!(!#-& D)./-*<4 S#(,&#,()'
D)./-*<;$ ?nergy losses within a structure that are caused by
internal !riction within the structure. hese losses are independent o!
speed or !re"uency o! oscillation but are proportional to the vibration
amplitude s"uared.
IEEE$ =nstitute o! ?lectrical and ?lectronic ?ngineers.
I.)<-*<$ /istening term. A good stereo system can provide a stereo
image that has width, depth and height. he best imaging systems will
defne a nearly holographic re-creation o! the original sound.
I./!0)*&!$ he opposition to the %ow o! electric or acoustic energy
measured in ohms.
I./)&# -*",')#-+* &')""4 IIC$ A single-number rating derived !rom
measured values o! normali@ed impact sound pressure levels =
accordance with Annex A1 o! est .ethod ? 0OF. =t provides an
estimate o! the impact sound insulating per!ormance o! a %oor-ceiling
assembly.
I./,'"!$ A very short, transient, electric or acoustic signal.
17
I./,'"! (!"/+*"!$ Sound pressure versus time measurement
showing how a device or room responds to an impulse.
I* /=)"!$ wo periodic waves reaching pea$s and gong through @ero
at the same instant are said to be ;in phase.;
I*"!(#-+* '+""4 IH$ D! a silencer or other sound-reducing element, in a
specifed !re"uency band, the decrease in sound power level,
measured at the location o! the receiver, when a sound insulator or a
sound attenuator is inserted in the transmission path between the
source and the receiver.
I*!(#)*&!$ he !re"uency response !unction o! acceleration#!orce. Also
$nown as accelerance.
I*#!<()#-+*$ =ntegration is the mathematical operation which is the
inverse o! diferentiation. =n vibration analysis, integration will convert
an acceleration signal into a velocity signal, or a velocity signal into a
displacement signal.
=ntegration can be done with excellent accuracy with an analog
integrator in the time domain or can be done digitally in the !re"uency
domain. For this reason an accelerometer is the transducer o! choice
because velocity and displacement can be so easily derived !rom its
output. An analog integrator is actually a low pass flter with M dG o!
attenuation per octave. his is true o! an analog integrator only above
its low cutof. And since the low cutof cannot be @ero, analog
integrators have low-!re"uency limits, usually either 1 or 1> E@.
I*#!(@!(!*&!$ he combining o! two or more signals results in an
interaction called inter!erence. his may be constructive or destructive.
Another use o! the term is to re!er to undesired signals.
I*-#-)' #-.!-0!')6 <)/$ he time gap between the arrival o! the direct
sound and the frst sound re%ected !orm the sur!aces o! the room.
I*5!("!-"A,)(! ')3$ Cnder !ar feld#!ree feld conditions, sound
intensity varies inversely with the s"uare o! the distance !rom the
source. =n pure spherical divergence o! sound !rom a point source in
18
!ree space, the sound pressure level decreases M dG !or each doubling
o! the distance.
ITD$ =nitial time-delay gap.
I*#!*"-#6$ Acoustic intensity is sound energy %ux per unit area. he
average rate o! sound energy transmitted through a unit area normal
to the direction o! sound transmission.
IASA$ Tournal o! the Acoustical Society o! America.
IAES$ Tournal o! the Audio ?ngineering Society.
L>G$ 1,>>>E@.
H)3 +@ #=! 8("# 3)5! @(+*#$ he frst wave !ront !alling on the ear
determines the perceived direction o! the sound.
HEDE$ /ive end dead end.
H!5!'4 H$ en times the common logarithm o! the ratio o! a "uantity
proportional to power or energy to a re!erence "uantity o! the same
$ind. 4See sound power level, sound pressure level.8 the "uantity so
obtained is expressed in decibels.
H!5!' (!0,&#-+*4 HR$ =n a specifed !re"uency band, the decrease in
sound pressure level, measured at the location o! the receiver, when a
barrier or other sound-reducing element is placed between the source
and the receiver.
H-*!)($ A device or circuit with a linear characteristic means that a
signal passing through it is not distorted.
H-5! !*0 0!)0 !*0$ An acoustical treatment plan !or rooms in which
one end is highly absorbent and the other end re%ective and difusive.
H+<)(-#=.$ An exponent o! 1> in the common logarithms to the base
1>. For example, 1> to the exponent F'1>>, the log o! 1>>'F.
H+,0"/!)?!($ An electroacoustical transducer that changes electrical
energy to acoustical energy.
H+,0*!""$ A sub*ective term !or the sensation o! the magnitude o!
sound.
19
M)"?-*<$ he amount 4or the process8 by which the threshold o!
audibility !or one sound is raised by the presence o! another 4mas$ing8
sound.
M)"" ')3$ An approximation that describes the Sound ransmission
/oss 4/8 o! a limp, %exible barrier in terms o! mass density and
!re"uency. For each doubling o! the weight or !re"uency o! a partition,
mass law predicts a M dG increase in /.
M!)* @(!! /)#=$ For sound waves in an enclosure, it is the average
distance traveled between successive re%ections.
M!&=)*-&)' I./!0)*&!$ he !re"uency response !unction o!
!orce#velocity.
M!#(-& ")1-*$ -/F2---the unit o! measure o! sound absorption in the
metre-$ilogram-second system o! units.
M-&(+/=+*!$ An acoustical-electrical transducer by which sound
waves in air may be converted to electrical signals.
M-0()*<!$ A spea$er, 4driver8, used to reproduce the middle range o!
!re"uencies. A midrange is combined with a woo!er !or low !re"uencies
and a tweeter !or high !re"uencies to !orm a complete, !ull-range
system.
M-''-"!&+*0$ Dne thousandth o! a second, abbreviated ms or msec.
M+1-'-#6$ he !re"uency response !unction o! velocity#!orce.
.obility is the inverse o! mechanical impedance. =t is a measure o! the
ease with which a structure is able to move in response to an applied
!orce, and varies it with !re"uency.
he vibration measured at a point on a machine is the result o! a
vibratory !orce acting somewhere in the machine. he magnitude o!
the vibration is e"ual to the magnitude o! the !orce times the mobility
o! the structure. From this it !ollows that the amplitude o! the
destructive !orces acting on a machine are not determined directly by
measuring its vibration i! the mobility o! the machine is not $nown. For
this reason, it is a good idea to measure the mobility at the bearings o!
20
a machine in order to fnd out the levels o! the !orces acting on the
bearings due to imbalance or misalignment.
M+0)' A*)'6"-"$ he process o! determining a set o! generali@ed
coordinates !or a system such that the e"uations o! motion are both
inertially and elastically uncoupled. .ore commonly, it is a process o!
determining the natural !re"uencies, damping !actors, and mode
shapes !or a structure.
his is usually done either experimentally through !re"uency response
testing or mathematically using fnite element analysis. .ode Shape
he relative position o! all points on a structure at a given natural
!re"uency.
M+0!$ A room resonance. Axial modes are associated with pairs o!
parallel walls. angential modes involve !our room sur!aces and obli"ue
modes all six sur!aces. heir efect is greatest at low !re"uencies and
!or small rooms.
M+*),()'$ See monophonic.
M+*-#+($ /oudspea$er used in the control o! a recording studio.
M+*+/=+*-&$ Single-channel sound.
M+*+/+'!$ Any spea$er that encloses the bac$-wave o! the spea$er
device even though part o! this bac$-wave may be released via a port
or duct. he primary radiation at most !re"uencies will be !rom the
driver !ront. =! the driver is not enclosed it becomes a dipole.
M,006$ /istening term. A sound that is poorly defned, sloppy or
vague. For example, a ;muddy; bass is o!ten boomy with al the notes
tending to run together.
M,#-*<$ o greatly decrease the volume level. .any receivers and pre-
amplifers have a muting control which allows the volume level to be
cut way down without changing the master volume control. Ireat !or
when the phone rings.
NA$ <ational Association o! Groadcasters.
21
N!)( 8!'0$ /ocations close to the sound source between the source
and the !ar feld. he near feld is typically characteri@ed by large
sound pressure level variations with small changes in measurement
position !rom the source.
N+-"!$ =nter!erence o! an electrical or acoustical nature. (andom noise
is a desirable signal used in acoustical measurements. 5in$ noise is
random noise whose spectrum !alls at 7 dG per octave: it is use!ul !or
use with sound analy@ers with constant percentage bandwidths.
N+-"! &(-#!(-)$ Standard spectrum curves by which a given measured
noise may be described by a single <9 number.
N+-"! -"+')#-+* &')""4 NIC$ A single-number rating calculated in
accordance with 9lassifcation ? 017 using measured values o! noise
reduction. =t provides an estimate o! the sound isolation between two
enclosed spaces that are acoustically connected by one or more paths.
N+-"! (!0,&#-+* 9NR;$ he diference in sound pressure level
between any two points along the path o! sound propagation.
As an example, noise reduction is the term used to describe the
diference in sound pressure levels between the inside and outside o!
an enclosure.
N+-"! (!0,&#-+* &+!7&-!*# 9NRC;$ he arithmetic average, to the
nearest multiple o! .>K, o! the sound absorption coeNcients in the 1#7
octave bands centered at FK> E@, K>>E@, 1>>> E@, and F>>> E@..
N+(.)' -*&-0!*&! "+,*0 )1"+(/#-+*$ 3, -dimensionless2---o! a
sur!ace, at a specifed !re"uency, the !raction o! the perpendicularly
incident sound power absorbed or otherwise not re%ected.
N+(.)' .+0!$ A room resonance. See mode.
N+(.)'-G!0 *+-"! -"+')#-+* &')""4 NNIC$ A single-number rating
calculated in accordance with 9lassifcation ?017 using measured
values o! normali@ed noise reduction. 4See normali@ed noise reduction.8
N+(.)'-G!0 *+-"! (!0,&#-+*4 NNR$ Getween two rooms, in a
specifed !re"uency band, the value that the noise reduction in a given
22
feld test would have i! the reverberation time in the receiving room
were .K s.
N,''$ A low or minimum point on a graph. A minimum pressure region
in a room.
N6A,-"# F(!A,!*&6$ Digital signal processing re"uires analog to
digital 4A to D8 conversion o! the input signal. he frst step in A to D
conversion is sampling o! the instantaneous amplitudes o! signal at
specifc times determined by the sampling rate. =! the signal contains
any in!ormation at !re"uencies above one-hal! the sampling !re"uency,
the signal will not be sampled correctly, and the sampled version o! the
signal will contain spurious components. his is called aliasing. he
theoretical maximum !re"uency that can be correctly sampled is e"ual
to one-hal! the sampling rate, and is called the <y"uist !re"uency.
=n all digital signal processing systems, including FF analy@ers, the
sampling rate is made to be signifcantly greater than twice the highest
!re"uency present in the signal in order to be certain the aliasing will
not occur.
N6A,-"# E'+#$ 18 A plot o! the real part versus the imaginary part o!
the !re"uency response !unction. For a single-degreeo!- !reedom
system, the <y"uist plot is a circle. F8 he <y"uist plot is
representation o! a !re"uency response !unction by graphing the ;real;
part versus the ;imaginary; part. =n the
<y"uist plot, a resonance shows up as a circle, but there is no
indication what its !re"uency is -- the <y"uist plot is li$e sighting down
the !re"uency axis at the real and imaginary parts o! the !unction.
O1'-A,! .+0!$ See mode.
O&#)5!$ An octave is a doubling or halving o! !re"uency.
F>E@-0>E@ is o!ten considered the bottom octave. ?ach octave you add
on the bottom re"uires that your spea$ers move !our times as much
airU
23
O&#)5! 1)*0"$ Fre"uency ranges in which the upper limit o! each
band is twice the lower limit. Dctave bands are identifed by their
geometric mean !re"uency, or center !re"uency.
O*!-#=-(0 +&#)5! 1)*0"$ Fre"uency ranges where each octave is
divided into one-third octaves with the upper !re"uency limit being F3
41.FM8 times the lower !re"uency. =dentifed by the geometric mean
!re"uency o! each band.
O5!(#+*!$ A component o! a complex tone having a !re"uency higher
than the !undamental.
E)(#-&'! 5!'+&-#64 ,$ -/-12, m#s---a %uctuating velocity superimposed
by the presence o! sound on the other velocities with the particles o!
the medium may have. =n analogy with alternating voltage its
magnitude can be expressed in several ways, such as instantaneous
particle velocity or pea$ particle velocity. =n air, the other velocities are
those due to thermal agitation and wind currents.
24
E)""-5! )1"+(1!($ A sound absorber that dissipates sound energy as
heat.
E!)?$ he maximum positive or negative dynamic excursion !rom @ero
4!or an A9 coupled signal8 or !rom the ofset level 4!or a D9 coupled8 o!
any time wave!orm. Sometimes re!erred to as ;true pea$; or
;wave!orm pea$.;
E!)?-#+-/!)?$ he amplitude diference between the most positive
and most negative value in the time wave!orm.
E!)? "+,*0 /(!"",(! '!5!'$ /5R-nd2 ----ten times the common
logarithm o! the s"uare o! the ratio o! the largest absolute value o! the
instantaneous sound pressure in a stated !re"uency band during a
specifed time interval to the re!erence sound pressure o! F> micro
pascals.
E!(-+0$ A signal that repeats the same pattern over time is called
periodic, and the period is defned as the length o! time encompassed
by one cycle, or repetition. he period o! a periodic wave!orm is the
inverse o! its !undamental !re"uency.
E!(-+0-&$ A signal is periodic i! it repeats the same pattern over time.
he spectrum o! a periodic signal always contains a series o!
harmonics.
EFC$ 5hase-!re"uency curve.
E=)"!$ 5hase is the measure o! progression o! a periodic wave. 5hase
identifes the position at any instant which a periodic wave occupies in
its cycle. =t can also be discribed as he time relationship between two
signals.
E=)"! "=-@#$ he time or angular diference between two signals.
E=)"! 9#-.! ')< +( '!)0;$ he diference in time between two events
such as the @ero crossing o! two wave!orms, or the time between a
re!erence and the pea$ o! a wave!orm. he phase is expressed in
degrees as the time between two events divided by the period 4also a
time8, times 7M> degrees.
25
E=+*$ he unit o! loudness level o! a tone.
E-*? *+-"!$ <oise with a continuous !re"uency spectrum and with
e"ual power per constant percentage bandwidth. For example, e"ual
power is any one-third octave band.
E-#&=$ A sub*ective term !or the perceived !re"uency o! a tone.
E+')(-#6$ he positive or negative direction o! an electrical, acoustical,
or magnetic !orce. wo identical signals in opposite polarity are 1H>
degrees apart at all !re"uencies.
5olarity is not !re"uency dependent.
E'!*,.$ An absorbent-lined cavity through which conditioned air is
routed to reduce noise.
M A'&+*"$ he measured percentage o! Articulation /oss o!
9onsonants by a listener. L Alcons o! > indicates per!ect clarity and
intelligibility with no loss o! consonant understanding, while 1>L and
beyond is growing toward bad intelligibility, and 1KL typically is the
maximum loss acceptable.
E+3!( S/!&#()' D!*"-#6$ 5ower spectral density, or 5SD, is a method
o! scaling the amplitude axis o! spectra o! random rather than
deterministic signals. Gecause a random signal has energy spread out
over a !re"uency band rather than having energy concentrated at
specifc !re"uencies, it is not meaning!ul to spea$ o! its (.S value at
any specifc !re"uency. =t only ma$es sense to consider its amplitude
within a fxed !re"uency band, usually 1 E@. 5SD is defned in terms o!
amplitude s"uared per E@, and is thus proportional to the power
delivered by the signal in a one-E@ band.
E(!"",(! G+*!$ As sound waves stri$e a solid sur!ace, the particle
velocity is @ero at the sur!ace and the pressure is high, thus creating a
high-pressure layer near the sur!ace.
E"6&=+)&+,"#-&"$ he study o! the interaction o! the auditory system
and acoustics.
26
E,(! #+*!$ A tone with no harmonics. All energy is concentrated at a
single !re"uency.
R)*0+. *+-"!$ A noise signal, commonly used in measurements,
which has constantly shi!ting amplitude, phase, and a uni!orm spectral
distribution o! energy.
R)(!@)&#-+*$ he portion o! a sound wave in which molecules are
spread apart, !orming a region with lower-than-normal atmospheric
pressure. he opposite o! compression.
RASTI$ (apid Speech ransmission =ndex expressed in a decimal range
o! >.F !or ;bad; to 1.>> !or ;?xcellent;
R)6$ At higher audio !re"uencies, sound may be considered to travel in
straight lines, in a direction normal to the wave !ront.
RC 9R++. C(-#!(-); C,(5!"$ Cndesirable rumble can result i! <9
curves are determined mainly by low !re"uency noise.
Similarly, a hissing efect can result !rom <9 level being controlled by
higher !re"uency sounds. o achieve a better balance between low
!re"uency and high !re"uency components, (9 curves have been
established !or which the ob*ective is to design spectra that meet an
(9 curve within ) F dG at all !re"uencies. A spectrum that exceeds an
(9 curve by more than K dG at !re"uencies below FK> E@ is li$ely to
result in unacceptable rumble. Above F>>> E@, on the other hand, a
spectrum more than K dG higher than the (9 curve might have too
much o! a hissing "uality.
R!)&#)*&!$ he opposition to the %ow o! electricity posed by
capacitors and inductors.
R!)&#-5! )1"+(1!($ A sound absorber, such as the Eelmholt@
resonator which involves the efects o! mass and compliance as well as
resistance.
R!&!-5-*< (++.$ =n architectural acoustical measurements, the room
in which the sound transmitted !rom the source room is measured.
27
R!2!&#-+*$ For sur!aces large compared to the wavelength o!
impinging sound, sound is re%ected much as light is re%ected, with the
angle o! incidence e"ualing the angle o! re%ection.
R!2!&#-+*-/=)"! <()#-*<$ A difuser o! sound energy using the
principle o! the difraction grating.
R!@()&#-+*$ he bending o! sound waves traveling through layered
media with diferent sound velocities.
R!"-"#)*&!$ hat "uality o! electrical or acoustical circuits that results
in dissipation o! energy through heat.
R!"+*)*&!$ A natural periodicity, or the rein!orcement associated
with this periodicity.
R!"+*)*# @(!A,!*&6$ Any system has a resonance at some particular
!re"uency. At that !re"uency, even a slight amount o! energy can cause
the system to vibrate. A stretched piano string, when pluc$ed, will
vibrate !or a while at a certain !undamental !re"uency. 5luc$ed again, it
will again vibrate at that same !re"uency. his is its natural or resonant
!re"uency.
Bhile this is the basis o! musical instruments, it is undesirable in
music-reproducing instruments li$e audio e"uipment.
R!"/+*"!$ See !re"uency response.
R!5!(1!()*# "+,*0 8!'0$ he sound in an enclosed or partially
enclosed space that has been re%ected repeatedly or continuously
!rom the boundaries.
R!5!(1!()#-+*$ he persistence o! sound in an enclosed or partially
enclosed space a!ter the source o! sound has stopped, by extension, in
some contexts, the sound that so persists.
R!5!(1!()#-+* (++.$ A room so designed that the reverberant sound
feld closely approximates a difuse sound feld, both in the steady
state when the sound source is on, and during the decay a!ter the
source o! sound has stopped.
28
R!5!(1!()#-+* #-.!$ he tailing of o! a sound in an enclosure
because o! multiple re%ections !rom the boundaries.
RFJ$ (e%ection-!ree @one.
R++. .+0!$ he normal modes o! vibration o! an enclosed space.
See mode.
RTNO$ (everberation time.
S)1-*$ -/F2---the unit o! measure o! sound absorption in the inch-
pound system.
S)1-*!$ he originator o! the Sabine reverberation e"uation.
S!'@-!B#-*<,-"=-*<$ A material which will not support combustion
when external source o! %ame is removed.
S!'@-*+-"!4 *$ ?xtraneous non-acoustical signals, generated or
induced in a measurement system.
S-<*)'-#+-*+-"! 9SN; R)#-+$ he range or distance between the noise
%oor 4the noise level o! the e"uipment itsel!8 and the music signal.
S-*! P)5!$ A periodic wave related to simple harmonic motion.
S')/ 1)&?$ A discrete re%ection !rom a nearby sur!ace.
S.+?! 0!5!'+/!0$ .easure o! smo$e density developed by a
material when compared with red oa$, which has a smo$e density
index 4SD=8 o! 1>> in accordance with AS. ? H0.
he infll o! =A9 sound absorptive metal panels has an SD= o! F>.
S+@# (++.$ (oom with highly sound absorptive sur!aces.
S+*!$ he unit o! measurement !or sub*ective loudness.
S+,*0$ Sound is vibrational disturbance, exciting hearing
mechanisms, transmitted in a predictable manner determined by the
medium through which it propagates. o be audible the disturbance
must !all within the !re"uency range F>E@ to F>,>>>E@.
S+,*0 A1"+(/#-+*$ 418 he process o! dissipating sound energy. 4F8
he property o! possessed by materials, ob*ects and structures such as
rooms o! absorbing sound energy. 478
29
A$ QHRST .!#(-& ")1-*---in a specifed !re"uency band, the measure o!
the magnitude o! the absorptive property o! a material, an ob*ect, or a
structure such as a room.
S+,*0 )1"+(/#-+* &+!7&-!*#4 U$ -dimensionless2, metric sabin#m3
---o! a sur!ace, in a specifed !re"uency band, the measure o! the
absorptive property o! a material as approximated by the method o!
est .ethod 90F7. =deally, the !raction o! the randomly incident sound
power absorbed or otherwise not re%ected.
S+,*0 )##!*,)#-+*$ he reduction o! the intensity o! sound as it
travels !rom the source to a receiving location. Sound absorption is
o!ten involved as, !or instance, in a lined duct. Spherical spreading and
scattering are other attenuation mechanisms.
S+,*0 E*!(<64 E$ -./F-F2, T-energy added to an elastic medium by
the presence o! sound, consisting o! potential energy in the !orm o!
deviations !rom static pressure and o! $inetic energy in the !orm o!
particle velocity.
S+,*0 !*!(<6 0!*"-#64 D$ -./-1-F2, T#m---the "uotient obtained
when the sound energy in a region is divided by the volume o! the
region. he sound energy density at a point is the limit o! that "uotient
as the volume that contains the point approaches @ero.
S+,*0 -*",')#-+*$ he capacity o! a structure to prevent sound !rom
reaching a receiving location. Sound energy is not necessarily
absorbed, impedance mismatch, or re%ection bac$ toward the source,
is o!ten the principal mechanism.
S+,*0 -*#!*"-#64 I$ -.-72, B#mF the "uotient obtained when the
average rate o! energy %ow in a specifed direction and sense is
divided by the area, perpendicular to that direction, through or toward
which it %ows. he intensity at a point is the limit o! that "uotient s the
area that includes the point approaches @ero.
S+,*0 -"+')#-+*$ he degree o! acoustical separation between two
locations, especially ad*acent rooms.
30
S+,*0 '!5!'$ D! airborne sound, a sound pressure level obtained
using a signal to which a standard !re"uencyweighting has been
applied.
S+,*0 /+3!(4 P$ -./F-72, B---in a specifed !re"uency band, the
rate at which acoustic energy is radiated !rom a source. =n general, the
rate o! %ow o! sound energy, whether !rom a source, through an area,
or into an absorber.
S+,*0 /+3!( '!5!'4 H/$ D! airborne sound, ten times the common
logarithm o! the ratio o! the sound power under consideration o! the
standard re!erence power o! 1 pB. he "uantity so obtained is
expressed in decibels.
S+,*0 /(!"",(!4 /$ -./-1-F2, 5a-a %uctuating pressure
superimposed on the static pressure by the presence o! sound.
=n analogy with alternating voltage its magnitude can be expressed in
several ways, such as instantaneous sound pressure or pea$ sound
pressure, but the un"ualifed term means root-mean-s"uare sound
pressure. =n air, the static pressure is barometric pressure.
S+,*0 E(!"",(! H!5!' 9SEH;$ Iiven in decibels 4dG8 is an expression
o! loudness or volume. A 1>db increase in S5/ represents a doubling in
volume. /ive orchestral music reaches brie! pea$s in the 1>Kdb range
and live roc$ easily goes over 1F>db.
S+,*0 (!&!-5!($ Dne or more observation points at which sound is
evaluated or measured. he efect o! sound on an individual receiver is
usually evaluated by measurements near the ear or close to the boy.
S+,*0 "/!&#(+<()/=$ An instrument that displays the time, level,
and !re"uency o! a signal.
S+,*0"#)<!$ A listening term that re!ers to the placement o! a stereo
image in a !ashion that replicates the original per!ormance. A realistic
soundstage has proportional width, depth and height.
S+,*0 #()*".-""-+* &')""4 STC$ A single-number rating, calculated
in accordance with 9lassifcation ?017 using values o! sound
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transmission loss. =t provides an estimate o! the per!ormance o! a
partition in certain common sound insulation problems.
S+,*0 #()*".-""-+* &+!7&-!*#4 ($ -dimensionless2---o! a partition,
in a specifed !re"uency band, the !raction o! the airborne sound power
incident on the partition that is transmitted by the partition and
radiated on the other side.
S+,*0 #()*".-""-+* '+""4 TH$ D! a partition, in a specifed !re"uency
band, ten times the common logarithm o! the ratio o! the airborne
sound power incident on the partition to the sound power transmitted
by the partition and radiated on the other side. he "uantity so
obtained is expressed in decibels.
S+,*0 P)5!"$ Sound waves can be thought o! li$e the waves in
water. Fre"uency determines the length o! the waves, amplitude or
volume determines the height o! the waves. At F>E@, the wavelength is
KM !eet longU hese long waves give bass its penetrating ability, 4why
you can hear car boomers bloc$s away8.
S+,(&! (++.$ =n architectural acoustical measurements, the room
that contains the noise source or sources.
S/!)?!( H!5!'$ a$en !rom the spea$er terminals. his signal has
already been amplifed.
S/!&-8& )-(2+3 (!"-"#)*&!4 ($ -./-F-12. .$s rayl 45a-s#m8- --the
product o! the air%ow resistance o! a specimen and its area. his is
e"uivalent to the "uotient o! the air pressure diference across the
specimen divided by the linear velocity, measured outside the
specimen, o! air%ow through the specimen.
S/!&#()' 1)')*&!$ Galance across the entire !re"uency spectrum o!
the audio range.
S/!&,')( (!2!&#-+*"$ .irrorli$e re%ections o! sound 4angle o!
incidence e"uals angle o! re%ection8 !rom a %at sur!ace. (e%ections
that do not spread out.
S/!&#(,.$ the distribution o! the energy o! a signal with !re"uency.
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S/!&#(,. )*)'6G!($ An instrument !or measuring, and
usually recording, the spectrum o! a signal.
S/!!&= I*#!''-<-1-'-#6$ A measure o! sound clarity that indicates the
ease o! understanding speech. =t is a complex !unction o!
psychoacoustics, signal-to-noise ratio o! the sound source, and direct-
to-reverberant energy within the listening environment.
S/=!(-&)' 0-5!(<!*&!$ Sound diverges spherically !rom a point
source in !ree space.
S/')6-*<$ Balls are splayed when they are constructed somewhat ;of
s"uare,; i.e., a !ew degrees !rom the normal rectilinear !orm.
S#)*0-*< 3)5!$ A resonance condition in an enclosed space in which
sound waves traveling in one direction interact with those traveling in
the opposite direction, resulting in a stable condition.
S#!)06-"#)#!$ A condition devoid o! transient efects.
S#!(!+$ From the Iree$ meaning solid. he purpose o! stereo is not to
give you separate right and le!t channels, but to provide the illusion o!
a three-dimensional, holographic image between the spea$ers.
STI S/!!&= T()*".-""-+* I*0!B$ A single number that indicates the
efect o! a transmission system on speech intelligibility.
S#(,&#,(!1+(*! *+-"!$ Ieneration and propagation o!
timedependent motions and !orces in solid materials which result in
unwanted radiated sound.
S,1 >)(.+*-&$ Sub harmonics are synchronous components in a
spectrum that are multiples o! 1#F, 1#7, or 1#0 o! the !re"uency o! the
primary !undamental. hey are sometimes called ;sub-synchronous;
components. =n the vibration spectrum o! a rotating machine, there will
normally be a component at the turning speed along with several
harmonics o! turning speed. =! there is suNcient looseness in the
machine so that some parts are rattling, the spectrum will usually
contain sub harmonics. Earmonics o! one-hal! turning speed are called
;one-hal! order sub harmonics,; etc.
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S,13++@!($ A spea$er designed exclusively !or low!re"uency
reproduction. A true subwoo!er should be able to at least reach into the
bottom octave 4F>-0>E@8. here are many ;subwoo!ers; on the mar$et
that would be more accurately termed ;woo!ers;.
S,/!(/+"-#-+*$ .any sound waves may transverse the same point in
space, the air molecules responding to the vector sum o! the demands
o! the diferent waves.
TNO$ See (M>.
T)*<!*#-)' .+0!$ A room mode produced by re%ections of !our o!
the six sur!aces o! the room.
TDS$ ime-delay spectrometry.
TEF$ ime, energy, !re"uency.
T=(!"=+'0 +@ =!)(-*<$ he lowest level sound that can be perceived
by the human auditory system. his is close to the standard re!erence
level o! sound pressure, F>u5A.
T=(!"=+'0 +@ @!!'-*< 9/)-*;$ he sound pressure level that ma$es
the ears tic$le, located about 1F> dG above the threshold o! hearing.
T>V$ (e!ers to a series o! specifcations !or surround sound systems.
5ro!essional E+ is used in commercial movie theaters. Eome E+
specifcations are not published and manu!acturers must sign non-
disclosure waivers be!ore submitting their products !or E+
certifcation. .anu!acturers that receive certifcation !or their products
must pay a royalty on units sold.
T-.1(!$ he "uality o! a sound that distinguishes it !rom other sounds
o! the same pitch and volume. he distinctive tone o! an instrument or
a singing voice.
T-.1()'$ (e!ers to the overall !re"uency balance o! a system. =n a
per!ect world, all systems would have complete tonal neutrality. Bith
current technology, this ideal is approached but not met. /istening to
many e"ually ;good; spea$ers will reveal that some sound warmer
than others, some sound brighter etc. =n a surround sound system it is
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important that all spea$ers have a close timbral match !or the highest
degree o! sonic realism.
T-.!-0!')6 "/!&#(+.!#(6$ A sophisticated method !or obtaining
anechoic results in echoic spaces.
T+*)'$4 )0WX$ =n re!erence to audible sound, capable o! exciting an
auditory sensation having pitch.
T+*!$ A tone results in an auditory sensation o! pitch.
T+*! 1,("#$ A short signal used in acoustical measurements to ma$e
possible diferentiating desired signals !rom spurious re%ections.
T+#)' =)(.+*-& 0-"#+(#-+* 9T>D;$ (e!ers to a device adding
harmonics that were not in the original signal. For example: a device
that is !ed a F>E@ sine wave that is also putting out 0>E@, H>E@, etc.
<ot usually a !actor in most modern electronics, but still a signifcant
design problem in loudspea$ers.
T()*"0,&!($ Any device that translates the magnitude o! one "uantity
into another "uantity. hree o! the most common transducers used in
vibration measurements are accelerometer, velocity transducer, and
eddy current probe.
T()*"@!( F,*&#-+*$ he output to input relationship o! a structure.
.athematically it is the /aplace trans!orm o! the output divided by the
/aplace trans!orm o! the input.
T()*"@+(.$ A trans!orm is a mathematical operation that converts a
!unction !rom one domain to another domain with no loss o!
in!ormation. For example, the Fourier trans!orm converts a !unction o!
time into a !unction o! !re"uency.
T()*"-!*# (!"/+*"!$ he ability o! a component to respond "uic$ly
and accurately to transients. ransient response afects reproduction o!
the attac$ and decay characteristics o! a sound.
T()*"-!*#"$ =nstantaneous changes in dynamics, producing steep
wave !ronts.
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T()*"/)(!*&6$ /istening term. An analog that can be best ;pictured;
in photography. he more ;transparent; the sound, the clearer the
auditory picture.
T(!1'!$ he higher !re"uencies o! the audible spectrum.
T,*-*< F(!A,!*&6$ he helmholt@ resonant !re"uency o! a box. Also
re!ers to the resonant !re"uency o! other types o! systems.
F!'+&-#6 T()*"0,&!($ An electrical#mechanical transducer whose
output is directly proportional to the velocity o! the measured unit. A
velocity transducer consists o! a magnet suspended on a coil,
surrounded by a conductive coil.
.ovement o! the transducer induces movement in the suspended
magnet. his movement inside the conductive coil generates an
electrical current proportional to the velocity o! the movement. A time
wave!orm or a Fourier trans!orm o! the current will result in a velocity
measurement. he signal can also be integrated to produce a
displacement measurement.
F-"&+," D)./-*<$ Damping that is proportional to velocity. Aiscous
damping is used largely !or system modeling since it is linear.
F-1()#-+* -"+')#-+*$ A reduction, attained by the use o! a resilient
coupling, in the capacity o! a system to vibrate in response to
mechanical excitation.
F+',.!$ 9ollo"uial e"uivalent o! sound level.
P)(.#=$ A listening term. he opposite o! cool or cold. =n terms o!
!re"uency, generally considered the range !rom approx. 1K>E@-0>>E@.
A system with the ;proper; warmth will sound natural within this range.
P)##$ he unit o! electrical or acoustical power.
P)##)<!$ =s the unit o! power used to rate the output o! audio
amplifers. For a wattage number to have meaning the distortion level
and impedance must also be specifed.
P)5!$ A regular variation o! an electrical signal or acoustical pressure.
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P)5!'!*<#=$ he distance th sound wave travels to complete one
cycle. he distance between one pea$ or crest o! a sine wave and the
next corresponding pea$ or crest. he wavelength o! any !re"uency
may be !ound by dividing the speed o! sound by the !re"uency. 4speed
o! sound at sea level is 771.0 meters#second or 1>HP.0F !eet#second8.
P!-<=#-*<$ Ad*ustment o! sound-level meter response to achieve a
desired measurement.
P=-#! *+-"!U9ANS;$ <oise with a continuous !re"uency spectrum and
with e"ual power per unit bandwidth. For example, e"ual power in any
band o! 1>>E@ wide.
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