How does temperature change the acoustics in a room?

Written by Fred Funkle in Saturday, December 13, 2008 under Engineering
Comments: 1

Q: Hey all,

I'm wondering just what the questions asks. In what ways do variances in temperatures change the sound acoustics in a room and why?

For instance an empty ballroom as opposed to a ballroom with 1000 people in it?

Thanks!

A: Edit
For each 5F deg change in room temperature there will be slightly over a 0.6 % change in sonic velocity. That will have little effect in the acoustics of any normal room. The presence of the 1000 people will have much more of an effect on the acoustics than the relatively small changes in the room temperature.
Here you are actually comparing the change in a bare , acoustically "hard" room with it becoming an occupied "soft" room. With any bare ballroom,...

Comments: 1

mygif
oil field trash Said in Saturday, December 13, 2008

You can see from this reference that the speed of sound in a gas is directly proportional to the square root of the absolute temperature of the gas. That should tell you something.

http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/sound/souspe3.html#c1

How can I make the acoustics for where my drumset is better?

Written by Rhett | Wednesday, May 20, 2009

I have a NICE yamaha drumset that i bought a year back and it sounds horrendous in the peninsula of walls that it's located in. Whenever I bring it on stage where the acoustics are good or decent, my drumset sounds amazing.
Should i buy some foam pads and put them up against the walls or is there a better way?


A: The best thing for acoustics are empty eggboxes. LOL. They aabsorb the sound and should be placed on the ceiling and around the walls. You can use, dampers but that won't resolve the sound bouncing of the wall.

The next best thing are curtains. They absorb the sound and putting carpet on the wall from the floor up to halfway. It will improve the sound more than considerable.

edit....Hey Geremy wassup LOL... Have to eat lots of eggs dude. That is why I gave...

How do I make a room have better acoustics?

Written by karissadeya | Friday, April 03, 2009

Whenever I sing in the bathroom, (I know... Lame), it sounds so much better than when I do anywhere else in my house. My friend, who has been a pianist for years, tells me it's because the bathroom has better acoustics. How do I make it so my bedroom does too?

Does it have anything to do with the amount of furniture? Or the type of walls?


A: Yeah, bedrooms are not really known have great acoustics because you have the carpet, bedsheets, and other furniture that absorb sound instead of reflecting it. Bathrooms typically have great acoustics because there is a equal balance of reflecting sound waves from the floor and absorbing sound waves in the wall. There is no simple way you could make the acoustics in your room better unless you replace the carpet with hardwood flooring and take out a lot of the things which absorb the sound....

Can you use a microphone while singing and dancing in an auditorium with terrible acoustics?

Written by tjh_bishimoto | Monday, April 20, 2009

For my upcoming choir concert, a friend and I are singing and dancing to "Tango: Maureen" from the musical Rent. Our audition is in two days, and we might not use a microphone. The auditorium we will the performing in has terrible acoustics (you hear better in the back than right up the the front row.

My questions are:
1. Should we use a microphone for this? And...
2. If we don't, how can we learn to project our voices in such a short time?


A: It never ceases to amaze me how performance venues are designed for esthetics first and acoustics last. Oh well, I digress.

Improving the projection of your voices is not something you're going to really learn in 2 days. Headset mics are the best solution (they stay in one place while you're dancing), but most facilities don't have them. So, hand held mics it is.

If you haven't been practicing the routine with the intent of singing flat out,...