Subjective Experience of Speech Depending on the Acoustic Treatment in an Ordinary Room

Emma Arvidsson, Erling Nilsson, Delphine Bard-Hagberg and Ola J. I. Karlsson
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Emma Arvidsson: Engineering Acoustics, Lund University, John Ericssons väg 1, 223 63 Lund, Sweden
Erling Nilsson: Saint-Gobain Ecophon AB, Yttervägen 1, 265 75 Hyllinge, Sweden
Delphine Bard-Hagberg: Engineering Acoustics, Lund University, John Ericssons väg 1, 223 63 Lund, Sweden
Ola J. I. Karlsson: Saint-Gobain Ecophon AB, Yttervägen 1, 265 75 Hyllinge, Sweden

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 23, 1-18

Abstract: In environments such as classrooms and offices, complex tasks are performed. A satisfactory acoustic environment is critical for the performance of such tasks. To ensure a good acoustic environment, the right acoustic treatment must be used. The relation between different room acoustic treatments and how they affect speech perception in these types of rooms is not yet fully understood. In this study, speech perception was evaluated for three different configurations using absorbers and diffusers. Twenty-nine participants reported on their subjective experience of speech in respect of different configurations in different positions in a room. They judged sound quality and attributes related to speech perception. In addition, the jury members ranked the different acoustic environments. The subjective experience was related to the different room acoustic treatments and the room acoustic parameters of speech clarity, reverberation time and sound strength. It was found that people, on average, rated treatments with a high degree of absorption as best. This configuration had the highest speech clarity value and lowest values for reverberation time and sound strength. The perceived sound quality could be correlated to speech clarity, while attributes related to speech perception had the strongest association with reverberation time.

Keywords: acoustic comfort; acoustic design; room acoustics; sound quality; sound strength; speech clarity; speech perception; reverberation time (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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