/ Engineering · Acoustics
Acoustics
the room as the system.
RT60, STI, EASE modelling, treatment specification — the engineering that distinguishes a working room from a loud one.
- Boardroom RT60 target
- 0.4 - 0.8 s
- Concert hall RT60 target
- 1.0 - 1.6 s
- Cinema RT60 target
- 0.3 - 0.4 s
- Evacuation PA STI target
- ≥ 0.5 (per EN 54-16)
Acoustic engineering is the discipline that the AV industry quietly depends on. A boardroom that sounds bad cannot be fixed with more speakers. An auditorium that reverberates cannot be saved by a louder line array. A cinema that has slap-echo cannot be rescued by a bigger amplifier. The room is the system, and the room is set by absorption, diffusion, reflection and volume — all of which are architectural specifications, not AV decisions.
We model acoustics at the design stage. EASE for auditoria, REW for cinemas and boardrooms, ODEON or CATT for the most complex cases. The model predicts RT60, STI and SPL coverage; the prediction shapes the treatment specification; the treatment is co-ordinated with the architect at design rather than negotiated during finishes. After construction, a measurement pass verifies the prediction. STI ≥ 0.5 for evacuation PA, RT60 0.4-0.8 s for boardrooms, RT60 1.0-1.6 s for concert halls — the targets are documented per room and verified at commissioning.
Entity graph
Related entities in the engineering graph
technology
Trinnov Altitude Processor
French immersive cinema processor. Reference 3D-audio processing with Optimizer room correction. The default specification for reference-grade 9.1.6 and 11.4.6 Dolby Atmos rooms.
technology
JBL Synthesis Cinema
JBL's reference home-cinema speaker and amplification line. Custom-installed Atmos arrays with Crown amplification — the loudspeaker layer behind the Trinnov + JBL Synthesis reference cinema specification.
deployment pattern
Dolby Atmos Cinema Layout
3D-audio cinema specification — typically 9.1.6 or 11.4.6 across reference rooms. Atmos layout is dimensioned around the listening position, not architectural symmetry, with a height layer above the audience.
Interoperability
Related interoperability matrices
Interoperability
Acoustics + architecture — the room is the system
RT60 is set by surface area, absorption coefficients and room volume — not by adding more speakers later.
Interoperability
Fire alarm + PA voice evacuation — the cause-and-effect spine
Fire-alarm panels trigger zoned PA voice messages via a cause-and-effect matrix; both are governed by NBC 2016 + IS 2189/14735.
Services
Where this maps to services
Sectors
Where this matters most by sector
Engineering toolkit
Tools for this work
calculator
RT60 Acoustic Calculator
Room dimensions and finish materials in, indicative reverberation time and recommended absorber area out. Sabine equation; defensible for early-stage acoustic planning.
calculator
Cinema Sizer
Room dimensions in, recommended screen size, seat layout, Atmos format and budget out. Reference / Premium / Media-room tiers.
interactive
Cinema Scenes Interactive
Tap a scene — Film, Sport, Concert, Music, Reference, Standby — and watch projector source, screen aspect, processor preset, room lighting and seating shift in concert across a reference 10-seat home cinema. Trinnov + JBL Synthesis.
Methodology
Methodology principles cited above
commissioning
Commissioning is verification, not configuration
If commissioning is the first time the integration is tested end-to-end, the project is already late.
design
Design for handover, not for installation
Every design decision is judged by how it lands with the FM team on day one of operations — not by how easily it installs.
Glossary
Related glossary terms
AV
RT60
Reverberation Time at 60 dB decay. The time taken for sound energy in a room to decay by 60 dB after the source stops. Target RT60 varies by room use: 0.4–0.8 s…
AV
STI
Speech Transmission Index — a 0-1 scale measuring intelligibility of speech in a space. STI ≥ 0.5 is acceptable, ≥ 0.6 is good, ≥ 0.75 is excellent. Mandatory m…
AV
EASE
Enhanced Acoustic Simulator for Engineers. The industry-standard software for acoustic and electro-acoustic modelling of auditoria, concert halls and large room…
AV
Line-array
A vertical array of speaker cabinets behaving as a single source. Provides smoother SPL coverage across distance compared to point-source clusters, and is the d…
· Last reviewed 2026-05-17 · pillar
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Concept
JBL Synthesis Cinema
JBL's reference home-cinema speaker and amplification line. Custom-installed Atmos arrays with Crown amplification — the loudspeaker layer behind the Trinnov + JBL Synthesis reference cinema specification.
Concept
Dolby Atmos Cinema Layout
3D-audio cinema specification — typically 9.1.6 or 11.4.6 across reference rooms. Atmos layout is dimensioned around the listening position, not architectural symmetry, with a height layer above the audience.
Service
Home Theatre
Reference cinema, in your living room.
Tool
Cinema Sizer
Room dimensions in, recommended screen size, seat layout, Atmos format and budget out. Reference / Premium / Media-room tiers.
Sector
Residential
The premium home, made quiet.
Sector
Hospitality
Guest experience, engineered.