At the 21st International Congress on Acoustics (ICA)
in Montreal, Meyer Sound led three technical paper presentations focusing on
the latest advances and applications of active acoustics, a field that has
garnered widespread interest amongst multipurpose venues and the acoustics
community. All three papers are publicly available on the Acoustical Society of
America website: asadl.org
“Optimizing
Acoustics for Spoken Word Using Active Acoustics” was co-authored by Steve
Ellison, Meyer Sound\’s applications director for digital products, and Pierre
Germain, senior acoustic engineer. The paper discusses the theoretical and
practical issues involved in designing room acoustics for optimum
intelligibility across various uses, and describes an active acoustic system
capable of optimizing early reflections in different scenarios.
In addition, “Electronically Variable Room
Acoustics – Motivations and Challenges” was written and presented by K. Anthony
Hoover, FASA, principal at McKay Conant Hoover Inc. in Westlake Village,
Calif., and Ellison. The authors presented a case study including both passive
and active acoustic treatment for a proposed renovation of the Santa Monica
Civic Auditorium that would enable the historic preservation of the venue while
supporting a wide range of uses, including conferences, rock and pop shows, and
orchestral performances.
Lastly, Roger Schwenke, Ph.D., staff scientist at
Meyer Sound, presented his paper at ICA entitled “Active Acoustics and Sound
Reinforcement at TUI Operettenhaus, Hamburg.” Schwenke\’s case study examines
the unique integration of active acoustics and sound reinforcement system
design in a theatrical space. This combination allows the same system
components to be utilized for both extension of room reverberation and creative
applications of spatial surround effects.
The 2013 ICA was held in June at Montreal\’s Palais
des congrès jointly with the 165th meeting of the Acoustical Society of
America and the 52nd Meeting of the Canadian Acoustics
Association.
In addition to the ICA conference, Schwenke and
Ellison also presented their paper \”Active Acoustics in Physically
Variable Spaces\” at the International Symposium on Room Acoustics in
Toronto, a satellite conference of the ICA. The paper offers an overview of
venues that use active acoustic systems as they alter room size or arrangement
through subdivisions or other methods. The paper is available in the
proceedings document of the conference.
Meyer Sound officially launched its active acoustic
system, Constellation, in 2006. Since then, Constellation has been
installed in more than 50 sites worldwide, including performing arts centers, concert
halls, universities, secondary schools, houses of worship, conference
facilities, theatres, and entertainment spectacles.
