Characterization of The Reverberation Chamber at The NASA Langley Structural Acoustics Loads and Transmission (SALT) Facility

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NASA/CR–2013-217968
Characterization of the Reverberation Chamber

at the NASA Langley Structural Acoustics
Loads and Transmission (SALT) Facility
Ferdinand W. Grosveld
Northrop Grumman, Langley Research Center, Hampton, Virginia
February 2013
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NASA/CR–2013-217968
Characterization of the Reverberation Chamber

at the NASA Langley Structural Acoustics
Loads and Transmission (SALT) Facility
Ferdinand W. Grosveld
Northrop Grumman, Langley Research Center, Hampton, Virginia
National Aeronautics and

Space Administration
Langley Research Center Prepared for Langley Research Center

Hampton, Virginia 23681-2199 under Contract NNL12AA09C
February 2013
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................................................................... 5
TEST ARRANGEMENT ........................................................................................................................... 5
Reverberation Chamber .......................................................................................................................... 5
Acoustic Horn Airstream Modulators .................................................................................................... 5
Measurement Locations .......................................................................................................................... 6
MEASUREMENTS, REQUIREMENTS AND ANALYSIS ..................................................................... 7
Reverberation Time Measurements ........................................................................................................ 7
Room Diffusivity .................................................................................................................................... 9
Room Absorption ................................................................................................................................. 12
Sound Field Diffusers ........................................................................................................................... 13
Diffusivity Summary ............................................................................................................................ 14
CONCLUSIONS....................................................................................................................................... 14
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ...................................................................................................................... 15
REFERENCES ......................................................................................................................................... 15
TABLES ................................................................................................................................................... 17
FIGURES .................................................................................................................................................. 27
APPENDIX ............................................................................................................................................... 33
LIST OF TABLES
Table 1. Nominal reverberation chamber geometric properties............................................................... 17

Table 2. Ambient test conditions in the reverberation chamber. ............................................................. 17
Table 3. Reverberation time measurements chamber configurations. ..................................................... 17
Table 4. Mutual distances between the three microphones and their distances from the loudspeaker
sources. ..................................................................................................................................................... 17
Table 5. Dynamic range between the maximum impulse noise level and the background noise levels in
the reverberation chamber......................................................................................................................... 18
Table 6. Instrumentation and equipment for the reverberation measurements. ....................................... 18
Table 7. EDT reverberation times for four measurements (Configuration A) at microphone M3 and
source location L1, their mean and their standard deviation (SD). ........................................................... 19
Table 8. T20 reverberation times for four measurements (Configuration A) at microphone M3 and source
location L1, their mean and their standard deviation (SD). ...................................................................... 19
Table 9. Minimum distances to avoid the effects from direct radiated sound, based on the Configuration
A mean EDT and the T20 reverberation times.2 ........................................................................................ 20
Table 10. Calculated acoustic modes assuming a rectangular reverberation chamber without splayed
walls. ......................................................................................................................................................... 20
1
Table 11. Calculated modal density assuming a rectangular reverberation chamber without splayed
walls. ......................................................................................................................................................... 24
Table 12. The uniform distribution minimum frequencies and Schröder diffuse field cut-off frequencies
as function of the Configuration A mean reverberation times. ................................................................. 24
Table 13. Instrumentation and equipment for the sound pressure level measurements. .......................... 25
Table 14. Computed standard deviations for eight repeated measurements by ten microphones (SD1-
SD10) with the source at location L3, the total SD at locations L3 and L4, and the maximum allowed in
ISO 3741.3 ................................................................................................................................................. 25
Table 15. Calculated power attenuation coefficient16 αc and the atmospheric absorption correction term
4mV. ......................................................................................................................................................... 26
Table 16. Equivalent sound absorption area and averaged Sabine absorption coefficient for
Configuration A. ....................................................................................................................................... 26
Table 17. Summary of several criteria in the International Standards and literature that define the range
of one-third octave bands for which measurements in the reverberation chamber are valid. ................... 27
LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 1. The large 35 Hz cut-off frequency exponential horn................................................................. 27

Figure 2. The large 35 Hz cut-off frequency horn and the small 160 Hz cut-off frequency horn
(foreground) in the reverberation chamber. The 38 mm thick MDF panel with the NASA logo is offset
from the TL window to leave breaches along its four sides allowing air flow to escape to the adjacent
anechoic chamber (Configuration C). For reverberation measurements in the empty chamber without the
two horns, the offset panel is replaced by a 57 mm thick MDF panel mounted flush in the transmission
loss window (Configuration A)................................................................................................................. 28
Figure 3. Sketch of the reverberation chamber layout showing the three loudspeaker (L1-L3) and the
four microphone locations (M1-M4). ....................................................................................................... 28
Figure 4. Brüel & Kjær Type 2231 Modular Precision Sound Level Meter with the Type 1625 One-Third
Octave Filter Set and the Type BZ7108 Reverberation Processor............................................................ 29
Figure 5. Twelve measured EDT reverberation times and their mean (solid line) with the MDF insert
mounted flush in the TL window but without the two horns in the chamber (Configuration A). ............ 29
Figure 6. Twelve measured T20 reverberation times and their mean (solid line) with the MDF insert
mounted flush in the TL window but without the two horns in the chamber (Configuration A). ............ 29
Figure 7. Mean measured EDT and T20 reverberation times with the MDF insert mounted flush in the TL
window but without the two horns (Configuration A). ............................................................................. 30
Figure 8. Mean measured EDT and T20 reverberation times with the MDF offset in front of the TL
window (exposing gaps) including the 160 Hz horn, but without the 35 Hz horn (Configuration B). ..... 30
Figure 9. Mean measured EDT and T20 reverberation times with the MDF offset in front of the TL
window (exposing gaps) and the two horns deployed (Configuration C)................................................. 30
Figure 10. Mean measured EDT and T20 reverberation times with the offset and flush MDF panels
mounted and the two horns deployed (Configuration D).......................................................................... 30
Figure 11. Mean measured EDT reverberation times for Configurations A-D. ....................................... 31
Figure 12. Mean measured T20 reverberation times for Configurations A-D. .......................................... 31
2
Figure 13. Measured EDT reverberation time variations from the mean over four repeated measurements
for Configuration A at microphone M3 and source location L1. .............................................................. 31
Figure 14. Measured T20 reverberation time variations from the mean over four repeated measurements
for Configuration A at microphone M3 and source location L1. .............................................................. 31
Figure 15. Bolt12 room proportion criterion showing curve enclosing rectangular room dimension ratios
yielding the smoothest frequency response at low frequencies. ............................................................... 32
Figure 16. Measured and ISO 354 estimated2 standard deviations of twelve T20 reverberation times for
Configuration A. ....................................................................................................................................... 32
Figure 17. Sketch of the reverberation chamber layout for the ten-microphone variability measurements
showing the two loudspeaker (L4 and L5) and the ten microphone (M1-M10) locations........................ 32
Figure 18. Total standard deviation (SD) of the sound pressure levels for ten microphones at two “white”
noise sound source locations, and the maximum SD in the International Standard ISO 3741.4 ............... 33
LIST OF APPENDIX TABLES
Table A1. EDT and T20 integrated impulse response reverberation times for source location L1
(Configuration A)...................................................................................................................................... 33
(Configuration A)...................................................................................................................................... 34
(Configuration A)...................................................................................................................................... 34
Table A4. Four-microphone mean EDT and T20 for the three source locations L1, L2 and L3
(Configuration A)...................................................................................................................................... 35
Table A5. Standard deviation (SD) of EDT and T20 for the three source locations L1, L2 and L3
(Configuration A)...................................................................................................................................... 35
(Configuration B). ..................................................................................................................................... 36
(Configuration B). ..................................................................................................................................... 36
(Configuration B). ..................................................................................................................................... 37
Table A9. Mean EDT and T20 reverberation times for twelve measurements (Configuration B) and their
standard deviation (SD). ........................................................................................................................... 37
(Configuration C). ..................................................................................................................................... 38
(Configuration C). ..................................................................................................................................... 38
(Configuration C). ..................................................................................................................................... 39
Table A13. Mean EDT and T20 reverberation times for twelve measurements (Configuration C) and
their standard deviation (SD). ................................................................................................................... 39
3
(Configuration D)...................................................................................................................................... 40
(Configuration D)...................................................................................................................................... 40
(Configuration D)...................................................................................................................................... 41
Table A17. Mean EDT and T20 reverberation times for twelve measurements (Configuration D) and
their standard deviation (SD). ................................................................................................................... 41
Table A18. Equivalent sound absorption area and averaged Sabine absorption coefficient for
Configuration B. ....................................................................................................................................... 42
Configuration C. ....................................................................................................................................... 42
Configuration D. ....................................................................................................................................... 43
4
INTRODUCTION
The Structural Acoustic Loads and Transmission (SALT) facility at NASA Langley Research Center
consists of an anechoic chamber, a reverberation chamber and a transmission loss (TL) window
connecting the two chambers. The reverberation chamber has multiple uses, including sound power level
measurements of small sound sources, experimental determination of the random incidence absorption
coefficients of materials, as the source room for transmission loss testing, and for high-intensity noise
testing to establish the vibration response and fatigue tolerance of aerospace structures. In 2011 the noise
generating capabilities in the reverberation chamber were enhanced with two fiberglass reinforced
polyester resin exponential horns, each coupled to Wyle Acoustic Source WAS-3000 airstream
modulators. A large horn, with a 35 Hz cut-off frequency, will be used for acoustic tests requiring a very
high intensity noise source at low frequencies. A simplified engineering drawing of the 35 Hz horn is
shown in Figure 1. A small horn, with a cut-off frequency of 160 Hz, is intended to enhance the low
frequencies of the regular SALT sound generating system. Both horn assemblies are mounted on
moveable carriage systems. Figure 2 depicts the 35 Hz and 160 Hz horns deployed in the SALT
reverberation chamber. This document describes the characterization of the reverberation chamber in
terms of the background noise, diffusivity, sound pressure levels, the reverberation times and the related
overall acoustic absorption in the empty chamber and with the acoustic horn(s) installed. The frequency
range of interest includes the one-third octave bands with center frequencies from 80 Hz to 8000 Hz.
TEST ARRANGEMENT
Reverberation Chamber
The 279 m3 reverberation chamber measures approximately 6.4 m by 9.7 m by 4.5 m (Table 1) and
is structurally isolated from the rest of the building by a 0.26 m air gap from the surrounding 0.46 m
thick concrete building walls. The chamber walls and ceiling are splayed to diminish the effects of
standing waves between opposite surfaces and enhance the diffusivity of the chamber at lower
frequencies. The total surface area of the walls, floor and ceiling is approximately 269 m2. Fifteen
permanent, high-frequency compression drivers are installed along the two walls adjacent to the wall
containing the TL window, while three compression drivers are mounted on the wall opposite the TL
window. These permanent acoustic sources are complemented by removable sources: four ceiling-
mounted and two floor-standing two-way speaker boxes for the mid and low frequencies. For the
reverberation time measurements in this investigation only one floor standing speaker box was used to
excite the chamber. The ceiling mounted speaker boxes and the other floor standing box were removed
from the chamber to avoid including their sound absorption properties in the measurements. Ambient
conditions were measured and were virtually constant throughout the testing period. The ambient test
conditions are listed in Table 2.
Acoustic Horn Airstream Modulators
The WAS-3000 is an electro-pneumatic airstream modulator rated at 30 kW output with either a sine
wave or random noise input over a frequency range of 25 Hz to 10 kHz. The electric input to the
modulator is 20 volts with a maximum amperage of 5 amperes. The air pressure input may vary from 15
to 35 pound-force per square inch gauge (gpsi). The large horn has a low frequency cut-off at 35 Hz and
exponentially expands from a 0.102 m diameter throat area to a 1.524 m diameter exit area (Figure 1).
The centerline of the “folded” design has an approximate length of 4.5 m. The smaller sound source
incorporates a straight 0.61 m long horn expanding from a 0.102 m diameter throat to a 0.341 m
diameter exit, with a 160 Hz low frequency cut-off. The modulators are connected to flexible air supply
5
lines. Both horns are installed on a frame structure supported by casters such that they can be moved into
and out of the chamber.
Measurement Configurations
Four configurations of the reverberation chamber, listed in Table 3, were characterized in this study.
The first configuration, labeled Configuration A, corresponds to an empty chamber with a three-ply,
57 mm thick medium-density fiberboard (MDF) insert installed flush in the TL window to prevent loss
of acoustic energy to the anechoic chamber. In the second test configuration (Configuration B) the small
160 Hz horn was moved into the chamber and the flush MDF insert in the TL window was replaced by a
square 1.40 m MDF panel, 38 mm thick, offset 76 mm in front of the open transmission loss window.
This offset configuration, with an air gap on all four sides, provides an outlet into the anechoic chamber
for the pressurized air used to drive the WAS-3000 modulators. After Configuration B measurements
were completed the large 35 Hz horn was also moved into the chamber (Configuration C in Figure 2). In
the fourth and final configuration (Configuration D) the flush panel was re-installed behind the offset
panel, thereby closing off the ventilation path through the transmission loss window opening. Although
Configuration D is not practical for high intensity acoustic testing, it provided a means to characterize
the impact of the air gaps and the two horns on the acoustical properties of the reverberation room.
Measurement Locations
The procedures and requirements for the experimental determination of the random absorption
coefficients of materials in the reverberation chamber are available in the International Organization for
Standardization (ISO) publication ISO 354.1 The absorption coefficients are determined by measuring
reverberation times without and with the test article in the chamber. ISO 354 stipulates that the number
of spatially independent measured decay curves shall be at least a total of twelve, with a minimum
number of three microphone locations and two source locations. The same standard requires that the
different microphone positions be at least 1.5 m apart, 2 m from the sound source and 1 m from any
room surface. Four different microphone locations and three different sound source locations were
selected that were in compliance with these ISO 354 requirements. The microphone (M1-M4) and sound
source locations (L1-L3) are shown in Figure 3. The speaker box was positioned in one of three corners
of the chamber facing towards the center. At the corner locations the sound source excites the maximum
number of room modes. The center of the sound source was assumed 0.5 m off the floor. The
measurement microphone was mounted on a tripod 1.67 m above the floor. The distances between each
microphone and each source location are listed in Table 4 showing compliance with the ISO 354
requirement of being at least 2 m apart. The distances between the three microphone locations in Table 4
also show that they are separated by more than 1.5 m as specified in ISO 354. International Standard ISO
33822 applies to the measurement of reverberation time in rooms with reference to other acoustical
parameters. The ISO 3382 standard requires the measurement locations to be at least one-quarter
wavelength from the nearest reflecting surface. The wavelength for the lowest frequency in each one-
third octave band between 80 Hz and 8000 Hz is listed in Table 5. One quarter of the longest wavelength
in Table 5 equates to 1.21 m, which is shorter than the closest distance of 1.83 m between a microphone
and one of the chamber walls (Figure 3). The distances between microphones in Table 4 satisfy the ISO
3382 requirement of being at least half a wavelength apart for all frequencies in the 100 Hz and higher
one-third octave bands. To avoid the effects from the direct radiated sound, the distance between the
sound source and any microphone position should exceed a minimum distance dmin, which can be
approximated by the equation2
V
d min  2 * (1)
cT
6
where V is the volume [m3] of the chamber, c is the speed of sound [m/s], and T is the reverberation
time [s]. The shortest distance between a speaker box and a microphone location is 2.56 m, between L2
and M2 (Table 4), sufficient for a minimum reverberation time of 0.5 seconds. The same minimum
distance dmin is required in the International Standard ISO 3741, describing the determination of sound
power levels and sound energy levels of noise sources using sound pressure in a reverberation chamber.3
MEASUREMENTS, REQUIREMENTS AND ANALYSIS
Reverberation Time Measurements
Instrumentation and Equipment - Reverberation time measurements were performed with a Brüel
& Kjær (B&K) Type 2231 Modular Precision Sound Level Meter connected to a Type 1625 One-Third
Octave Filter Set, while being controlled by a Type BZ7108 Reverberation Processor (Figure 4).4 The
reverberation processor is set up to calculate reverberation and early decay times using the integrated
impulse response method proposed by Schröder.5 The specifications of the reverberation time
instrumentation and equipment are summarized in Table 6 including the manufacturer, the model/type,
the serial number, the NASA ECN/Calibration number, the calibration date and relevant notes.
Integrated Impulse Response Method - The maximum impulse noise level generated through the
loudspeaker box at location L1 (Figure 3) was measured by the sound level meter microphone at location
M1. The maximum impulse noise level, the background noise level and the resulting dynamic range are
tabulated in Table 5 for the 80 Hz to 8000 Hz one-third octave bands. The table shows that the dynamic
range available for the reverberation time measurements exceeds the 35 dB dynamic range requirement
in ISO 33822 over the entire frequency range of interest. The B&K 2231 with the reverberation processor
(Figure 4) was used to compute the reverberation times from the response of the chamber to gated band-
limited noise bursts. The integrated impulse response method obtains the decay curves by reverse-time
integration of squared impulse responses. At the start of the tests the sound level meter monitors the
background noise. After a preset time has elapsed, the meter generates a band-limited burst signal in the
lowest one-third octave frequency band of interest, corresponding to 80 Hz for this study. The burst
signal is amplified by a 375 Watt (RMS) Carver Power Amplifier to drive a two-way 250 Watt
(continuous) JBL loudspeaker box. The sound level meter then samples the sound decay in the chamber
and the reverberation module calculates the reverberation times. Subsequently, a noise burst in the next
one-third octave band is transmitted and sampled, and the reverberation times are again calculated. This
procedure was repeated to include all 80 Hz to 8000 Hz one-third octave bands. The process was
software-controlled to obtain automated, reproducible and accurate results. The calculated reverberation
times included the Early Decay Time (EDT) and the T20 reverberation time. The EDT is defined as the
estimated time required for 60 dB decay in sound pressure level (SPL), based on the early SPL decay
between 0 dB and -10 dB. The T20 parameters indicate the estimated times required for a 60 dB decrease
in SPL based on the SPL decays between -5 dB and -25 dB. Since the EDT is the reverberation time
derived from the initial 10 dB decay of the signal, it includes the early reflections which arrive initially
from the shortest paths to the source before rapidly increasing in number and direction. In a perfectly
diffuse acoustic field, EDT would yield the same values as the T 20 reverberation time. However, at the
lower frequencies the sound field is determined by acoustic modal response and the EDT is more
dependent on the geometry of the chamber and on the measurement location.6 The low modal
participation at the lower frequencies results in a faster rate of decay and shorter reverberation times than
for T20 which is not evaluated until the signal is 5 dB down and does not include these early reflections.
The T20 measurements better describe the physical absorption properties of the chamber, while the EDT
is useful in the analysis of the subjective response to the early reflections.
7
EDT and T20 reverberation times at four microphones M1-M4, with the room in Configuration A, are
listed in Table A1, Table A2 and Table A3 of the Appendix for loudspeaker sources L1, L2 and L3,
respectively. The mean reverberation time over the twelve source-microphone combinations is computed
from the individual reverberation time decay rates as
N
T
1 1 1 (2)
  ... 
T1 T2 TN
where the number of measurements, N, equals 12. The standard deviation SD of the reverberation
times is defined by 7,8
T  T   T  T   
2 2 2
1 2  ...  TN  T (3)
SD 
N 1
The twelve measured EDT and T20 reverberation times and their mean are shown in Figure 5 and
Figure 6, respectively. The dips in the mean curves at low frequencies are believed to be the result of the
low acoustic modal density and damping in the chamber. The mean of the EDT and T20 reverberation
times measured at four microphone locations with the sound source either at location L1, L2 or L3 are
listed in Table A4 of the Appendix. The mean of all twelve measurements (L1-L3) is also tabulated in
Table A4. The standard deviations (SD) of measurements at four microphone locations with the source
located either at L1, L2 or L3, and the total SD of all twelve measurements are summarized in Table A5
of the Appendix. The mean EDT and mean T20 over twelve measurements are compared in Figure 7,
showing generally longer reverberation times (up to 16% at the lowest frequency of interest) for the T20
procedure and calculation.
The measured EDT and the T20 reverberation times for Configurations B, C, and D and the mean and
standard deviation (SD) of twelve measurements are listed in Table A6-Table A9, Table A10-Table A13,
and Table A14-Table A17 of the Appendix, respectively. The mean EDT and T20 reverberation times for
Configurations B through D are compared in Figure 8 through Figure 10. For all configurations the T20
reverberation times are again generally longer than the reverberation times obtained with the EDT
method, by up to 9.2% at some frequencies. The dips in the Configuration B-D reverberation time curves
at the lower frequencies have mostly vanished as the modal damping in the chamber has increased due to
the flush mounted panel in the TL window and the presence of the horns. The surfaces of the horns also
scatter and diffuse the sound field thereby increasing the chamber modal density in the lower frequency
bands. ISO 37413 requires that the reverberation chamber surfaces have absorptive properties such that
the reverberation time in each one-third-octave band below 6300 Hz is numerically greater than the ratio
of the volume V and total surface area S. All measured reverberation times in this study were greater than
1.04 seconds thereby conforming to the requirements of the ISO 3741 standard.
The mean measured EDT reverberation times for all four chamber configurations (A-D) are
compared in Figure 11 while the T20 results for the four chamber configurations are shown in Figure 12.
The longest reverberation times were measured in the empty chamber with the MDF insert mounted
flush in the TL window (Configuration A). Moving the 160 Hz horn into the chamber and replacing the
flush TL window insert by the offset MDF panel resulted in reduced reverberation times as evidenced in
Figure 11 and Figure 12. Moving the large 35 Hz horn into the reverberation chamber in addition to the
160 Hz horn (Configuration C) provides extra absorption to the chamber due to the surface area of the35
Hz horn. The presence of the horn scatters and diffuses the sound and also prevents some of the acoustic
energy to reach the measuring microphone as energy is lost when acoustic waves bounce around
8
between the exterior surfaces of the horn and the chamber walls, floor and ceiling. Installing the flush
mounted MDF panel insert in the TL window in addition to the offset MDF panel (Configuration D)
prevented some of the acoustic energy from escaping the chamber, thereby slightly increasing the
reverberation times between 315 Hz and 1600 Hz, but otherwise not significantly differing from the
results obtained for Configuration C (Figure 11 and Figure 12).
Repeatability - The repeatability of the measurements for a particular microphone and source
location is illustrated by the mean and the standard deviations (SD) results in Table 7 for four repeated
EDT reverberation measurements by microphone M3, with the source located at L1 and chamber
Configuration A. The SD is less than or equal to 0.07 for all frequencies above the 160 Hz one-third
octave band. Figure 13 shows that the variation from the mean is less than 0.1 second at all frequencies
except for one data point in the 160 Hz one-third octave band. The mean and SD results for four repeated
T20 measurements by the same microphone and for the same source location are listed in Table 8. The
SD is less than or equal to 0.06 for all frequencies higher than the 160 Hz one-third octave band. The
same data are plotted as the variation from the mean in Figure 14 showing that all measurement data for
the one-third octave frequency bands 200 Hz and higher are less than 0.1 second off the mean value,
while for the lower frequency bands the measurements are within 0.25 seconds of the mean
reverberation time.
Minimum Distance – Having measured the mean EDT and T20 reverberation times, the minimum
distance between a microphone and a sound source location to avoid the effects from the direct radiated
sound can now be calculated by applying Equation 1. The minimum distance dmin is longest for the
highest frequency of interest (1.60 m at 8000 Hz) as shown in Table 9 for Configuration A, but is well
below the shortest distance of 2.56 m between a source location and a microphone in Table 4.
Room Diffusivity
In the International Standards and the open literature several different requirements and descriptions
are offered to define the diffusivity of the sound field in a reverberation chamber. The sound diffusivity
is dependent on the frequency. Below the lowest acoustic resonance the chamber behaves like a
compressible volume of air. Above this frequency a sound field of relatively isolated room modes
dominates the response of the chamber. At higher frequencies the frequency spacing decreases and
modes overlap until the modal density and the modal overlap is such that the sound field can be treated
in a statistical sense. A diffuse sound field is defined as an acoustic environment in which the acoustic
energy density is the same at all locations, which implies that the acoustic energy of sound waves flows
in all directions with equal probability. A diffuse sound field is important because it is the basis for the
equations used to establish the sound power level of small sound sources from measured sound pressure
levels in the reverberation chamber, and to determine the random absorption coefficients of materials
from measured reverberation times. A diffuse field is also required for the sound waves incident on the
test article during transmission loss testing.
Acoustic Modal Response - The geometry of the chamber determines the acoustic modal response.
To simplify calculations of the modal frequencies the reverberation chamber was modeled as a
rectangular room with approximate dimensions 6.4 m by 9.7 m by 4.5 m as listed in Table 1. The normal
mode frequencies fn of the room are given by9
2
c  nx   ny   nz 
2 2
fn      (4)
2  l   w   h 
9
where l, w and h are the length [m], the width [m] and the height [m] of the room, and nx, ny and nz
are the respective mode numbers in those directions. Thirty-nine modal frequencies were computed in
the reverberation chamber for the 80 Hz and lower one-third octave bands. The mode numbers, modal
frequencies, and number of modes in band are summarized in Table 10. The modal density is defined by9
dM 4 f 2V  fS P
  2  (5)
df c3 2c 8c
where M is the number of modes in the room, f is the one-third octave band center frequency [Hz], V
is the volume [m3], S is the total wall surface area [m2] and P is the total edge length [m]. The modal
densities were calculated and the results are listed in Table 11.
Chamber Volume – The reverberation test chamber has a volume of 279 m3 which is larger than the
minimum volume of 200 m3 recommended in the International Standard ISO 3741 for measurements
down to the 100 Hz one-third octave band.3 Twenty room modes in a third octave band have been
suggested as the least permissible number to achieve diffusion in a reverberation chamber. 10 The volume
V [m3] is then related to the longest wavelength λ [m] of interest by
V  4 3 (6)
A volume of at least 229 m3 is needed to have twenty room modes in the 100 Hz one-third octave
band. Table 10 shows that twenty-four modes were computed assuming a rectangular reverberation
chamber.
Morse11 suggests a minimum frequency fmin [Hz] above which the peaks of the room modes merge
together and the chamber is uniform in frequency and in distribution
c3T
f min  (7)
16 V
The calculated minimum frequencies fmin are listed in Table 12 based on the Configuration A mean
reverberation times. The results suggest the sound field is uniform in the 200 Hz one-third octave band
and higher.
Chamber Dimension Ratio’s – ISO 354 requires that the shape of the reverberation chamber is
such that the following condition is fulfilled1
I max  1.9V 1/3 (8)
where Imax is the longest straight line (diagonal) which fits within the boundaries of the chamber [m].
Imax for the reverberation chamber was calculated to equal 12.46 m. Considering the splayed walls of the
chamber it was concluded that the condition in Equation 8 was met, although narrowly. The ratios of the
chamber dimensions relative to its height are 1:1.42:2.15 avoiding ratios of small whole numbers thereby
achieving a more uniform distribution of the modes in the low frequency bands. Richard Bolt developed
the room proportion criterion12 for small rectangular rooms indicating room dimension ratios yielding
the smoothest frequency response at low frequencies. The dimension ratios for the reverberation
chamber fall within this criterion, as shown in Figure 15, but the validity of this criterion would be from
approximately 20 Hz up to 80 Hz for the 279 m3 chamber. Walker13 investigated rooms up to a height of
4.9 m with a volume of 200 m3 and established the criterion
10
w l w
1.1   4.5  4 (9)
h h h
subject to the width w<3h and the length l<3h. A 5% protective rule also was applied which entailed
that the width/height and length/ height ratios would not be within 5% of an integer number. This
criterion is also plotted in Figure 15 with the dimension ratios of the reverberation chambers within the
boundaries of the Walker criterion.
Schröder Frequency - In a diffuse sound field the average energy density is the same throughout
the chamber and all directions of propagation are equally probable. The lowest frequency at which the
modal density is sufficient to constitute a diffuse field, with a modal overlap index greater than three, is
given by the Schröder cut-off frequency14
c3T
fS  (10)
4ln10 * V
where c is the speed of sound [m/s], T is the reverberation time of the chamber [s] and V is the
volume of the chamber [m3]. The Schröder frequencies for the T20 reverberation times are tabulated in
Table 12. Below these frequencies the chamber acoustic pressure responses are dominated by individual
room modes. Statistical consideration of the sound field in a room is only valid when the sound field is
diffuse. The calculated Schröder cut-off frequencies in Table 12 indicate that the 400 Hz one-third
octave band is the lowest frequency band for which the acoustic field can be treated in a statistical sense
rather than by analysis of the individual acoustic modes in the chamber. However, Reference 15
discusses that it can be deduced from Schröder’s theory that, from measurements, one cannot with
certainty detect a lower limit for the high-frequency region that exceeds approximately 0.5 fs. This
suggests a frequency transition region between the modal response and the statistical approach and the
reverberation chamber volume can be treated as an (almost) diffuse field down to the 200 Hz one-third
octave band (Table 12). For the 200 Hz one-third octave band the estimated modal density at the center
frequency exceeds 4 (Table 11).
Standard Deviation Reverberation Time – The ISO 354 relative standard deviation SDpred of the
reverberation time T20 can be predicted by1
SDpred 
 2.42  3.59 / N  T (11)
f
where N is the number of included decay curves. The estimated ISO 354 standard deviation is
compared with the standard deviation over twelve T20 reverberation time measurements for
Configuration A in Figure 16. Good agreement is obtained for the one-third octave bands having center
frequencies of 250 Hz and higher. It is concluded that in the 200 Hz and lower one-third octave bands
the sound field is not sufficiently diffuse.
Standard Deviation Sound Pressure Levels – ISO 37413 requires all test rooms to be qualified for
the measurement of broadband sound using a procedure of six or more reverberant sound field
measurements of the one-third octave band time-averaged sound pressure levels in the chamber, each
with the reference sound source placed at a different location within the chamber. The instrumentation
and microphones array should be the same as used in the actual tests. The source locations shall be at
least 1.5 m from a wall and any two source locations shall be one quarter wavelength apart. To
11
accommodate a more general measurement of the variability in the coupling of the sound source and the
reverberant field, a random sound field was generated by a loudspeaker source and measured by ten
microphones (M1-M10 in Figure 17) distributed in the chamber. Distances to the walls were
commensurate with ISO 3741. The source location L4 (Figure 17) was selected at 1.5 m from the walls
in the left corner near the chamber entrance. A second ten-microphone measurement was made with the
loudspeaker sound source 1.5 m from the center of the left wall (L5 in Figure 17). Each of the two ten-
microphone measurements were repeated eight times. The instrumentation and equipment used for the
sound pressure level measurements are listed in Table 13. The standard deviation SDSPL is related to the
uniformity of the sound pressure field measured by the ten microphones and is calculated from3
L  Lpm 
2
K
SDSPL  
pk
(12)
k K 1
where Lpk is the band time-averaged sound pressure level [dB], Lpm is the arithmetic mean of the
band time-averaged sound pressure level [dB], and K is the number of measurements. Table 14 shows
the standard deviations SD1-SD10 for the eight repeated measurements at each of the ten microphones for
the loudspeaker source located at L4. The SD of the mean of the repeated measurements at the ten
microphones for source location L4 is indicated by SDL4 in Table 14. Similarly, the SD of the mean of
the repeated measurements at ten microphones for source location L5 is listed in Table 14 as SDL5. The
SDL4 and SDL5 results are compared to the SDmax values specified in ISO 37413 needed to qualify a
reverberation chamber for broadband acoustic source measurements. The SDmax for different source
locations in ISO 3741 does not exceed 1.5 in the 100 Hz - 160 Hz one-third octave bands, 1.0 in the 200
Hz - 630 Hz one-third octave bands, 0.5 in the 800 Hz - 2500 Hz bands and 1.0 in the 3150 Hz - 10000
Hz one-third octave bands. The SDL4 and SDL5 sound pressure level results for ten microphones and one
source location each are plotted along with the SDmax values in Figure 18, showing that for all one-third
octave bands from 80 Hz to 8000 Hz the SD values are lower than the ISO 3741 limits.
Room Absorption
The absorption of the chamber may be calculated assuming that the sound field is diffuse. The
equivalent sound absorption area A [m2] is defined by1
55.3V
A  4Vm (13)
cT
where T is the reverberation time [s] and m is the atmospheric absorption correction term [1/m]. The
value of m is dependent on the temperature, relative humidity and atmospheric pressure and can be
calculated from the power attenuation coefficient αc [dB/m] for atmospheric absorption16. The power
attenuation coefficient was computed using the formulae presented in the ISO 6913 International
Standard16 and is tabulated in Table 15 along with the atmospheric absorption correction term 4Vm.
The average Sabine absorption coefficient ᾱ is calculated by dividing the equivalent sound
absorption area by the total surface area of the chamber
A
 (14)
S
Table 16 list the mean values of the twelve integrated impulse response EDT and T20 reverberation
times, the equivalent sound absorption areas and the averaged Sabine absorption coefficients for
12
measurement Configurations A. The averaged Sabine absorption coefficients based on the EDT and T20
are in reasonable agreement with one another. The average absorption coefficients in the table are not
accurate for the non-diffuse field below the Schröder frequencies in Table 12. The maximum equivalent
sound absorption areas Amax allowed by ISO 3541 for a chamber volume of 279 m3, when performing
sound absorption measurements, are listed in Table 16 showing that none of the computed equivalent
sound absorption areas over the frequency range of interest (80 Hz - 8000 Hz) exceeds these limits.
ASTM International Standard E-9017 stipulates that the sound absorption area Alimit in the
reverberation chamber (receiving room) should be less than
V 2/3
Alimit  (15)
3
for frequencies between the Schröder frequency f=2000/V1/3 and 2000 Hz. Above 2000 Hz the sound
absorption Alimit may be somewhat higher due to atmospheric absorption. Below the Schröder frequency
it is desirable to have a higher sound absorption, but which should be limited to three times the value in
Equation (15). The limiting values of Alimit are listed in Table 16 and are well above the sound absorption
areas for the reverberation chamber.
The averaged sound absorption coefficients ᾱ(EDT) and ᾱ(T20) in Table 16 for Configuration A do
not exceed ᾱmax=0.16 in the one-third octave bands below the Schröder frequency, nor do they exceed
ᾱmax=0.06 above the Schröder frequency, thereby conforming to the requirements in ISO 37413 for
broadband measurements.
The mean values of the twelve integrated impulse response EDT and T20 reverberation times, the
equivalent sound absorption areas and the averaged Sabine absorption coefficients for measurement
Configurations B-D are listed in Table A18-Table A20 of the Appendix.
Sound Field Diffusers
Measurements of sound absorption coefficients of test specimen, sound power emission of sound
sources, and the sound transmission loss of test panels require a diffuse sound field in the reverberation
chamber. The Schröder frequency for a modal overlap index of greater than three indicates (Table 12)
that the reverberation chamber sound field is not diffuse for the 315 Hz and lower one-third octave
bands. The minimum frequency at which the sound field in the chamber is diffuse can be lowered by
reducing the reverberation time to increase the modal overlap. This may be accomplished by the
introduction of arrays of hanging, reflective panels or large, reflecting, moving vanes in the reverberation
chamber.10 For one-third-octave bands with mid-band frequencies below 1000 Hz, it is recommended
that the reverberation time T satisfies the following inequality
2
 f 
T V   (16)
 1000 
The maximum recommended reverberation time as function of the one-third octave band center
frequency is listed in the last column of Table 12, which indicates that the chamber is not diffuse enough
in the one-third octave bands 200 Hz and lower.
Stationary diffusing panels – The ASTM standards in References 17 and 18 recommend about
three to six panels suspended in random orientations throughout the room. The sheets may be corrugated
or slightly curved. The panel dimensions should be about one-half to one wavelength at the lowest test
13
band, which would equate to 1.93 to 3.85 m for the 100 Hz one-third octave band. Panels with
dimensions of 1.9 m by 3.8 m would have a reflecting sound area of 7.22 m2 per side. The recommended
mass per unit area is 5 kg/m2. Panels are often made of plywood, particleboard17 or rigid laminated
plastic sheets.19 Reference 19 suggests an optimum area Sopt for the diffuser panels of
Sopt  0.04V 2/3 (17)
which would result in an area of 1.71 m2 (one side) for the 279 m3 SALT reverberation chamber.
The reverberation chamber in Reference 19 is roughly the same volume (294 m3) and 28 panels with an
area of 1.5 m2 each on one side were installed to improve the diffusivity of the sound field. The
reverberation times in the chamber were shortened by 27% to 16% over the 100 Hz to 500 Hz frequency
range.19 Please note that the optimum panel size given above is independent of frequency compared to
the wavelength dependency recommended in the ASTM standard.17 The total surface area added by the
diffusers recommended by the ASTM standards is 86.6 m2 compared with a (comparable) diffuser area
of 84 m2 in Reference 19.
Moving Diffusers – The effective diffusivity of the reverberation chamber can also be improved by
large, reflecting, moving panels which continuously shift both the modal frequencies and the sound
incidence angles during measurements.10 The ASTM standard recommends the same size and mass-per-
unit-area for the moving panels as for the stationary diffusers.17 This agrees with the recommendations in
Reference 10 which suggests a 3.85 m minimum dimension for the lowest band frequency of 89 Hz in
the 100 Hz one-third octave band and a panel surface weight of about 4.90 kg/m2. The movement of the
diffuser should be designed such that a complete cycle is completed during the time a measurement is
performed. The diffuser should be non-symmetrical and oriented such that it would interrupt all
significant room modes.
Diffusivity Summary
The reverberation chamber in the SALT facility can be used for several different acoustic
measurements, including sound power source measurements, test specimen acoustic absorption
measurements and transmission loss experiments among others. For each of these measurements
equations are used which assume a diffuse field in the reverberation chamber. The Schröder frequency14
is widely accepted as a frequency above which the sound field is diffuse and can be characterized by
statistical properties. However, depending on the type of measurements, instrumentation setup, and
sound source and transducer locations reliable measurements may also be made in some one-third octave
bands below this frequency. A summary of several criteria in the International Standards and open
literature that define the one-third octave band frequency range for which different measurements are
valid is presented in Table 17. It is advised that the qualification measurements recommended in each of
the International Standards be conducted to ensure the reverberation chamber meets the requirements for
a particular type measurement, test configuration and instrumentation setup.
CONCLUSIONS
Measurements were conducted and results were analyzed to characterize different measurement
configurations of the Structural Acoustic Loads and Transmission (SALT) facility at NASA Langley
Research Center. Reverberation time measurements were performed using the integrated impulse
response method. Four configurations, with either an insert installed in the transmission loss (TL)
window or offset from the frame, and with or without the large 35 Hz and 160 Hz cut-off frequency
horns in the chamber were considered. All distances between sound sources, microphones and chamber
14
boundaries were compliant with the International Standards over the frequency range of interest, which
includes the one-third octave bands with center frequencies from 80 Hz to 8000 Hz. One-third octave
band reverberation time and sound pressure level measurements were conducted and standard deviations
from the mean were computed. The dynamic range between the limited bandwidth noise burst signals
and the background noise was significantly higher than the required 35 dB in all one-third octave bands.
The acoustic field in the chamber was characterized in terms of one-third octave band reverberation
times and the related overall acoustic absorption coefficients of the chamber were calculated. It was
concluded that a diffuse field could be produced in the reverberation chamber above the Schröder
frequency in the 400 Hz one-third octave band and higher for all applications. This frequency could be
lowered by installing panel diffusers or large, reflecting, moving vanes to improve the acoustic modal
overlap in the chamber. In the one third octave bands with center frequencies from 80 Hz to 400 Hz a
successful measurement will be dependent on the type of measurement, the test configuration, the source
and microphone locations and the desired accuracy. It is recommended that qualification measurements
endorsed in the International Standards be conducted for each particular application.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
This work was performed under the Analytical Mechanics Associates, Inc. NASA Technology
Engineering Aerospace Mission Support 2 (TEAMS2) Dr. Randolph H. Cabell, Technical Direction
Notice (TDN) owner.
REFERENCES
1. ISO International Standard. Acoustics - Measurement of Sound Absorption in a Reverberation

Room. ISO 354:2003(E), Second Edition. International Organization for Standardization,
Genève, 2003.
2. ISO International Standard. Acoustics Measurement of the Reverberation Time of Rooms with
Reference to Other Acoustical Parameters. ISO 3382:2009-06-15 International Organization for
Standardization, Genève, 1997.
3. ISO International Standard. Acoustics – Determination of sound power levels and sound energy
levels of noise sources using sound pressure –Precision methods for reverberation test rooms.
ISO 3741:2010 / ANSI/ASA S12.51-2012. International Organization for Standardization,
Genève, 2010.
4. Brüel & Kjær Modular Precision Sound Level Meter Plus Reverberation Processor Module -
Instruction Manual. Brüel & Kjær, DK-2850 Nærum, Denmark, April 1991.
5. Schröder, M. R.: New Method for Measuring Reverberation Time. J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 37, 409–
412, 1965.
6. Barron, M.: Interpretation of early decay times in concert auditoria. Acustica, 81:320–331, 1995.
7. ISO International Standard. Accuracy (trueness and precision) of Measurement Methods and
Results-Part 2: Basic method for the determination of repeatability and reproducibility of a
standard measurement method. ISO 5725-2:1994. International Organization for
8. ISO International Standard. Acoustics - Measurement of Sound Insulation in Buildings and of
Building Elements - Parts 1-10. ISO 140:1997 (E). International Organization for
9. Kutruff, Heinrich: Room Acoustics. Applied Science Publishers Ltd. London, 1973.
10. Schultz, T. J.: Diffusion in Reverberation Rooms. J. Sound and Vibration, Vol. 16, Issue 1, May
1971, pp. 17-28.
11. Morse, P. M.: Vibration and Sound. McGraw-Hill, New York , 1948.
15
12. Bolt, R. H.: Note on Normal Frequency Statistics for Rectangular Rooms. J. Acoust. Soc. Am.
18 (1), 1946, pp 130–133.
13. Walker R.: Low-frequency room responses: Part 2, calculations and measurements. BBC
Research and Development Department Report RD1992/9, 1992.
14. Schroeder, M. R.: The Schroeder frequency revisited. J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 99, 1996, pp 3240–
3241.
15. Skålevik, Magne, Brekke & Strand Akustikk: Schroeder Frequency Revisited. 6th Forum
Acusticum 2011, Aalborg, Denmark, 26 June 1 July 2011.
16. ISO International Standard. Acoustics – Attenuation of Sound during Propagation Outdoors –
Part 1: Calculation of the absorption of sound by the atmosphere. ISO 9613-1:1993(E), First
Edition. International Organization for Standardization, Genève, 1993.
17. ASTM International Standard. Standard Test Method for Laboratory Measurement of Airborne
Sound Transmission Loss of Building Partitions and Elements. Designation E90 -09. American
Society for Testing and Materials, West Conshohocken, Pennsylvania, USA, July 2009.
18. ASTM International Standard. Standard Test Method for Sound Absorption and Sound
Absorption Coefficients by the Reverberation Room Method. Designation C423 -09a. American
Society for Testing and Materials, West Conshohocken, Pennsylvania, USA, October 2009.
19. Skalov, A. D.: Reverberation Measurements of Sound Absorption in Materials. Izmeritel'naya
Tekhnika, No 10, October 1965, pp. 24-26.
16
TABLES
Table 1. Nominal reverberation chamber geometric properties.
Width w [m] 6.4

Lengt l [m] 9.7
Height h [m] 4.5
Perimeter P [m] 82.4
Surface area S [m2] 269
Volume V [m3] 279
Table 2. Ambient test conditions in the reverberation chamber.
Temperature [°C] 25.3±0.2

Dew point [°C] 18.7
Relative Humidity [%] 62.7
Barometric Pressure [Pa] 101300
Table 3. Reverberation time measurements chamber configurations.
MDF insert in the TL window Large 35 Hz horn Small 160 Hz horn

Configuration
Flush Offset (exposing gaps) Yes No Yes No
A X X X
B X X X
C X X X
D X X X X
Table 4. Mutual distances between the three microphones and their distances from the loudspeaker sources.
Distance [m]
Speaker Box L1 - Microphone M1 2.80
Microphone M1 - Microphone M2 2.22
17
Table 5. Dynamic range between the maximum impulse noise level and the background noise levels in the
reverberation chamber.
One-third Lowest Maximum

Octave Band Frequency Impulse Background Dynamic
Center Frequency Wavelength Noise Level Noise Level Range
[Hz] [m] [dB] [dB] [dB]
80 4.84 96.7 32.2 64.5
100 3.85 97.4 33.1 64.3
125 3.06 92.3 27.8 64.5
160 2.43 88.4 25.2 63.2
200 1.93 83.6 24.1 59.5
250 1.53 84.5 23.4 61.1
315 1.22 85.2 21.2 64.0
400 0.97 81.1 19.2 61.9
500 0.77 79.8 15.0 64.8
630 0.61 78.3 14.9 63.4
800 0.48 75.6 14.1 61.5
1000 0.38 73.8 13.8 60.0
1250 0.31 71.5 11.0 60.5
1600 0.24 66.4 10.2 56.2
2000 0.19 64.8 10.4 54.4
2500 0.15 64.6 11.8 52.8
3150 0.12 63.8 10.2 53.6
4000 0.10 62.9 12.4 50.5
5000 0.08 60.1 12.2 47.9
6300 0.06 57.0 13.5 43.5
8000 0.05 55.2 12.4 42.8
Table 6. Instrumentation and equipment for the reverberation measurements.
Model/ Serial ECN/ Calibration

Description Manufacturer Notes
Type Number Calibration Date
½-inch Random
Incidence Condenser Brüel & Kjær 4134 478911 A014662 03/10/10
Microphone
Modular Precision Sound

Brüel & Kjær 2231 1413682 A038138 03/10/10
Level Meter
1/3-1/1 Octave Band

Brüel & Kjær 1625 1418440 A033054 02/22/10
Pass Filter
Reverberation Processor
Brüel & Kjær BZ 7108
Module
Input Stage Brüel & Kjær ZC0020
BNC to Mini Cable Brüel & Kjær AO173
Magnetic Field Power 375 W RMS into 8-ohm

Carver TMF-42 42K70641
Amplifier 20-20kHz (<0.5% THD)
250 W Continuous
Two-way JBL JBL P0368- 38 Hz – 16 kHz (–10 dB)
Speaker Box Professional JRX115 21351 98 dB, 1 Watt @ 1 Meter
Crossover 1.6 kHz
18
Table 7. EDT reverberation times for four measurements (Configuration A) at microphone M3 and source location
L1, their mean and their standard deviation (SD).
One-third Octave EDT measurements [s]

Band
Center Frequency [Hz] 1 2 3 4 Mean [s] SD [s]
80 10.84 10.78 10.84 10.82 10.82 0.03
100 11.05 11.17 11.13 11.05 11.10 0.06
125 12.12 12.24 12.13 12.12 12.15 0.06
160 12.45 12.72 12.69 12.61 12.62 0.12
200 10.79 10.95 10.90 10.84 10.87 0.07
250 9.77 9.84 9.86 9.84 9.83 0.04
315 10.33 10.38 10.30 10.24 10.31 0.06
400 9.51 9.63 9.59 9.65 9.59 0.06
500 8.39 8.40 8.42 8.42 8.41 0.02
630 7.44 7.50 7.49 7.48 7.48 0.03
800 6.48 6.44 6.44 6.44 6.45 0.02
1000 6.10 6.09 6.08 6.03 6.07 0.03
1250 5.66 5.68 5.57 5.65 5.64 0.05
1600 4.97 4.96 4.96 4.95 4.96 0.01
2000 4.56 4.60 4.59 4.57 4.58 0.02
2500 3.93 3.91 3.89 3.88 3.90 0.02
3150 3.49 3.49 3.49 3.49 3.49 0.00
4000 2.87 2.87 2.88 2.87 2.87 0.01
5000 2.08 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.07 0.01
6300 1.63 1.62 1.63 1.62 1.62 0.01
8000 1.27 1.25 1.24 1.23 1.25 0.02
Table 8. T20 reverberation times for four measurements (Configuration A) at microphone M3 and source location
L1, their mean and their standard deviation (SD).
One-third Octave T20 measurements [s]

Band
Center Frequency [Hz] 1 2 3 4 Mean [s] SD [s]
80 10.16 10.09 10.08 10.08 10.10 0.04
100 13.17 13.43 13.32 13.11 13.26 0.15
125 13.44 13.61 13.63 13.67 13.59 0.10
160 13.45 13.75 13.83 13.76 13.70 0.17
200 12.00 12.12 12.12 12.04 12.07 0.06
250 10.90 10.87 10.89 10.88 10.88 0.01
315 10.50 10.45 10.40 10.37 10.43 0.06
400 9.78 9.64 9.66 9.73 9.70 0.06
500 8.05 8.10 8.06 8.07 8.07 0.02
630 7.47 7.52 7.54 7.54 7.52 0.03
800 6.73 6.80 6.81 6.78 6.78 0.04
1000 6.23 6.25 6.25 6.22 6.24 0.02
1250 5.86 5.89 5.78 5.82 5.84 0.05
1600 5.12 5.08 5.06 5.01 5.07 0.05
2000 4.64 4.57 4.58 4.57 4.59 0.03
2500 3.81 3.80 3.80 3.81 3.80 0.01
3150 3.37 3.42 3.41 3.42 3.40 0.02
4000 2.94 2.93 2.93 2.92 2.93 0.01
5000 2.20 2.18 2.21 2.20 2.20 0.01
6300 1.64 1.68 1.68 1.68 1.67 0.02
8000 1.28 1.31 1.32 1.30 1.30 0.02
19
Table 9. Minimum distances to avoid the effects from direct radiated sound, based on the Configuration A mean
EDT and the T20 reverberation times.2
One-third Octave Band dmin [m]

Center Frequency [Hz] EDT T20
80 0.50 0.47
100 0.54 0.50
125 0.52 0.50
160 0.50 0.49
200 0.54 0.51
250 0.56 0.54
315 0.56 0.56
400 0.58 0.58
500 0.63 0.63
630 0.66 0.65
800 0.71 0.70
1000 0.73 0.72
1250 0.75 0.75
1600 0.80 0.80
2000 0.84 0.84
2500 0.92 0.93
3150 0.98 0.97
4000 1.08 1.06
5000 1.26 1.24
6300 1.44 1.42
8000 1.64 1.60
Table 10. Calculated acoustic modes assuming a rectangular reverberation chamber without splayed walls.
One-third Octave One-third Length Width Height Modal Number of

Band Center Octave Band Mode Mode Mode Frequency Modes in Band
Frequency [Hz] Number nx ny nz [Hz]
16 12 1 0 0 17.7 1
25 14 0 1 0 26.8 1
31.5 15 1 1 0 32.1 2
31.5 15 2 0 0 35.4 2
40 16 0 0 1 38.1 3
40 16 1 0 1 42.0 3
40 16 2 1 0 44.4 3
50 17 0 1 1 46.6 5
50 17 1 1 1 49.8 5
50 17 2 0 1 52.0 5
50 17 3 0 0 53.0 5
50 17 0 2 0 53.6 5
63 18 1 2 0 56.4 9
63 18 2 1 1 58.5 9
63 18 3 1 0 59.4 9
63 18 2 2 0 64.2 9
63 18 3 0 1 65.3 9
63 18 0 2 1 65.8 9
63 18 1 2 1 68.1 9
63 18 3 1 1 70.6 9
63 18 4 0 0 70.7 9
20
Table 10. (cont.) Calculated acoustic modes assuming a rectangular reverberation chamber without splayed walls.
One-third
One-third Length Width Height Modal Number of
Octave
Octave Band Mode Mode Mode Frequency Modes in Band
Band Center
Number nx ny nz [Hz]
Frequency [Hz]
80 19 2 2 1 74.7 18
80 19 3 2 0 75.4 18
80 19 4 1 0 75.6 18
80 19 0 0 2 76.2 18
80 19 1 0 2 78.2 18
80 19 4 0 1 80.3 18
80 19 0 3 0 80.4 18
80 19 0 1 2 80.8 18
80 19 1 3 0 82.3 18
80 19 1 1 2 82.7 18
80 19 2 0 2 84.0 18
80 19 3 2 1 84.5 18
80 19 4 1 1 84.7 18
80 19 2 3 0 87.8 18
80 19 2 1 2 88.2 18
80 19 0 5 0 88.4 18
80 19 4 2 0 88.7 18
80 19 0 3 1 89.0 18
100 20 1 3 1 90.7 24
100 20 5 1 0 92.4 24
100 20 3 0 2 92.9 24
100 20 0 2 2 93.2 24
100 20 1 2 2 94.8 24
100 20 2 3 1 95.7 24
100 20 5 0 1 96.3 24
100 20 3 3 0 96.3 24
100 20 4 2 1 96.6 24
100 20 3 1 2 96.7 24
100 20 2 2 2 99.7 24
100 20 5 1 1 99.9 24
100 20 5 2 0 103.4 24
100 20 3 3 1 103.6 24
100 20 4 0 2 104.0 24
100 20 6 0 0 106.1 24
100 20 4 3 0 107.1 24
100 20 0 4 0 107.2 24
100 20 3 2 2 107.2 24
100 20 4 1 2 107.4 24
100 20 1 4 0 108.6 24
100 20 6 1 0 109.4 24
100 20 5 2 1 110.2 24
100 20 0 3 2 110.8 24
125 21 1 3 2 112.2 55
125 21 6 0 1 112.7 55
125 21 2 4 0 112.9 55
125 21 4 3 1 113.7 55
125 21 0 4 1 113.8 55
125 21 0 0 3 114.3 55
125 21 1 4 1 115.1 55
21
One-third Number of
One-third Length Width Height Modal
Octave Modes in
Octave Band Mode Mode Mode Frequency
Band Center Band
Frequency [Hz]
125 21 1 0 3 115.7 55
125 21 6 1 1 115.9 55
125 21 2 3 2 116.3 55
125 21 5 0 2 116.7 55
125 21 4 2 2 117.0 55
125 21 0 1 3 117.4 55
125 21 1 1 3 118.8 55
125 21 6 2 0 118.9 55
125 21 2 4 1 119.1 55
125 21 5 3 0 119.5 55
125 21 3 4 0 119.6 55
125 21 2 0 3 119.7 55
125 21 5 1 2 119.8 55
125 21 2 1 3 122.6 55
125 21 3 3 2 122.8 55
125 21 7 0 0 123.8 55
125 21 6 2 1 124.8 55
125 21 5 3 1 125.4 55
125 21 3 0 3 126.0 55
125 21 0 2 3 126.3 55
125 21 7 1 0 126.6 55
125 21 1 2 3 127.5 55
125 21 4 4 0 128.4 55
125 21 5 2 2 128.4 55
125 21 3 1 3 128.9 55
125 21 7 0 1 129.5 55
125 21 6 0 2 130.6 55
125 21 2 2 3 131.1 55
125 21 4 3 2 131.4 55
125 21 0 4 2 131.5 55
125 21 7 1 1 132.2 55
125 21 1 4 2 132.7 55
125 21 6 3 0 133.1 55
125 21 6 1 2 133.3 55
125 21 3 4 1 134.0 55
125 21 4 4 1 134.0 55
125 21 0 5 0 134.0 55
125 21 4 0 3 134.4 55
125 21 7 2 0 134.9 55
125 21 1 5 0 135.1 55
125 21 2 4 2 136.2 55
125 21 3 2 3 137.0 55
125 21 4 1 3 137.1 55
125 21 6 3 1 138.5 55
125 21 2 5 0 138.6 55
125 21 5 4 0 138.9 55
125 21 0 5 1 139.3 55
125 21 0 3 3 139.8 55
22
One-third
One-third Length Width Height Modal Number of
Octave
Octave Band Mode Mode Mode Frequency Modes in Band
Band Center
Frequency [Hz]
125 21 2 4 1 119.1 55
125 21 5 3 0 119.5 55
125 21 3 4 0 119.6 55
125 21 2 0 3 119.7 55
125 21 5 1 2 119.8 55
125 21 2 1 3 122.6 55
125 21 3 3 2 122.8 55
125 21 7 0 0 123.8 55
125 21 6 2 1 124.8 55
125 21 5 3 1 125.4 55
125 21 3 0 3 126.0 55
125 21 0 2 3 126.3 55
125 21 7 1 0 126.6 55
125 21 1 2 3 127.5 55
125 21 4 4 0 128.4 55
125 21 5 2 2 128.4 55
125 21 3 1 3 128.9 55
125 21 7 0 1 129.5 55
125 21 6 0 2 130.6 55
125 21 2 2 3 131.1 55
125 21 4 3 2 131.4 55
125 21 0 4 2 131.5 55
125 21 7 1 1 132.2 55
125 21 1 4 2 132.7 55
125 21 6 3 0 133.1 55
125 21 6 1 2 133.3 55
125 21 3 4 1 134.0 55
125 21 4 4 1 134.0 55
125 21 0 5 0 134.0 55
125 21 4 0 3 134.4 55
125 21 7 2 0 134.9 55
125 21 1 5 0 135.1 55
125 21 2 4 2 136.2 55
125 21 3 2 3 137.0 55
125 21 4 1 3 137.1 55
125 21 6 3 1 138.5 55
125 21 2 5 0 138.6 55
125 21 5 4 0 138.9 55
125 21 0 5 1 139.3 55
125 21 0 3 3 139.8 55
23
Table 11. Calculated modal density assuming a rectangular reverberation chamber without splayed walls.
One-third One-third
Octave Band Modal Density Octave Band Modal Density
Center Frequency [1/Hz] Center Frequency [1/Hz]
[Hz] [Hz]
80 0.9 1000 90.2
100 1.3 1250 139.8
125 1.8 1600 227.4
160 2.8 2000 353.5
200 4.2 2500 550.1
250 6.3 3150 870.3
315 9.8 4000 1399.5
400 15.3 5000 2182.3
500 23.5 6300 3458.7
630 36.7 8000 5569.3
800 58.3 10000 8693.1
Table 12. The uniform distribution minimum frequencies and Schröder diffuse field cut-off frequencies as function
of the Configuration A mean reverberation times.
One-third Octave Mean Minimum Schröder Maximum

Band Center Reverberation Time Frequency Cut-off Frequency Reverberation Time2
Frequency T20 fmin fS below 1000 Hz
[Hz] [s] [Hz] [Hz] [s]
80 14.81 206.8 483.2 1.8
100 12.81 192.4 449.4 2.8
125 13.14 194.8 455.0 4.4
160 13.61 198.3 463.2 7.1
200 12.41 189.3 442.2 11.2
250 10.95 177.9 415.5 17.4
315 10.44 173.6 405.6 27.7
400 9.79 168.1 392.7 44.6
500 8.13 153.3 358.0 69.8
630 7.65 148.7 347.3 110.7
800 6.70 139.1 324.8 178.6
1000 6.19 133.7 312.3
1250 5.79 129.3 302.2
1600 5.10 121.4 283.5
2000 4.55 114.6 267.8
2500 3.78 104.5 244.2
3150 3.45 99.8 233.1
4000 2.86 90.9 212.4
5000 2.12 78.3 182.9
6300 1.62 68.3 159.6
8000 1.26 60.3 140.9
24
Table 13. Instrumentation and equipment for the sound pressure level measurements.
Model/ Serial ECN/

Description Manufacturer Notes
Type Numbers Calibration
58461-58464,
½-inch Prepolarized
G.R.A.S. 40AO 58466-58468,
Condenser Microphones
58470-58472
48291-48294,
½-inch Microphone
G.R.A.S. 26CA 48296-48298,
Preamplifiers
48300-48302
ICP Signal Conditioner PCB Piezotronics 584A 1004 A033091
150 watts per Channel

Multi-Channel Amplifier Rane MA6S 174373
@ 4 ohms (20-20 kHz)
Signal Switching System Precision Filters PF 464K 481A-261 1656103
Smart Office Analyzer M+P International 2379 Version 4.1
Chassis with Dynamic National NI PXI-1045

3048604
Signal Acquisition Modules Instruments NI PXI-4472B (3)
Random signal with flat

Random Noise Generator General Radio 1382 01793 M94274
power spectral density
Acoustical Calibrator Brüel & Kjær 4231 2242297 A029503
250 W Continuous
38 Hz – 16 kHz (–10 dB)
Two-way Speaker Box JBL Professional JBL JRX115 P0368-21351
98 dB, 1 Watt @ 1 Meter
Crossover 1.6 kHz
Table 14. Computed standard deviations for eight repeated measurements by ten microphones (SD1-SD10) with the
source at location L3, the total SD at locations L3 and L4, and the maximum allowed in ISO 3741.3
One-third Octave Total Total

SD1 SD2 SD3 SD4 SD5 SD6 SD7 SD8 SD9 SD10 SDMax
Band [Hz] SDL4 SDL5
80 0.97 1.08 0.62 1.02 1.01 0.68 1.24 0.94 1.21 0.97 1.35 0.82 1.5
100 1.00 0.76 1.77 0.88 0.95 1.02 0.72 0.85 0.76 1.00 0.70 1.40 1.5
125 0.61 0.59 0.89 0.54 0.60 0.99 0.86 1.02 0.74 0.72 1.11 1.15 1.5
160 0.58 1.03 0.74 1.05 0.93 1.20 0.73 0.93 0.94 0.92 0.84 0.72 1.0
200 0.88 0.37 0.38 0.92 0.32 0.49 0.63 0.46 0.46 0.87 0.70 0.68 1.0
250 0.64 0.56 0.62 0.75 0.36 0.62 0.52 0.54 0.30 0.50 0.58 0.31 1.0
315 0.22 0.42 0.40 0.48 0.54 0.55 0.38 0.32 0.26 0.37 0.45 0.50 1.0
400 0.52 0.41 0.23 0.58 0.61 0.39 0.53 0.65 0.46 0.41 0.35 0.39 1.0
500 0.33 0.30 0.32 0.47 0.30 0.25 0.33 0.39 0.24 0.39 0.60 0.44 1.0
630 0.27 0.28 0.13 0.37 0.25 0.30 0.44 0.30 0.35 0.29 0.31 0.29 0.5
800 0.36 0.30 0.39 0.17 0.35 0.41 0.32 0.24 0.33 0.32 0.49 0.33 0.5
1000 0.22 0.30 0.30 0.18 0.22 0.23 0.21 0.36 0.25 0.26 0.31 0.23 0.5
1250 0.22 0.31 0.18 0.38 0.31 0.28 0.25 0.21 0.26 0.26 0.19 0.28 0.5
1600 0.13 0.22 0.22 0.25 0.12 0.19 0.07 0.22 0.10 0.18 0.25 0.29 0.5
2000 0.21 0.16 0.24 0.17 0.16 0.21 0.15 0.15 0.13 0.17 0.22 0.29 0.5
2500 0.18 0.11 0.12 0.14 0.25 0.22 0.14 0.15 0.14 0.12 0.43 0.23 1.0
3150 0.18 0.10 0.13 0.10 0.18 0.17 0.17 0.17 0.18 0.18 0.28 0.25 1.0
4000 0.08 0.13 0.15 0.20 0.18 0.11 0.17 0.21 0.16 0.12 0.26 0.23 1.0
5000 0.12 0.16 0.10 0.09 0.07 0.15 0.10 0.10 0.06 0.09 0.39 0.43 1.0
6300 0.15 0.15 0.12 0.14 0.13 0.11 0.17 0.09 0.10 0.10 0.64 0.43 1.0
8000 0.09 0.03 0.11 0.11 0.07 0.08 0.07 0.09 0.08 0.06 0.71 0.54 1.0
25
Table 15. Calculated power attenuation coefficient16 αc and the atmospheric absorption correction term 4mV.
One-third Octave Band αc 4mV

Center Frequency
[Hz] [dB/m] [m2]
80 0.0001 0.03
100 0.0002 0.05
125 0.0003 0.08
160 0.0005 0.13
200 0.0008 0.20
250 0.0011 0.29
315 0.0017 0.43
400 0.0024 0.61
500 0.0032 0.81
630 0.0041 1.05
800 0.0051 1.31
1000 0.0061 1.57
1250 0.0072 1.84
1600 0.0086 2.21
2000 0.0103 2.65
2500 0.0128 3.29
3150 0.0167 4.28
4000 0.0229 5.89
5000 0.0321 8.24
6300 0.0469 12.05
8000 0.0712 18.31
Table 16. Equivalent sound absorption area and averaged Sabine absorption coefficient for Configuration A.
One-third Mean Equivalent Sound ISO ASTM Averaged Sabine ISO

Octave Band Reverberation Time Absorption Area1 3541 E-9017 Absorption Coefficient 31473
Center Frequency EDT T20 A(EDT) A(T20) Amax Alimit
ᾱ(EDT) ᾱ(T20) ᾱmax
[Hz] [s] [s] [m2] [m2] [m2] [m2]
80 12.75 14.81 3.48 2.99 42.7 0.01 0.01 0.16
100 11.14 12.81 3.97 3.44 8.1 42.7 0.01 0.01 0.16
125 12.08 13.14 3.63 3.33 8.1 42.7 0.01 0.01 0.16
160 12.79 13.61 3.37 3.16 8.1 42.7 0.01 0.01 0.16
200 11.31 12.41 3.76 3.41 8.1 42.7 0.01 0.01 0.16
250 10.33 10.95 4.04 3.80 8.1 42.7 0.02 0.01 0.16
315 10.22 10.44 3.96 3.87 8.1 42.7 0.01 0.01 0.16
400 9.56 9.79 4.08 3.97 8.1 14.2 0.02 0.01 0.06
500 8.22 8.13 4.64 4.69 8.1 14.2 0.02 0.02 0.06
630 7.52 7.65 4.90 4.80 8.1 14.2 0.02 0.02 0.06
800 6.51 6.70 5.57 5.38 8.1 14.2 0.02 0.02 0.06
1000 6.04 6.19 5.84 5.67 8.7 14.2 0.02 0.02 0.06
1250 5.75 5.79 5.94 5.89 9.4 14.2 0.02 0.02 0.06
1600 5.01 5.10 6.74 6.57 10.0 14.2 0.03 0.02 0.06
2000 4.55 4.55 7.19 7.19 11.9 14.2 0.03 0.03 0.06
2500 3.81 3.78 8.46 8.55 13.1 0.03 0.03 0.06
3150 3.38 3.45 8.98 8.71 15.0 0.03 0.03 0.06
4000 2.80 2.86 10.12 9.76 16.2 0.04 0.04 0.06
5000 2.05 2.12 13.58 12.86 17.5 0.05 0.05 0.06
6300 1.56 1.62 16.63 15.66 0.06 0.06 0.06
8000 1.21 1.26 18.76 17.25 0.07 0.06 0.06
26
Table 17. Summary of several criteria in the International Standards and literature that define the range of one-
third octave bands for which measurements in the reverberation chamber are valid.
Reverberation Valid One-third

Criterion Reference # Requirement Chamber Octave Band
Reference Frequency Range
Chamber volume ISO 3741 [3] >200 m3 279 m3 ≥100 Hz

Number of room modes per third octave band Schultz [10] Equation (6) Table 10 ≥100 Hz
Uniform frequency distribution Morse [11] Equation (7) Table 12 ≥200 Hz
ISO 354 [1] Equation (8)
Chamber dimension ratio’s Figure 15 ≥80 Hz
Walker [13] Equation (9)
Schröder cut-off frequency Schröder [14] Equation (10) Table 12 ≥400 Hz
0.5 Schröder
Schröder frequency revisited Skålevik et. al. [15] Table 12 ≥200 Hz
frequency
Standard deviation reverberation times ISO 354 [1] Equation (11) Figure 16 ≥250 Hz
Table 14
Standard deviation sound pressure levels ISO 3741 [3] Equation (12) ≥80 Hz
Figure 18
ISO 354 [1] Table 16
Equivalent sound absorption area Table 16 ≥80 Hz
ASTM E-90 [17] Equation (15)
Averaged sound absorption coefficient ISO 3741 [3] Table 16 Table 16 ≥80 Hz
FIGURES
Figure 1. The large 35 Hz cut-off frequency exponential horn.
27
Figure 2. The large 35 Hz cut-off frequency horn and the small 160 Hz cut-off frequency horn (foreground) in the
reverberation chamber. The 38 mm thick MDF panel with the NASA logo is offset from the TL window to leave
breaches along its four sides allowing air flow to escape to the adjacent anechoic chamber (Configuration C). For
reverberation measurements in the empty chamber without the two horns, the offset panel is replaced by a 57 mm
thick MDF panel mounted flush in the transmission loss window (Configuration A).
Figure 3. Sketch of the reverberation chamber layout showing the three loudspeaker (L1-L3) and the four
microphone locations (M1-M4).
28
Figure 4. Brüel & Kjær Type 2231 Modular Precision Sound Level Meter with the Type 1625 One-Third Octave
Filter Set and the Type BZ7108 Reverberation Processor.
18 18
16 16
14 14
T20 Reverberation Time, s
Early Decay Time (EDT), s
12 12
10 10
8 8
6 6
4 4
2 2
0 0
63 125 250 500 1000 2000 4000 8000 63 125 250 500 1000 2000 4000 8000
One-third Octave Band Center Frequency, Hz One-third Octave Band Center Frequency, Hz
Figure 5. Twelve measured EDT reverberation times Figure 6. Twelve measured T20 reverberation times and
and their mean (solid line) with the MDF insert their mean (solid line) with the MDF insert mounted
mounted flush in the TL window but without the two flush in the TL window but without the two horns in the
horns in the chamber (Configuration A). chamber (Configuration A).
29
16 16
EDT EDT
T20 T20
14 14
12 12
Mean Reverberation Time, s

10 10
8 8
6 6
4 4
2 2
0 0
63 125 250 500 1000 2000 4000 8000 63 125 250 500 1000 2000 4000 8000
Figure 7. Mean measured EDT and T20 reverberation Figure 8. Mean measured EDT and T20 reverberation
times with the MDF insert mounted flush in the TL times with the MDF offset in front of the TL window
window but without the two horns (Configuration A). (exposing gaps) including the 160 Hz horn, but without
the 35 Hz horn (Configuration B).
16 16
EDT EDT
T20 T20
14 14
12 12
10 10
8 8
6 6
4 4
2 2
0 0
63 125 250 500 1000 2000 4000 8000 63 125 250 500 1000 2000 4000 8000
Figure 9. Mean measured EDT and T20 reverberation Figure 10. Mean measured EDT and T20 reverberation
times with the MDF offset in front of the TL window times with the offset and flush MDF panels mounted and
(exposing gaps) and the two horns deployed the two horns deployed (Configuration D).
(Configuration C).
30
16 16
MDF insert - no 35 Hz horn (A) MDF insert - no 35 Hz horn (A)
MDF offset (gaps) - no 35 Hz horn (B) MDF offset (gaps) - no 35 Hz horn (B)
14 MDF offset (gaps) - 35 Hz horn (C) 14 MDF offset (gaps) - 35 Hz horn (C)
MDF insert - 35 Hz horn (D) MDF insert - 35 Hz horn (D)
12 12
EDT Reverberation Time, s
T20 Reverberation Time, s

10 10
8 8
6 6
4 4
2 2
0 0
63 125 250 500 1000 2000 4000 8000 63 125 250 500 1000 2000 4000 8000
Figure 11. Mean measured EDT reverberation times for Figure 12. Mean measured T20 reverberation times for
Configurations A-D. Configurations A-D.
0.25 0.25
Measurement 1 Measurement 1
0.2 Measurement 3 0.2 Measurement 3
0.15 0.15
EDT Variation from the Mean, s
T20 Variation from Average, s
0.1 0.1
0.05 0.05
0 0
-0.05 -0.05
-0.1 -0.1
-0.15 -0.15
-0.2 -0.2
-0.25 -0.25
63 125 250 500 1000 2000 4000 8000 63 125 250 500 1000 2000 4000 8000
Figure 13. Measured EDT reverberation time Figure 14. Measured T20 reverberation time variations
variations from the mean over four repeated from the mean over four repeated measurements for
measurements for Configuration A at microphone M3 Configuration A at microphone M3 and source
and source location L1. location L1.
31
3
2.8
2
2.6 Measured
Predicted
Chamber Length/Height Ratio
1.75
2.4
Reverberation 1.5
2.2 Chamber
Standard Deviation
2 1.25
1.8 1
1.6 0.75
1.4 0.5
1.2
Bolt 1946 0.25
Walker 1992
1
1 1.2 1.4 1.6 1.8 2 0
63 125 250 500 1000 2000 4000 8000
Chamber Width/Height Ratio One-third Octave Band Center Frequency, Hz
Figure 15. Bolt12 room proportion criterion showing Figure 16. Measured and ISO 354 estimated1 standard
curve enclosing rectangular room dimension ratios deviations of twelve T20 reverberation times for
yielding the smoothest frequency response at low Configuration A.
frequencies.
Figure 17. Sketch of the reverberation chamber layout for the ten-microphone variability measurements showing
the two loudspeaker (L4 and L5) and the ten microphone (M1-M10) locations.
32
2
Source location L4
Source location L5
1.75 ISO 3741 Maximum
1.5
Standard Deviation
1.25
0.75
0.5
0.25
0
63 125 250 500 1000 2000 4000 8000
One-third Octave Band Center Frequency, Hz
Figure 18. Total standard deviation (SD) of the sound

pressure levels for ten microphones at two “white” noise
sound source locations, and the maximum SD in the
International Standard ISO 3741.3
APPENDIX
Table A1. EDT and T20 integrated impulse response reverberation times for source location L1 (Configuration A).
One-third Octave EDT [s] T20 [s]

Band
Center Frequency [Hz] M1 M2 M3 M4 M1 M2 M3 M4
80 13.12 12.08 11.71 13.96 13.66 14.92 12.06 14.95
100 12.07 10.51 10.93 11.65 12.85 11.98 12.91 14.12
125 11.62 11.83 12.07 12.44 12.55 12.33 13.47 14.18
160 12.17 13.27 12.43 12.64 12.82 13.27 13.58 14.15
200 11.18 12.10 10.69 10.47 12.66 13.12 11.89 11.09
250 10.27 10.26 9.80 9.51 11.08 11.56 10.6 10.28
315 10.44 10.36 10.18 9.84 10.39 11.13 10.33 9.95
400 9.54 9.57 9.58 9.29 9.68 10.19 9.67 9.47
500 8.17 7.98 8.43 7.89 8.35 8.16 8.07 8.15
630 7.53 7.26 7.54 7.20 7.65 7.83 7.58 7.53
800 6.60 6.41 6.47 6.61 6.73 6.87 6.81 6.55
1000 5.89 5.92 6.01 5.86 6.30 6.22 6.26 6.04
1250 5.67 5.67 5.65 5.48 5.65 5.97 5.84 5.68
1600 4.82 4.98 4.93 4.95 4.91 5.13 5.05 5.00
2000 4.53 4.65 4.59 4.44 4.30 4.67 4.57 4.54
2500 3.82 3.85 3.84 3.62 3.77 3.92 3.81 3.69
3150 3.31 3.36 3.44 3.33 3.38 3.49 3.42 3.42
4000 2.68 2.73 2.81 2.73 2.70 2.81 2.85 2.85
5000 2.06 1.99 2.02 1.99 2.12 2.08 2.07 2.10
6300 1.59 1.54 1.60 1.51 1.59 1.62 1.61 1.60
8000 1.20 1.21 1.22 1.16 1.25 1.21 1.24 1.24
33

Band
80 12.31 12.73 13.29 14.89 15.82 15.25 16.23 17.48
100 10.35 10.93 11.81 11.62 11.67 12.40 13.51 14.32
125 12.70 12.55 12.42 13.54 13.67 12.81 13.16 15.31
160 13.15 13.20 12.80 13.88 14.84 13.65 13.67 15.71
200 11.92 11.92 11.00 11.09 13.41 13.08 12.20 13.25
250 10.92 10.49 10.38 10.08 11.34 11.10 10.75 11.41
315 10.24 10.06 10.47 10.50 10.59 10.59 10.50 10.71
400 9.47 9.84 9.34 9.80 9.77 9.70 9.87 9.75
500 8.46 8.49 8.41 8.05 8.46 8.20 7.76 8.02
630 7.66 7.76 7.75 7.25 7.64 7.42 7.59 7.66
800 6.66 6.41 6.68 6.30 6.65 6.55 6.66 6.57
1000 6.05 6.08 6.22 6.11 6.26 6.29 6.30 6.17
1250 5.71 5.84 5.81 5.91 5.70 5.87 5.72 5.69
1600 5.05 4.96 5.02 5.00 5.14 5.18 5.15 5.20
2000 4.46 4.41 4.58 4.53 4.60 4.50 4.62 4.59
2500 3.79 3.81 3.89 3.75 3.75 3.89 3.77 3.71
3150 3.40 3.40 3.44 3.29 3.51 3.51 3.39 3.38
4000 2.85 2.87 2.88 2.80 2.88 2.96 2.92 2.87
5000 2.13 2.07 2.12 2.08 2.08 2.12 2.19 2.10
6300 1.63 1.58 1.56 1.58 1.59 1.65 1.67 1.60
8000 1.30 1.22 1.18 1.19 1.30 1.24 1.28 1.28

Band
80 11.31 14.33 11.62 12.66 14.78 15.43 13.76 14.84
100 11.90 10.83 10.88 10.53 14.07 11.76 12.70 12.20
125 12.09 11.42 11.95 10.77 13.45 12.39 13.17 11.84
160 12.92 12.69 12.77 11.78 12.56 13.56 13.17 12.97
200 12.11 11.71 10.46 11.47 12.09 12.29 12.16 12.05
250 10.95 10.19 10.66 10.64 10.71 10.65 11.06 11.06
315 10.17 10.15 10.23 10.07 10.21 10.23 10.57 10.14
400 9.44 9.53 9.48 9.83 9.86 9.87 10.01 9.62
500 8.41 8.21 8.00 8.19 8.35 7.99 8.21 7.94
630 7.70 7.58 7.54 7.56 7.87 7.72 7.68 7.71
800 6.42 6.50 6.38 6.70 6.80 6.85 6.63 6.70
1000 5.94 6.12 6.23 6.12 6.08 5.97 6.24 6.14
1250 5.90 5.81 5.85 5.78 5.73 5.75 5.97 5.98
1600 5.19 5.13 5.18 4.89 5.05 5.18 5.13 5.09
2000 4.67 4.55 4.69 4.53 4.62 4.57 4.57 4.47
2500 3.85 3.95 3.80 3.79 3.82 3.81 3.70 3.79
3150 3.39 3.37 3.42 3.40 3.39 3.56 3.44 3.49
4000 2.84 2.78 2.82 2.80 2.88 2.92 2.89 2.85
5000 2.07 2.05 2.07 2.00 2.17 2.16 2.21 2.08
6300 1.55 1.56 1.51 1.54 1.58 1.61 1.64 1.64
8000 1.25 1.18 1.18 1.22 1.28 1.27 1.26 1.27
34
Table A4. Four-microphone mean EDT and T20 for the three source locations L1, L2 and L3 (Configuration A).
One-third Octave Mean EDT [s] Mean T20 [s]

Band
Center Frequency [Hz] L1 L2 L3 L1-L3 L1 L2 L3 L1-L3
80 12.66 13.24 12.37 12.75 13.79 16.15 14.68 14.81
100 11.26 11.15 11.01 11.14 12.92 12.90 12.63 12.81
125 11.98 12.79 11.53 12.08 13.09 13.67 12.68 13.14
160 12.61 13.25 12.52 12.79 13.44 14.42 13.06 13.61
200 11.08 11.47 11.40 11.31 12.14 12.97 12.15 12.41
250 9.95 10.46 10.60 10.33 10.86 11.14 10.87 10.94
315 10.20 10.31 10.15 10.22 10.43 10.60 10.28 10.44
400 9.49 9.61 9.57 9.56 9.75 9.77 9.84 9.79
500 8.11 8.35 8.20 8.22 8.18 8.10 8.12 8.13
630 7.38 7.60 7.59 7.52 7.65 7.58 7.74 7.65
800 6.52 6.51 6.50 6.51 6.74 6.61 6.74 6.70
1000 5.92 6.11 6.10 6.04 6.20 6.25 6.11 6.19
1250 5.62 5.82 5.83 5.75 5.78 5.74 5.86 5.79
1600 4.92 5.01 5.09 5.01 5.02 5.17 5.11 5.10
2000 4.55 4.49 4.61 4.55 4.52 4.58 4.56 4.55
2500 3.78 3.81 3.85 3.81 3.80 3.78 3.78 3.78
3150 3.36 3.38 3.39 3.38 3.43 3.45 3.47 3.45
4000 2.74 2.85 2.81 2.80 2.80 2.91 2.88 2.86
5000 2.01 2.10 2.05 2.05 2.09 2.12 2.15 2.12
6300 1.56 1.59 1.54 1.56 1.60 1.63 1.62 1.62
8000 1.20 1.22 1.21 1.21 1.23 1.27 1.27 1.26
Table A5. Standard deviation (SD) of EDT and T20 for the three source locations L1, L2 and L3 (Configuration A)
One-third Octave Standard Deviation (EDT) Standard Deviation T20

Band
Center Frequency [Hz] L1 L2 L3 L1-L3 L1 L2 L3 L1-L3
80 1.02 1.13 1.37 1.13 1.37 0.95 0.69 1.37
100 0.70 0.67 0.60 0.61 0.88 1.18 1.00 0.94
125 0.35 0.51 0.60 0.70 0.86 1.11 0.74 0.94
160 0.47 0.45 0.52 0.55 0.56 1.00 0.42 0.89
200 0.72 0.51 0.70 0.62 0.89 0.54 0.11 0.68
250 0.37 0.35 0.31 0.43 0.56 0.30 0.22 0.38
315 0.27 0.21 0.07 0.19 0.49 0.09 0.19 0.31
400 0.14 0.25 0.18 0.18 0.31 0.07 0.16 0.19
500 0.24 0.20 0.17 0.21 0.12 0.30 0.19 0.20
630 0.18 0.24 0.07 0.19 0.13 0.11 0.09 0.12
800 0.10 0.19 0.14 0.13 0.14 0.06 0.10 0.11
1000 0.06 0.07 0.12 0.12 0.11 0.06 0.11 0.11
1250 0.09 0.08 0.05 0.12 0.15 0.08 0.14 0.12
1600 0.07 0.04 0.14 0.11 0.09 0.03 0.06 0.09
2000 0.09 0.08 0.08 0.09 0.16 0.05 0.06 0.10
2500 0.11 0.06 0.07 0.08 0.10 0.08 0.05 0.07
3150 0.06 0.06 0.02 0.05 0.05 0.07 0.07 0.06
4000 0.05 0.04 0.03 0.06 0.07 0.04 0.03 0.07
5000 0.03 0.03 0.03 0.05 0.02 0.05 0.05 0.05
6300 0.04 0.03 0.02 0.04 0.01 0.04 0.03 0.03
8000 0.03 0.05 0.03 0.04 0.02 0.03 0.01 0.02
35
Table A6. EDT and T20 integrated impulse response reverberation times for source location L1 (Configuration B).

Band
80 11.66 11.55 12.32 13.29 11.37 11.22 14.62 15.49
100 9.42 11.23 10.74 11.12 10.69 11.42 12.18 12.59
125 9.18 9.01 10.49 10.10 10.00 9.25 10.24 10.06
160 8.98 8.39 8.71 8.82 9.83 8.64 8.66 9.05
200 7.15 7.87 7.42 7.90 8.26 9.11 8.87 8.68
250 7.32 7.20 7.00 7.06 7.53 7.59 7.44 8.14
315 7.41 6.80 7.28 6.78 7.05 7.05 7.26 7.41
400 6.23 6.76 6.63 6.48 6.90 6.77 7.00 6.98
500 5.46 5.72 5.78 5.73 5.73 5.65 5.70 5.77
630 5.34 5.45 5.77 5.29 5.40 5.35 5.22 5.48
800 4.66 4.89 5.01 4.79 4.94 4.78 4.78 4.83
1000 4.55 4.51 4.65 4.57 4.56 4.45 4.61 4.55
1250 4.26 4.45 4.67 4.65 4.14 4.33 4.53 4.34
1600 4.04 4.06 4.08 4.19 4.10 3.90 4.16 4.13
2000 3.65 3.64 3.78 3.79 3.79 3.71 3.73 3.77
2500 3.36 3.30 3.35 3.38 3.40 3.42 3.38 3.29
3150 2.96 2.91 2.97 3.11 3.11 3.05 3.07 3.01
4000 2.57 2.56 2.55 2.74 2.62 2.68 2.62 2.69
5000 2.00 1.99 1.98 2.06 1.99 2.07 2.05 2.11
6300 1.61 1.65 1.54 1.65 1.67 1.64 1.66 1.70
8000 1.27 1.32 1.20 1.30 1.34 1.31 1.33 1.34

Band
80 10.89 11.86 12.85 12.88 10.04 11.39 13.64 14.36
100 11.73 10.88 11.76 11.31 12.03 10.77 12.86 13.51
125 10.93 9.72 11.20 10.64 13.00 9.79 11.94 11.79
160 8.31 8.39 8.69 7.84 9.79 8.95 9.23 8.80
200 6.92 7.73 7.51 7.09 8.06 7.82 8.05 7.51
250 7.30 7.03 6.69 6.79 7.50 7.34 7.22 6.81
315 8.08 6.61 6.98 6.98 7.02 6.78 6.99 6.84
400 7.32 6.75 6.62 6.66 6.45 6.60 6.67 6.67
500 5.63 5.88 5.77 5.29 5.84 5.89 5.90 5.75
630 5.14 5.37 5.28 5.04 5.47 5.54 5.44 5.23
800 4.68 4.31 4.86 4.77 4.87 4.89 4.77 4.81
1000 4.59 4.38 4.62 4.75 4.56 4.56 4.65 4.67
1250 4.43 4.41 4.42 4.44 4.56 4.38 4.54 4.61
1600 4.28 4.07 3.99 3.94 4.10 4.20 4.19 4.08
2000 3.86 3.61 3.80 3.65 3.62 3.70 3.74 3.69
2500 3.41 3.32 3.35 3.35 3.33 3.29 3.33 3.33
3150 3.04 3.02 3.02 2.95 2.98 2.99 2.96 2.97
4000 2.58 2.60 2.63 2.61 2.69 2.57 2.57 2.53
5000 2.02 6.01 1.97 1.94 2.01 2.04 2.06 2.03
6300 1.68 1.59 1.59 1.54 1.68 1.65 1.60 1.62
8000 1.28 1.24 1.25 1.21 1.33 1.30 1.30 1.31
36

Band
80 11.81 12.57 11.64 11.29 11.05 11.84 12.84 10.53
100 10.84 10.77 10.87 10.22 12.11 9.75 12.21 10.38
125 10.82 8.78 10.01 9.29 12.12 9.55 10.62 9.53
160 9.23 8.12 9.00 8.30 10.19 8.84 9.40 8.60
200 8.22 7.64 7.77 7.59 8.79 8.41 8.33 7.45
250 7.18 6.99 7.26 7.00 7.52 6.96 7.39 6.67
315 6.83 6.72 7.26 6.94 7.11 6.63 7.38 6.67
400 6.36 6.12 6.62 6.53 6.92 6.71 6.79 6.56
500 5.90 5.57 5.71 5.57 5.72 5.83 5.78 5.56
630 5.46 5.16 5.45 5.30 5.38 5.41 5.50 5.36
800 4.62 4.77 4.72 4.73 4.64 4.82 4.81 4.74
1000 4.82 4.58 4.41 4.51 4.64 4.39 4.68 4.44
1250 4.53 4.31 4.20 4.35 4.34 4.37 4.42 4.42
1600 4.12 4.04 3.97 3.92 4.14 4.12 3.98 3.91
2000 3.73 3.76 3.72 3.72 3.75 3.79 3.72 3.78
2500 3.41 3.44 3.34 3.33 3.36 3.40 3.36 3.33
3150 3.04 3.06 2.94 2.94 3.07 3.01 3.02 3.03
4000 2.51 2.52 2.55 2.63 2.64 2.60 2.64 2.60
5000 1.95 1.95 2.00 2.02 2.05 2.04 2.05 2.02
6300 1.61 1.58 1.61 1.59 1.66 1.67 1.65 1.61
8000 1.25 1.27 1.27 1.27 1.31 1.34 1.33 1.29
Table A9. Mean EDT and T20 reverberation times for twelve measurements (Configuration B) and their standard
deviation (SD).
One-third Octave Band EDT [s] T20 [s]

Center Frequency [Hz] Mean SD Mean SD
80 12.01 0.73 12.14 1.79
100 10.87 0.64 11.61 1.12
125 9.95 0.82 10.53 1.24
160 8.55 0.41 9.14 0.53
200 7.55 0.38 8.25 0.53
250 7.06 0.20 7.32 0.39
315 7.04 0.40 7.01 0.26
400 6.58 0.30 6.75 0.17
500 5.66 0.18 5.76 0.10
630 5.33 0.19 5.40 0.10
800 4.73 0.17 4.81 0.08
1000 4.58 0.13 4.56 0.09
1250 4.42 0.14 4.41 0.13
1600 4.06 0.10 4.08 0.10
2000 3.72 0.08 3.73 0.05
2500 3.36 0.04 3.35 0.04
3150 3.00 0.06 3.02 0.05
4000 2.59 0.06 2.62 0.05
5000 2.11 1.18 2.04 0.03
6300 1.60 0.04 1.65 0.03
8000 1.26 0.03 1.32 0.02
37
Table A10. EDT and T20 integrated impulse response reverberation times for source location L1 (Configuration C).

Band
80 11.05 10.84 11.00 10.87 11.25 12.27 12.88 11.14
100 10.29 10.11 9.83 10.21 10.36 11.54 10.29 10.26
125 9.53 9.09 9.16 9.46 9.32 8.88 9.15 9.02
160 8.49 7.09 8.28 8.13 8.40 9.15 8.93 8.13
200 7.12 7.27 7.48 7.00 8.02 8.18 8.03 7.47
250 6.32 7.23 6.95 6.17 6.99 7.16 7.64 6.85
315 6.24 6.74 6.39 6.03 6.59 6.50 6.71 6.53
400 5.90 6.03 5.73 6.03 6.43 6.17 6.33 6.53
500 4.83 4.83 5.14 4.90 5.16 5.00 5.28 6.11
630 4.89 4.59 4.87 4.72 4.93 4.75 4.97 5.05
800 4.56 4.45 4.50 4.41 4.32 4.30 4.40 4.86
1000 4.14 4.31 4.48 4.27 4.06 4.26 4.27 4.34
1250 4.01 4.19 4.33 4.15 4.09 4.17 4.19 4.14
1600 3.87 3.87 3.84 3.69 3.81 3.83 3.82 3.65
2000 3.55 3.61 3.60 3.47 3.45 3.55 3.60 3.53
2500 3.24 3.29 3.28 3.20 3.17 3.31 3.29 3.21
3150 3.01 2.94 3.09 2.93 2.96 3.00 2.99 2.94
4000 2.66 2.62 2.63 2.64 2.66 2.66 2.68 2.63
5000 2.05 2.08 2.07 2.05 2.09 2.10 2.12 2.16
6300 1.71 1.73 1.69 1.68 1.68 1.74 1.77 1.66
8000 1.39 1.40 1.35 1.38 1.49 1.42 1.44 1.42

Band
80 10.64 11.12 10.68 8.98 11.59 10.87 10.99 9.47
100 10.87 10.19 10.80 10.45 11.47 10.58 10.66 10.27
125 9.53 9.53 10.41 10.59 9.95 9.60 9.70 9.34
160 7.90 8.08 8.20 8.12 8.27 8.40 9.07 8.13
200 7.31 6.99 6.65 6.45 7.21 7.29 7.19 7.21
250 6.59 6.62 6.44 6.16 6.70 7.10 6.84 6.78
315 6.13 6.42 6.38 6.11 6.54 6.48 6.31 6.22
400 5.81 6.00 6.19 6.02 6.33 6.16 6.00 5.91
500 5.30 5.22 5.35 5.05 5.38 5.26 5.44 5.19
630 5.12 4.70 4.99 4.91 4.93 5.05 5.04 5.01
800 4.52 4.47 4.46 4.38 4.37 4.48 4.52 4.44
1000 4.08 4.24 4.36 4.30 4.24 4.10 4.18 4.01
1250 4.20 4.03 4.28 4.21 4.15 3.86 4.20 4.16
1600 4.02 3.77 3.73 3.85 3.93 3.93 3.76 3.85
2000 3.62 3.56 3.59 3.55 3.67 3.57 3.55 3.62
2500 3.37 3.31 3.19 3.21 3.26 3.19 3.36 3.33
3150 3.11 2.99 2.94 2.94 2.95 3.00 3.02 3.05
4000 2.60 2.64 2.74 2.57 2.63 2.72 2.59 2.63
5000 2.19 2.07 2.08 2.05 2.15 2.16 2.13 2.12
6300 1.76 1.66 1.64 1.70 1.80 1.79 1.72 1.74
8000 1.38 1.35 1.34 1.39 1.44 1.52 1.43 1.44
38

Band
80 11.39 9.11 9.08 9.25 11.56 10.38 9.43 10.24
100 10.30 9.99 9.24 9.93 10.46 10.57 9.78 10.21
125 9.69 8.55 7.80 8.57 8.78 8.61 8.80 8.36
160 8.06 6.61 6.51 8.00 7.34 7.31 7.49 7.03
200 7.83 6.58 6.65 7.29 7.91 7.73 7.33 8.13
250 6.71 6.37 6.62 6.42 7.20 6.86 6.71 7.05
315 6.15 6.19 6.43 6.30 6.33 6.66 6.35 6.92
400 5.81 5.81 5.97 5.96 6.24 6.37 6.22 6.38
500 5.09 5.26 5.00 5.02 5.28 5.11 5.37 5.14
630 5.02 4.97 4.70 4.80 4.86 4.74 5.01 4.75
800 4.31 4.40 4.38 4.30 4.24 4.45 4.45 4.43
1000 3.90 4.19 4.39 4.20 4.04 4.26 4.13 4.19
1250 4.19 4.01 4.10 4.20 4.11 4.18 4.12 4.14
1600 3.78 3.76 3.75 3.79 3.84 3.90 3.72 3.86
2000 3.51 3.48 3.53 3.51 3.62 3.62 3.57 3.64
2500 3.27 3.11 3.21 3.21 3.26 3.19 3.21 3.33
3150 2.89 2.90 2.99 3.00 3.00 2.99 3.00 3.01
4000 2.56 2.57 2.60 2.51 2.66 2.69 2.71 2.70
5000 2.11 2.09 2.10 2.04 2.18 2.15 2.15 2.14
6300 1.75 1.75 1.67 1.74 1.77 1.80 1.74 1.67
8000 1.43 1.41 1.36 1.43 1.46 1.43 1.46 1.47
Table A13. Mean EDT and T20 reverberation times for twelve measurements (Configuration C) and their standard
deviation (SD).

80 10.25 0.93 10.92 1.03
100 10.17 0.43 10.52 0.51
125 9.26 0.78 9.10 0.47
160 7.73 0.67 8.08 0.72
200 7.03 0.41 7.62 0.40
250 6.54 0.31 6.98 0.27
315 6.29 0.19 6.51 0.20
400 5.94 0.13 6.25 0.18
500 5.08 0.18 5.30 0.28
630 4.85 0.16 4.92 0.12
800 4.43 0.08 4.43 0.16
1000 4.23 0.15 4.17 0.11
1250 4.16 0.10 4.12 0.09
1600 3.81 0.09 3.82 0.08
2000 3.55 0.05 3.58 0.06
2500 3.24 0.07 3.26 0.06
3150 2.98 0.07 2.99 0.03
4000 2.61 0.06 2.66 0.04
5000 2.08 0.04 2.14 0.03
6300 1.71 0.04 1.74 0.05
8000 1.38 0.03 1.45 0.03
39
Table A14. EDT and T20 integrated impulse response reverberation times for source location L1 (Configuration D).

Band
80 12.27 10.68 10.65 12.80 13.48 12.58 11.11 13.76
100 10.41 9.40 9.36 10.53 11.03 10.56 9.49 11.24
125 9.03 7.87 8.56 8.95 9.29 8.33 8.94 8.52
160 8.44 6.98 7.68 7.62 9.50 8.44 8.77 7.89
200 7.55 6.72 7.76 7.34 6.88 7.68 7.70 7.75
250 7.04 7.06 6.92 6.31 6.60 7.12 7.15 6.88
315 6.98 6.87 6.39 6.30 6.75 6.70 6.63 6.55
400 6.31 6.26 5.93 6.11 6.58 6.36 6.32 6.40
500 5.68 5.55 5.16 5.32 5.58 5.69 5.87 5.48
630 5.06 5.17 4.86 5.32 5.43 5.32 5.35 5.29
800 4.44 4.60 4.55 4.93 4.60 4.69 4.64 4.76
1000 4.48 4.20 4.38 4.52 4.39 4.46 4.40 4.53
1250 4.22 4.04 4.38 4.27 4.19 4.10 4.24 4.45
1600 4.05 3.84 3.87 3.94 3.88 3.74 3.89 3.98
2000 3.67 3.75 3.54 3.54 3.63 3.82 3.50 3.63
2500 3.13 3.14 3.16 3.25 3.26 3.21 3.16 3.15
3150 2.81 2.87 2.76 2.94 2.86 2.89 2.88 2.92
4000 2.42 2.40 2.35 2.40 2.52 2.51 2.46 2.47
5000 1.89 1.82 1.84 1.84 1.91 1.82 1.90 1.87
6300 1.55 1.52 1.53 1.47 1.53 1.54 1.55 1.58
8000 1.20 1.22 1.15 1.13 1.22 1.22 1.23 1.26

Band
80 11.42 11.27 12.21 10.78 13.41 11.47 11.60 11.15
100 11.13 10.41 11.02 10.29 11.06 11.50 11.89 10.19
125 9.54 9.49 10.05 10.13 9.29 9.27 9.84 9.79
160 7.44 7.48 8.57 8.02 7.86 8.42 8.81 8.63
200 6.18 6.31 6.48 7.01 6.77 7.15 7.81 7.05
250 6.72 6.53 6.61 6.92 6.85 6.53 7.08 6.67
315 6.57 5.94 6.72 6.44 6.70 6.56 6.99 6.79
400 6.08 6.02 6.52 6.25 6.40 6.26 6.80 6.58
500 5.60 5.61 5.51 5.57 5.50 5.38 5.57 5.67
630 5.32 5.15 5.22 5.21 5.23 5.09 5.31 5.46
800 4.46 4.63 4.60 4.60 4.84 4.81 4.93 4.93
1000 4.35 4.53 4.42 4.37 4.41 4.61 4.39 4.49
1250 4.48 4.45 4.30 4.10 4.27 4.23 4.25 4.35
1600 3.96 3.98 3.74 3.77 3.77 3.88 3.89 3.96
2000 3.51 3.56 3.60 3.62 3.54 3.64 3.55 3.73
2500 3.24 3.21 3.29 3.17 3.31 3.22 3.21 3.21
3150 2.93 2.92 2.82 2.88 2.91 2.92 2.83 2.92
4000 2.53 2.40 2.51 2.46 2.51 2.51 2.50 2.46
5000 1.84 1.89 1.87 1.86 1.94 1.91 1.99 1.92
6300 1.50 1.48 1.54 1.50 1.59 1.55 1.55 1.57
8000 1.23 1.11 1.21 1.18 1.23 1.24 1.34 1.25
40

Band
80 11.96 10.07 11.68 12.00 11.36 10.71 14.23 14.27
100 10.79 10.73 10.29 10.50 11.32 10.99 10.32 11.33
125 9.12 9.01 8.99 8.67 9.40 9.39 9.65 9.11
160 8.43 7.34 8.53 7.48 7.43 7.50 8.35 8.84
200 6.94 6.69 7.83 6.48 7.43 7.24 7.71 7.50
250 7.05 6.41 6.85 6.35 6.66 6.57 6.90 6.59
315 6.98 6.65 6.54 6.51 6.78 6.84 7.00 6.49
400 6.49 6.49 6.34 6.21 6.72 6.68 6.36 6.44
500 5.09 5.85 5.64 5.36 5.50 5.68 5.63 5.86
630 4.89 5.25 5.13 4.78 5.22 5.34 5.27 5.52
800 4.80 4.67 4.54 4.44 4.67 4.81 4.77 4.72
1000 4.32 4.51 4.24 4.26 4.37 4.52 4.62 4.45
1250 4.04 4.23 4.12 4.25 4.49 4.36 4.34 4.19
1600 3.77 3.73 3.82 3.86 3.94 3.92 3.99 3.94
2000 3.51 3.47 3.57 3.64 3.51 3.55 3.63 3.48
2500 3.23 3.23 3.27 3.21 3.15 3.19 3.25 3.20
3150 2.86 2.91 2.92 2.97 2.91 2.86 2.89 2.92
4000 2.45 2.44 2.55 2.55 2.49 2.47 2.52 2.56
5000 2.02 1.87 1.89 1.95 2.22 1.96 1.91 1.92
6300 1.53 1.51 1.57 1.58 1.62 1.62 1.58 1.69
8000 1.22 1.25 1.22 1.25 1.28 1.29 1.27 1.30
Table A17. Mean EDT and T20 reverberation times for twelve measurements (Configuration D) and their standard
deviation (SD).

80 11.43 0.82 12.30 1.34
100 10.38 0.55 10.87 0.66
125 9.08 0.63 9.21 0.46
160 7.80 0.54 8.33 0.61
200 6.90 0.57 7.37 0.36
250 6.72 0.28 6.79 0.23
315 6.56 0.30 6.73 0.16
400 6.25 0.19 6.49 0.17
500 5.49 0.22 5.61 0.15
630 5.11 0.18 5.32 0.12
800 4.60 0.15 4.76 0.11
1000 4.38 0.11 4.47 0.09
1250 4.24 0.15 4.29 0.11
1600 3.86 0.10 3.90 0.08
2000 3.58 0.08 3.60 0.10
2500 3.21 0.05 3.21 0.05
3150 2.88 0.06 2.89 0.03
4000 2.45 0.07 2.50 0.03
5000 1.88 0.06 1.94 0.10
6300 1.52 0.03 1.58 0.05
8000 1.20 0.05 1.26 0.04
41
Table A18. Equivalent sound absorption area and averaged Sabine absorption coefficient for Configuration B.
One-third Mean Equivalent Sound Averaged Sabine

Octave Band Reverberation Time Absorption Area Absorption Coefficient
Center Frequency [Hz] EDT [s] T20 [s] A(EDT) [m2] A(T20) [m2] ᾱ(EDT) ᾱ(T20)
80 12.01 12.14 3.69 3.65 0.01 0.01
100 10.87 11.61 4.07 3.80 0.02 0.01
125 9.95 10.53 4.42 4.17 0.02 0.02
160 8.55 9.14 5.11 4.77 0.02 0.02
200 7.55 8.25 5.73 5.23 0.02 0.02
250 7.06 7.32 6.05 5.82 0.02 0.02
315 7.04 7.01 5.94 5.97 0.02 0.02
400 6.58 6.75 6.20 6.03 0.02 0.02
500 5.66 5.76 7.10 6.96 0.03 0.03
630 5.33 5.40 7.35 7.25 0.03 0.03
800 4.73 4.81 8.16 8.01 0.03 0.03
1000 4.58 4.56 8.22 8.25 0.03 0.03
1250 4.42 4.41 8.28 8.31 0.03 0.03
1600 4.06 4.08 8.83 8.76 0.03 0.03
2000 3.72 3.73 9.37 9.35 0.03 0.03
2500 3.36 3.35 10.04 10.08 0.04 0.04
3150 3.00 3.02 10.67 10.54 0.04 0.04
4000 2.59 2.62 11.43 11.21 0.04 0.04
5000 2.11 2.04 13.03 13.68 0.05 0.05
6300 1.60 1.65 15.90 15.09 0.06 0.06
8000 1.26 1.32 17.24 15.65 0.06 0.06
Table A19. Equivalent sound absorption area and averaged Sabine absorption coefficient for Configuration C.

80 10.25 10.92 4.33 0.03 0.02 0.02
100 10.17 10.52 4.35 0.05 0.02 0.02
125 9.26 9.10 4.75 0.08 0.02 0.02
160 7.73 8.08 5.66 0.13 0.02 0.02
200 7.03 7.62 6.17 0.20 0.02 0.02
250 6.54 6.98 6.56 0.29 0.02 0.02
315 6.29 6.51 6.70 0.43 0.02 0.02
400 5.94 6.25 6.94 0.61 0.03 0.02
500 5.08 5.30 8.01 0.81 0.03 0.03
630 4.85 4.92 8.18 1.05 0.03 0.03
800 4.43 4.43 8.80 1.31 0.03 0.03
1000 4.23 4.17 9.01 1.57 0.03 0.03
1250 4.16 4.12 8.93 1.84 0.03 0.03
1600 3.81 3.82 9.55 2.21 0.04 0.04
2000 3.55 3.58 9.97 2.65 0.04 0.04
2500 3.24 3.26 10.54 3.29 0.04 0.04
3150 2.98 2.99 10.77 4.28 0.04 0.04
4000 2.61 2.66 11.27 5.89 0.04 0.04
5000 2.08 2.14 13.28 8.24 0.05 0.05
6300 1.71 1.74 14.20 12.05 0.05 0.05
8000 1.38 1.45 14.06 18.31 0.05 0.05
42
Table A20. Equivalent sound absorption area and averaged Sabine absorption coefficient for Configuration D.

80 12.00 12.30 3.88 0.01 3.61 0.01
100 10.50 10.87 4.26 0.02 4.07 0.02
125 8.67 9.21 4.85 0.02 4.78 0.02
160 7.48 8.33 5.61 0.02 5.25 0.02
200 6.48 7.37 6.29 0.02 5.88 0.02
250 6.35 6.79 6.37 0.02 6.30 0.02
315 6.51 6.73 6.40 0.02 6.23 0.02
400 6.21 6.49 6.56 0.02 6.30 0.02
500 5.36 5.61 7.35 0.03 7.16 0.03
630 4.78 5.32 7.72 0.03 7.37 0.03
800 4.44 4.76 8.42 0.03 8.09 0.03
1000 4.26 4.47 8.66 0.03 8.45 0.03
1250 4.25 4.29 8.73 0.03 8.61 0.03
1600 3.86 3.90 9.40 0.03 9.28 0.03
2000 3.64 3.60 9.86 0.04 9.79 0.04
2500 3.21 3.21 10.66 0.04 10.67 0.04
3150 2.97 2.89 11.26 0.04 11.21 0.04
4000 2.55 2.50 12.37 0.05 12.04 0.04
5000 1.95 1.94 15.58 0.06 14.91 0.06
6300 1.58 1.58 17.36 0.06 16.30 0.06
8000 1.25 1.26 19.14 0.07 17.24 0.06
43
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4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE 5a. CONTRACT NUMBER
NNL12AA09C
Characterization of the Reverberation Chamber at the NASA Langley 5b. GRANT NUMBER
Structural Acoustics Loads and Transmission (SALT) Facility
5c. PROGRAM ELEMENT NUMBER
6. AUTHOR(S) 5d. PROJECT NUMBER
Grosveld, Ferdinand W. 5e. TASK NUMBER
5f. WORK UNIT NUMBER
380046.02.07.04.01.05
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REPORT NUMBER
NASA Langley Research Center
Hampton, Virginia 23681
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National Aeronautics and Space Administration NASA
Washington, DC 20546-0001
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NASA/CR-2013-217968
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13. SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES
This report was prepared by Northrop Grumman under NASA contract NNL12AA09C with Analytical Mechanics Associates,
Inc., Hampton, VA
Langley Technical Monitor: Randolph H. Cabell
14. ABSTRACT
In 2011 the noise generating capabilities in the reverberation chamber of the Structural Acoustic Loads and Transmission (SALT) facility at NASA Langley
Research Center were enhanced with two fiberglass reinforced polyester resin exponential horns, each coupled to Wyle Acoustic Source WAS-3000 airstream
modulators. This report describes the characterization of the reverberation chamber in terms of the background noise, diffusivity, sound pressure levels, the
reverberation times and the related overall acoustic absorption in the empty chamber and with the acoustic horn(s) installed. The frequency range of interest
includes the 80 Hz to 8000 Hz one-third octave bands. Reverberation time and sound pressure level measurements were conducted and standard deviations
from the mean were computed. It was concluded that a diffuse field could be produced above the Schröder frequency in the 400 Hz one-third octave band and
higher for all applications. This frequency could be lowered by installing panel diffusers or moving vanes to improve the acoustic modal overlap in the
chamber. In the 80 Hz to 400 Hz one-third octave bands a successful measurement will be dependent on the type of measurement, the test configuration, the
source and microphone locations and the desired accuracy. It is recommended that qualification measurements endorsed in the International Standards be
conducted for each particular application.
15. SUBJECT TERMS
absorption; acoustics; diffuse field; diffusivity; horn; pneumatic; reverberation chamber; reverberation time; room modes;
standard deviation
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Characterization of the Reverberation Chamber

Characterization of the Reverberation Chamber

National Aeronautics and

Langley Research Center Prepared for Langley Research Center

NASA Center for AeroSpace Information

Table 1. Nominal reverberation chamber geometric properties............................................................... 17

Figure 1. The large 35 Hz cut-off frequency exponential horn................................................................. 27

LIST OF APPENDIX TABLES

Acoustic Horn Airstream Modulators

MEASUREMENTS, REQUIREMENTS AND ANALYSIS

Reverberation Time Measurements

I max  1.9V 1/3 (8)

Sound Field Diffusers

Sopt  0.04V 2/3 (17)

1. ISO International Standard. Acoustics - Measurement of Sound Absorption in a Reverberation

Table 1. Nominal reverberation chamber geometric properties.

Width w [m] 6.4

Table 2. Ambient test conditions in the reverberation chamber.

Temperature [°C] 25.3±0.2

Table 3. Reverberation time measurements chamber configurations.

MDF insert in the TL window Large 35 Hz horn Small 160 Hz horn

One-third Lowest Maximum

Table 6. Instrumentation and equipment for the reverberation measurements.

Model/ Serial ECN/ Calibration

Modular Precision Sound

1/3-1/1 Octave Band

Input Stage Brüel & Kjær ZC0020

BNC to Mini Cable Brüel & Kjær AO173

Magnetic Field Power 375 W RMS into 8-ohm

One-third Octave EDT measurements [s]

One-third Octave T20 measurements [s]

One-third Octave Band dmin [m]

One-third Octave One-third Length Width Height Modal Number of

One-third Octave Mean Minimum Schröder Maximum

Model/ Serial ECN/

ICP Signal Conditioner PCB Piezotronics 584A 1004 A033091

150 watts per Channel

Signal Switching System Precision Filters PF 464K 481A-261 1656103

Smart Office Analyzer M+P International 2379 Version 4.1

Chassis with Dynamic National NI PXI-1045

Random signal with flat

Acoustical Calibrator Brüel & Kjær 4231 2242297 A029503

One-third Octave Total Total

One-third Octave Band αc 4mV

One-third Mean Equivalent Sound ISO ASTM Averaged Sabine ISO

Reverberation Valid One-third

Chamber volume ISO 3741 [3] >200 m3 279 m3 ≥100 Hz

Figure 1. The large 35 Hz cut-off frequency exponential horn.

Mean Reverberation Time, s

Mean Reverberation Time, s

T20 Reverberation Time, s

T20 Variation from Average, s

Chamber Width/Height Ratio One-third Octave Band Center Frequency, Hz

One-third Octave Band Center Frequency, Hz

Figure 18. Total standard deviation (SD) of the sound

One-third Octave EDT [s] T20 [s]

One-third Octave EDT [s] T20 [s]

One-third Octave EDT [s] T20 [s]