Bouncing Sound
Racquetball courts are notorious in the science of applied acoustics. A near perfect rectangles consisting of six hard, reflective surfaces, the typical court will bounce sound off its walls as easily as it will a racquet ball. This creates harsh reverberations of any sound in the room.
RT60, the standard way of measuring how reverberant (or echoey) a room is, usually hovers around 1 second or less for a small to medium sized room. This means that it takes 1 second or less for a sound to die down after you've generated it. The RT60 of the UO racquetball court was 3.5 seconds, three and a half times the norm for a room of its size. ASC decided the only way to control this was to place acoustics on all four walls and the ceiling of the room, providing control in both the horizontal and vertical planes, thereby increasing articulation and intelligibility of both the music and the instructor.
Getting rid of the "Boom"
Because workout music would be an integral part of the finished room, Art Noxon decided that bass traps would be essential in the room's final acoustic package. Sound panels would control any sound above 200Hz (the human vocal range) while bass trapping would provide absorption of the music's bass and the lower tones of the male voice. This would reduce the "boomy" quality that sometimes plagues small rooms with amplified sound.
Designed by ASC
ASC was initially provided with reference photos of a similar project at the University of Washington. In that instance, 2" thick 4' x 10" acoustic panels, alternating between two basic colors, were installed on all four walls.
ASC worked with the UO to take this initial reference and surpass it in both acoustic control and aesthetic design.
The sound panels lining the side and back walls form a gentle gradient, from black near the front of the room to light gray at the back. This gradient is echoed on the ceiling. Black bass traps circle the room in the corners where the walls meet the ceiling. The room's centerpiece is a six panel panorama of a mountain scene with two bikers silhouetted against a sunset. The panorama is 12' long and 10' tall, dominating the front of the room. Not just a decoration, the panorama incorporates ASC sound panel technology, ensuring maximum acoustic control without sacrificing aesthetic. The final product was praised by both staff and students.
