Quality Sound

Why do people accept mediocre sound systems? Do they have very low expectations? Is sound quality unimportant? Can't they hear the difference?

Whenever you walk into a venue and hear a sound system for the first time, you judge the quality of the sound based on your own experience. For many people, a new sound system is an improvement over the old one, perhaps just because newer is simply better. They may even be aware of some (minor) deficiencies but shrug that off as a shortcoming common to all sound systems. They do not expect the sound system to reinforce a familiar voice without changing the tonal qualities. Very often, the new sound system will be auditioned with music.

The human auditory system is very quick to adapt to the sound qualities of an environment. Whether it is an echoey washroom or an muffled sound reinforcement system, after the initial perception is tallied we quickly become acclimated and give these qualities little further consideration. A sound system becomes familiar to the operator after a short period of use, and complaints voiced by those with "fresh" ears are often regarded as unfounded. Especially with music, our ability to accommodate a wide range of sources (pocket radio to concert sound system) and still be able to enjoy the music leaves a gap in the expected performance from a sound system. A great many mediocre sound systems can fall into this gap and still be viewed by their owners and operators as OK. As an industry, we must struggle against this easy acceptance and strive for excellence.

Unfortunately, excellence is not easily won. There can be a major cost difference between a barely adequate sound system and an excellent one. However, more often the cost of the components might not be significant but the attention to detail in the design and installation of the system is usually very, very different. To afford this attention, the design and installation must be supported by client expectations or the path of least resistance will be taken. This is because many of these details that make major differences in the performance of the sound reinforcement system will be in conflict with other elements of the building. You must have the support of the owner to be successful in allocating the space for the loudspeakers. This support is also necessary to convince the architect that the shape of the room and the materials used on its surfaces must serve the sound system. In renovations, you may need to rebuild parts of the building, beyond just replacing loudspeaker "A" with loudspeaker "B".

Most importantly, the people involved in the design and installation must have recognized their need to know about these details. They must take the time to study the theory and practice the implementation (and analyze the results) to learn the necessary skills. This knowledge and experience costs money. The client must be willing to spend more for these skills and not just take the lowest offer. This requires the client to be aware of the differences and be willing to pay for quality. I have often heard clients state that sound quality in this space (theatre, church, arena, classroom, etc.) is of paramount importance but when it finally comes down to issues of cost and compromise, sound may quickly move to the bottom of the priority list.

We have to educate our clients and the general public. The best way to start is by creating examples of excellent sound systems (you know, where reinforced voices sound the same as standing within eight feet of the person talking) and bringing prospective new clients to these venues to listen. Provide the client with aural demonstrations of sound system and acoustical design pitfalls, such as comb-filtering, late echoes, excess reverberation, and frequency response anomalies. Encourage them to listen more critically. We can't change the visually oriented nature of our species but we can provide concrete examples of the problems and solutions that can affect the outcome of any sound system installation. It is the expectations of our clients and the listeners they will host in the venue that will ultimately push for improvements in the quality of sound reinforcement systems.

United Entertainment Media Inc.
460 Park Avenue South, 9th Floor
New York, NY, 10016
Ph. 212-378-0400
FAX 212-378-2160

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