Measuring the Effectiveness
of any Sound Barrier
Sound Barriers are available in many different types, from sound reflecting to sound absorbing, in different weights and colors and with different attachment methods. With every barrier there is a percentage of sound that propagates over and around the barrier that can be predicted by site modeling, but there are also percentages of sound power that travel through a barrier and another portion that is reflected back to the sound source, increasing the sound level in the direction opposire the sound barrier.
While most sound barrier suppliers can supply data on certain sound barrier parameters, like STC (Sound Transfer Coefficient) and NRC (Noise Rediction Coefficient), sound barrier firms will not usually have data on exactly what their barriers will do for pickleball sound mitigation. Pickleball Sound Labs recognized this problem and after several years seeking useful data or a measurement method to collect accurate data, we built a proprietary pickleball sound absorption measurement system that uses what acousticians call an “impedance tube”. It sends recorded sound from a sound source (a high quality speaker) to a barrier. Our system uses recorded pickleball sound delivered to the sound tube (or as we call it, the “sound waveguide”), where we can directly measure exactly what percentage of pickleball sound passes through a particular barrier and, using the detected sound standing wave ratio at the main pitch of ordinary pickleball sound in the guide, determine the percentage of sound reflected and absorbed by the barrier under test. If you want to understand sound barriers well or if you manufacture sound barriers and want to know what they will do for pickleball sound, contact us.
