Taming the Echo: How to Reduce Reverberation in Your Space

Reverberation often goes unnoticed. But, it can be a real nuisance in our homes and offices, and can be downright disruptive if it gets out of hand. When we let that reverberation go unchecked for a long time, it can even negatively affect our mental and emotional health. It’s an important topic that no one seems to be talking about.

Taking steps to reduce reverberation in the spaces we spend the most amount of time leads to better communication and possible stress reduction. But to address it, we must understand it, and that’s what this article aims to accomplish. We will cover what reverberation is, the problems it can create, and some simple ways to get rid of excessive reverberation.

What is Reverberation?

If you’ve ever found yourself in a loud room that just seemed to keep getting louder, your ears weren’t playing tricks on you. You really were hearing voices. And chairs shifting and people walking. What you experienced is called reverberation. 

Reverberation, or reverb, is an acoustical phenomenon in which echoes build up in space, increasing in intensity. When we have multiple echoes bouncing around in a room, they have an additive effect. This means that the volume of all those echoes combine together and actually become louder. We must reduce reverberation if we want to create quieter spaces.

Since reverberation is caused by echo, the primary cause of it is hard, reflective surfaces on the floors, walls and ceilings. The more reflective surfaces a room has, the less likely it is that sound waves will have a chance to escape or become absorbed at any point in their journeys. The result is an endless loop of echoes mixed with new sounds that bounce around the room and increase in intensity.

Why Reverberation is a Problem

Aside from the bombardment of excess noise, there are specific reasons why we benefit from keeping our indoor spaces free of reverberation issues. By finding creative solutions for echo in a room, we can reduce reverberation and mitigate many of those issues.

Communication Problems

Excess noise makes it harder for us to communicate. We find ourselves straining to hear the conversations we are having, and often misunderstand the things we do hear. This can lead to all sorts of problems, from hurt feelings to lost business. Bringing the volume down makes it easier to hear and minimizes the chances of misunderstanding those we are speaking with.

It Only Gets Louder

The natural inclination when we find ourselves in reverberant rooms is to speak more loudly. This only exacerbates the problem. Introducing louder sounds leads to louder room echo, and louder reverberation in the end. If we don’t take steps to reduce reverberation rather than just screaming over it, all that noise can even lead to health problems. 

Increased Stress

When we find ourselves in a constantly noisy environment, that acoustical chaos can quickly lead to increased levels of stress and all the health implications associated with it. We find it harder to focus and may even lose sleep over it. If the noise is loud or prevalent enough, it can even cause hearing loss and tinnitus, which leads to an increasing amount of stress down the road. Luckily, there are some simple ways we can reduce reverberation and keep our homes and offices stress free.

How to Reduce Reverberation

Reducing reverberation is not a difficult concept to grasp, but many of us still have questions on how best to handle the acoustic treatment. Does soundproofing foam stop echo, or would acoustic panels work better? How do I handle treating the windows? It can feel like a lot if you are new to the subject.

In order to acoustically treat a room correctly, we must take some specifics into account. Namely, we must consider the room’s shape and size, as well as how that room is used. A space used primarily for watching movies in booming surround sound will experience different issues than a conference room primarily used for speaking with clients and team members.

Whether we are experiencing too much echo in apartments, office spaces, or restaurants, the principles and products we use to reduce reverberation are the same. Let’s look at some common acoustical treatment materials, as well as how they work to improve the sound in our indoor spaces.

Sound Absorption 

The primary way we reduce echo and reverberation in enclosed spaces is to absorb them. In fact, absorption is a key concept in soundproofing, echo reduction, reverb reduction, and keeping noise at bay. 

There are many products we typically use to accomplish this, and each one addresses sound waves from a slightly different angle. Here are a few of the simplest ways to stop echo in rooms and improve the sound in your space.

Acoustic Panels

Acoustic panels are the go-to solution for acoustical issues. They effectively reduce reverberation and echo, and they look great. These dense and porous panels are available in nearly any size, shape, and color you can think of, making them perfect pairings for any interior design scheme you have in mind. 

They are fantastic at absorbing a wide range of audio frequencies and improving the sound in rooms of all sizes and shapes. They are most often centered at the height where the vast amount of direct reflections occur.

Acoustic Foam

Another absorption option is acoustic foam. The surface often resembles the “egg carton” foam people associate with recording studios, but are available in pyramid, cone, wedge, or uneven cuboid shapes.

Acoustic foam is a versatile, cost-effective option for treating large surfaces, like when we are trying to cover entire walls or ceilings. They don’t perform quite as completely as acoustical panels, however. Foam tackles a narrower range of frequencies, which are concentrated on the high end of the spectrum.

Ceiling Clouds

You can also use acoustic panels on your ceiling. The ceiling is another large, often reflective surface that can create acoustical issues if left untreated. Standard panels can be mounted directly to flat ceilings, but if you have exposed mechanical, electrical, and plumbing (MEP) systems, ceiling clouds will be a much better bet. 

Ceiling clouds are acoustical absorbers that are suspended from the ceiling, directly into the open overhead space. This allows them to catch sound waves as they travel across the space, helping to reduce reverberation. When suspended horizontally, they also block much of the noise coming from your overhead MEP systems, meaning we have even less noise to contend with while we converse with friends and family. To top it off, they add a focal point that will make your soundproof meeting room or banquet hall turn heads.

Acoustical Curtains

Since we can’t treat windows in the same ways we treat walls, a more creative solution is required. Acoustical curtains are one of our best tools to address noise coming through or reflecting off windows. These sound absorption curtains for echo control are a great product that helps us dampen sound in rooms with a lot of large windows, and can even be used to completely darken rooms like blackout curtains. This makes them perfect options for conference rooms, soundproof home theaters, or any other space where proper sound and lighting make a big difference. 

Sound Diffusion 

Another way to reduce echo in rooms that lead to reverberation is to introduce sound diffusion products into the space. Sound diffusers work differently than sound absorbers, but remain an important part of reducing echoes that lead to reverberation. 

Sound diffusers are used to redirect or scatter sound reflections, depending on the diffuser type. A barrel diffuser, which resembles a barrel cut in half vertically, redirects sound reflections to either side, rather than straight back to the source. Skyline diffusers, however, present surfaces at different depths (they resemble a skyline viewed from overhead), which scatter reflections all over the room. Each diffuser style redirects sound waves in a distinct pattern, and all of them prevent the kind of direct reflections that lead to reverberation issues.

Getting Started

Whether you’re working on a full soundproofing job or are simply looking to improve the sound in your working or living spaces, using quality materials will give you the best results. There are simple DIY hacks that can provide a little relief, such as introducing soft furnishings like rugs, curtains, and furniture, but the only way to properly treat our important spaces is with professional acoustical absorption and diffusion materials.

Even if your goal is to create a soundproof office or a soundproof basement, it is going to be important that you reduce reverberation inside these spaces. This will allow you to reduce the overall volume inside, making it easier to block that sound from passing through walls and doors.

If you are ready to get started on a project and don’t know how to begin, reach out. We have worked on a myriad of projects in all kinds of room shapes and sizes. We know what works and what doesn’t. When you’re ready to get serious about your sound, we are here to help.