Acoustic Dampening

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Often, the biggest cause of a lack of speech clarity both with and without a sound system installed is ‘poor’ acoustics. The phrase ‘poor’ acoustics is a bit misleading, because depending on the use of the building, the acoustic requirements are different. For choir performances, a longer reverberation time gives a lovely warmth and means the sound lingers in the air, but this is the opposite to what you need for speech.

Lots of performance spaces actually have active acoustic dampening which can be adjusted depending on what is happening and the required level of reverberation. However, for most buildings, it is possible to find a happy medium, where the installation of acoustic dampening can massively increase speech intelligibility, but not take all the reverberation away from the room for use as a concert space.

Installing acoustic panels can help you get the best from an existing sound system, so it is worth considering this before investing in a new sound system which may not improve the situation much.

Reverberation time is a metric that is used to describe the amount of reverberation in a building. Longer reverberation times (>1.5s) suit acoustic and choral (non-rhythmical) music, whereas speech and amplified music with percussion require a reverberation time of 1.2s or less. Too much reflected sound at the listeners’ position compared to the direct sound from the person speaking or loudspeaker amplifying their voice makes it hard for the listeners’ ear-brain combination to decode the message.

If this is a problem for you in your space, our in-house expert Andy Pidsley is a member of the Institute of Acoustics and can carry out an acoustic survey. This comprises of tests and reverberation time measurements plus physical measurements of the dimensions of your space. He uses these to calculate the amount of absorption necessary to reduce the reverberation time to around one second. This is a good balance for speech and musical activities and will create a sense of ‘acoustic comfort’.

We then design a layout to fit acoustic panels to the walls and sometimes the ceiling. These panels are available in many colours, sizes and shapes to either blend in or make a statement with the decor of your room.

The price of acoustic dampening depends entirely on the size and number of panels required and the length of time it will take to fit these. Generally, it will take 2 days to fit enough acoustic panels to treat a standard village hall.

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Often, money is better spent on taming the lively acoustics of a space than it is on more expensive audio equipment.

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Testimonials

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       Posted on Google  
   
   Christopher Rabson 
 
 
 
 Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. I write this on behalf of Grove Methodist Church in Oxfordshire, UK.

We are a small church with modest requirements and a limited budget, but API Sound and Visual were happy to work with us. We wanted a new sound system to replace our ageing, sometimes temperamental, and awkward-to-use old system.  We found APi helpful, friendly and receptive to our needs. The installation took place smoothly as scheduled, and was completed in the time allotted. (It was a very neat and tidy installation.) Our new sound system now gives us more control and flexibility, and we enjoy an improvement in overall sound quality in the church.

I would certainly recommend APi Sound and Visual to anyone who wants similar work doing.
  
 
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   Darrell Jacobs 
 
 
 
 Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. Dear API Team,
I am writing to convey my thanks for your excellent support yesterday.
You helped us avoid the hassle of shipping our equipment to you by promptly organising a remote "talk-through diagnostic" over the phone. I would like to extend a special thank you to Toby for his patience throughout that process.
Thanks to your help, the system is now up and running with no issues at all.
Best regards,

D Jacobs
Churchwarden, St Mary’s
  
 
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   Steve Bilton 
 
 
 
 Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. Toby from APi Sound and Visual came to install a replacement Hearing Loop at our Church (Exeter Christadelphian Church) for us.

It was a very clean installation, with a good explanation of how it worked, integrated into our existing system.

We've used APi before, and will look to do so when we need help upgrading our Audio/Visual equipment.
  
 
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   Chris Wakefield 
 
 
 
 Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. Quick & efficient
  
 
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   Jill Dixon 
 
 
 
 Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. I have had several dealings with API as part of the installation, and enhancement, of our Audio and Visual system, over the last few years,

They have always been really friendly, and their work is very professional and efficient.

Jim and Stephen, in  particularly, have been extremely understanding and helpful.

I would recommend, without reservation, API in anyone who needs
such systems.
  
 
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   Avdesk Cbc 
 
 
 
 Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. We have been using our updated AV system for a couple of months now and I am pleased
to report the congregation are very happy with the improvements resulting from installing the large screen TV and the additional two loudspeakers.
Thank you for working with us to recommend cost effective updates to our systems.
Your friendly installation engineers did an excellent neat job of installing the equipment,
Maurice Banfield, Chard Baptist Church Fabric Deacon.
  
 
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   David Houghton 
 
 
 
 Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. First class service from Andrew. He was concientious and most helpful in installing he upgrade to the church sound system. It was a pleasure to have him with us.
  
 
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   Matt Davis 
 
 
 
 Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. Absolutely fantastic work. Everything was well communicated and the team was incredibly accommodating to our requests.  They carried out the work professionally, going through each step and even answering some rather ridiculous questions from me. I couldn’t recommend them highly enough.
  
 
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   Katerina Georgiadis 
 
 
 
 Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. Exceptional company; very professional and cooperative. They made sure everything worked perfectly and came back several times to confirm it. It's been great working with APi and I would highly recommend them.
  
 
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   Simon Gregory 
 
 
 
 Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. API recently installed a large venue projector in our church. The Projector which weighed 22kg was positioned on a side wall at a height of about 4m and required a heavy duty projector mount which they supplied. The team were very professional, proficient and friendly throughout. They carried out the work in a safe manner and cleaned up after themselves very well. They did not leave until they were sure the projector image was set up correctly, taking great care to be sure the image was fully aligned with the screen. We use API for all our audio visual work in the church and they have always been excellent.