Sound System Engineering

Long considered one of the key books on the well-informed audio engineer’s shelf, Sound System Engineering provides an accurate, complete, and concise tool for all those involved in designing, implementing, and testing sound reinforcement systems. This new fourth edition includes eight new chapters leading the reader through both cutting-edge topics—e.g., IBM’s proposed thought-controlled sound system—and solid basics, such as loudspeaker specifications, wave equations, and digital audio.

Topics covered include:



Psychoacoustics and how the brain processes sound

Digital theory

Mathematics for audio systems

Using the decibel

Interfacing electrical and acoustical systems

Audio and acoustic measurements

Large room and small room acoustics

Designing for acoustic gain

Designing for speech intelligibility

Wave equations

Microphones

Loudspeakers, loudspeaker arrays, and loudspeaker directivity

Power ratings for amplifiers and loudspeakers

Computer-aided system design

Signal delay, signal synchronization, and signal processing

Sound system equalizationPacked with numerous illustrations and useful appendices, this is a concentrated capsule of industry standards and knowledge that spans the complete range of sound systems, from the simplest all-analog paging systems to the largest multi-purpose digital systems.