Loudspeakers reproduce and broadcast voice messages, typically in commercial and industrial places. Because of their speech frequency and range, they create intelligible communication, which can be challenging to achieve in a noisy environment. However, their ability to produce continuous sound directivity in the reverberant areas depends on their proper selection and installation. When done right, the device ensures safety and high productivity at the workplace. In a secure environment, individuals can do their job at maximum efficiency.
Choosing loudspeakers
Before investing in sound systems, you must know why you need them. Considerations should include venue, location (production line or workstations), and audience. Then, area size and acoustic environment are other critical points. Large rooms reverberate because of the reflective surfaces. Think of cinderblock walls, metal roofing, and concrete floors. In these conditions, a professional-grade horn speaker can be ideal if they have the correct coverage patterns to reduce reverberation issues. Using one source to create sound in acoustic surroundings can benefit the quality.
However, these speakers need a proper sound distribution system and strategic placement to avoid the risk of overlapping the coverage patterns. A good practice can be installing them six feet high above the head, with each device at least 50 feet away. Putting them parallel can be a mistake as it can affect their frequency response, causing unintelligible voice broadcasts. The next crucial thing can be considering the environment. Some areas can have hazardous ratings. Your loudspeaker should be suitable for the place. Check decibels or pressure levels of the sound that suit a specific location. Some people test the noise level to determine this.
In this context, it can be helpful to know that the loudspeaker's decibel level would increase if the input power increased. If you double this, the loudness will be 3dB more, which can be easily understandable. However, you can be sure about the volume effect if the sound improves by 10dB.
Speaker positioning
Suppose you buy horn speakers for paging. You can set their volume about 6-10 dB higher than the environment's noise level. It is essential in industrial settings, where noise frequencies remain disturbed even in the speech range. You can tackle this situation well if your paging speakers perform at a higher volume. However, ensure that the speakers are closer to the noise source to work efficiently. You want to make this happen for two factors.
One is that moving speakers away from the source will affect the sound pressure range: double the distance, and the sound will attenuate by around 6 dB. But when noise sources and loudspeakers are close neighbors, you can experience better output from your device and improvement in the noise levels. The proper sound broadcast is another reason for keeping speakers more proximate to the noisy corner. People can hear the message if speakers are near the noise source.
Choice of speaker
You can find wide-angle horn speakers, narrow-angle horn speakers, and cone speakers. Wide-angle options suit large indoor and outdoor areas. However, you would want to be careful when using them inside, as the wider coverage angle of over 90 degrees can open the sound field to bigger reflective areas. Due to this, the voice output would lose speech intelligibility and reverberate. Narrow-angle designs can feature 90 degrees or lower coverage angles. These can be better for long-distance outdoor venues with narrow coverage areas. Or, you can depend on them for indoor environments with reverberations and speech obstructions. Hallways can be the best place for them. Finally, wall or ceiling mount cone speakers can be perfect for lower than 20 feet ceiling height. They can have a higher frequency and be less rugged, but their power output can be lower.
How do you decide between different options? Sound designers say two things can make your selection easy: coverage angle and efficiency. You can measure the speaker's efficiency by referring to I/O power. Generally, they describe this as decibel output over a one-meter area against one electrical wattage input. Anything with high efficiency can create greater sound output at lower distortion risks. For coverage angle, you can check the points at which the sound quality decreases by six decibels, and communication can be intelligible in different frequencies inside the normal speech range.
Speaker quantity
Using distributed sound systems, you can use an eight- or 16-ohm speaker in noisy surroundings with more than 85dB sound levels against one amplifier. A pair of 16-ohm speakers with two amplifiers can be enough in a slightly better noisy environment. However, you can check the product detail of the amplifier to determine how many loudspeakers it can run. If you install speakers in quiet offices or control rooms, you can add two pair of 8-ohm cone speakers with one amp each. You must divide the power output equally for the best decibel levels when you link two speakers or more to a single amplifier. Some commercial amplifiers can run multiple speakers when tapped properly to prevent over power consumption.
A few things about the acoustic design of the horn speaker
Horn speakers help amplify sound because of their funnel shape that broadens up at the opening. The higher sound output efficiency of the speaker depends on its ability to move air in the right direction. As a result, you hear distortion-free sound at a higher decibel. The sound quality is precise and can be easily comprehended. Home theaters can also use horn speakers. But you cannot use them if you desire better bass levels. They can also create high sound in the home environment.
Suppose you choose a narrow or wide-angle horn speaker for your business. It can be a polymer or metal variety to withstand the outside elements. These are the proper outdoor PA speakers compared to the cone type. Horn speakers are there if you want to enjoy high sound quality at lower electricity consumption. You can pick them for their bright sound and higher frequencies. Plus, these conserve energy and project sound over a large area effectively. Ensure you only buy these products from a reliable brand or seller to protect your investment.
