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 equalization

Packed 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.