Acoustics is a vital but often overlooked part of architecture. It is frequently misunderstood or not even offered in most architectural schools, so many architects do not receive the practical training necessary to maximize their designs. With this education gap in mind, Acoustic Essentials for Architects was written as a way to fill that void and help architects better understand and visualize the relationship between the physical shapes, textures, and dimensions of their work and how those design decisions impact the qualitative behavior of sound.
This peer-reviewed book details the essential terminology and concepts of architectural acoustics, including why it’s so important to understand the incredible dimensional range of wavelengths between the lowest and highest audible sounds, the feasibility aspects of applied acoustics, and the trade-offs to blending architecture, acoustics, and pragmatism. The book also explains the importance of interior seating symmetry for medium and large rooms and optimizing for speech intelligibility.
According to its author, "This is not a textbook, but a reference guide for anyone with a keen interest in how sound interacts with physical spaces. The book is ideal for architects, interior designers, contractors, venue owners, musicians, and educators alike."
The foreword is contributed by Sam Berkow, Founder of SIA Acoustics, who writes: "I plan to make this book a gift for every architect I am working with, and perhaps more importantly, for every architect to whom I have spent hours explaining and re-explaining many of the topics included here."
"If you’re an architect who's ever watched your carefully crafted space fall flat when the room sounds harsh, muddy, or unintelligible — or a building owner wondering why your new facility looks incredible but makes it hard to hear clearly — you're not alone. If you’re an AV consultant like me, brought in after the fact to "fix the sound," you know how common (and frustrating) that scenario is. Acoustic Essentials for Architects by Michael Fay is the kind of book that can prevent these problems before they start. It’s a practical, approachable guide that gives architects the tools to design with sound in mind, creating spaces that not only look stunning but also deliver clarity, comfort, and connection for the people inside them," writes Shannon McKnight, Principle Engineer at Sonawaves.
"This book fills a long-standing gap between design intent and acoustic reality, and it does so with the grace of a teacher who’s been in the trenches," he adds.
"What sets this book apart is its accessibility. Fay respects the intelligence of his audience without assuming deep technical expertise. He explains concepts like reverberation time, absorption coefficients, and speech transmission index (STI) in a way that makes them not only understandable but design-relevant," shares McKnight. "Where this book shines is when Fay translates those principles into design implications. Instead of just telling the reader what flutter echo is, he shows you how it arises in architectural geometry, how to identify it during the design phase, and what types of treatments will fix it without compromising the visual aesthetic."
Michael Fay is the owner and principal of GraceNote Design Studio, a pro audio and acoustic design consultancy based in San Diego, California. A classically trained musician in his youth, Michael Fay's career in pro audio and acoustics spans more than 45 years. Now semi-retired, he spent the last 25 years of his full-time employment as a senior-level systems design engineer, executive project manager, technical integration manager, technical sales engineer, and acoustician. Fay is also a member of SynAudCon, the Audio Engineering Society (AES), the Acoustical Society of America (ASA), AVIXA, the Miramar College Audio Program Advisory Board, and a former member of the Art Institute Audio Program Advisory Board.
https://jrosspub.com/catalog/science/acoustics-1/acoustic-essentials-for-architects/
