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Acoustics

Cinema Acoustics: A Comprehensive Guide

July 12, 2023

An outing to the movies is all about enjoying the right atmosphere, and sound is paramount to that. Discover acoustic design tips and solutions for each and every area across cinema facilities.

acoustic materials used in cinema theatres

An immersive movie-watching experience should be optimised for both the visual and the auditory. When one of the two is sub-optimal, the entire experience can quickly be spoiled.

So it only makes senses that an acoustic design strategy at cinema centres is imperative – and not just inside the screening halls.

Like all experiential businesses, each touchpoint across the visitor journey acts a lead-up to the cinema experience and later completes it. Besides the screening auditoriums, some areas in theatre centres to optimise for acoustic performance are the box office areas, concession stands, corridors, and toilets. Because of the nature of programming at movie complexes, these areas experience sudden influxes of traffic flows and noise.

Parafon Colortone in colour black installed at Tennispalatsi Helsinki in Helsinki, Finland
Cinema Acoustic Design Guide

Create the best sound experience for visitors with acoustic ceilings and wall panels.

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Cinema Auditoriums and Screening Rooms

The experience inside the cinema auditorium itself is arguably the highest priority across the entire complex. Regardless of how advanced the surround system is, if the cinema hall isn’t optimised with the use of acoustic insulation and absorption solutions, sound waves can off the floors, ceilings, and walls, and noise can leak from the adjacent spaces outside.

These disruptions can singlehandedly destroy the movie experience, defeating the purpose of any state-of-the-art surround sound technology.

Acoustic solutions can be selected in complementary colours and finishes to complete the desired design aesthetic. After all, for most cinema theatres, the dark ambiance is crucial to the experience.

Tips for excellent acoustic comfort in cinema auditoriums and screening rooms:

  1. Install high-quality ceiling solutions to absorb sound waves and prevent them from reverberating.
  2. Install wall-to-wall solutions to tackle sound leakage from adjacent spaces like the exterior and corridors.
  3. Ensure that the solutions used have matt surfaces to avoid light reflection.
  4. Opt for heavy fabrics across the seating and theatre curtains for additional absorption.
  5. Use soft materials across the flooring to minimise reverberations caused by hard surfaces.

Featured products: Rockfon Color-all®  

Cineworld, UK, Gloucester, Main Contractor - Brittania Construction, Ceiling Contractor - D & G Ceilings, Wayne Hutchinson, Rockfon Color-all, Charcoal

Product recommendations for cinema auditoriums:

  • Rockfon Color-all®: Ceiling tiles that are available in Charcoal as well as 33 other colours such as Scarlet and Space. Matching matt suspension grids are also available.
  • Rockfon Color-all® Grid: Available in 34 colours, Color-all has a textured surface that drastically reduces reflections that are found on metal surfaces by diffusing the light, suppressing the colour finish.
  • Rockfon® VertiQ®: A wall panel that is highly sound-absorbent and impact-resistant, and that can be installed both vertically and horizontally. Available in four colours including Black.

Entrance and Box Office

There are instances where the entrance and box office areas witness high levels of noise, such as during weekend evening screenings or major film releases. Here, sound sources can include everything from laughter to loud conversations to children cries.

The experience quickly becomes uncomfortable if such sound sources aren’t controlled, and the potential for the bothersome Lombard Effect increases when occupants aggregate in a single confined space. For visitors, the first impression is quickly tarnished, and for box office staff, well-being deteriorates. 

Tips for excellent acoustic performance at the entrance and box office:

  1. Install high-quality ceiling and wall acoustic solutions to absorb sound waves and prevent them from reverberating.
  2. Include sound barriers in the floor plan to absorb noise.
  3. Use soft materials across the flooring to minimise reverberations caused by hard surfaces.
  4. Ensure that the solutions used can withstand frequent cleaning with harsh disinfectants.

Featured products: Rockfon® Artic™  

Cinemes Centre Splau, Coloral Th 40 Black A-edge, Baffles Deco 40, leisure movie theatre

Product recommendations for entrance and box office areas:

  • Rockfon® Mono® Acoustic: The refined white surface provides high light reflection and light diffusion, ensuring even light distribution and reducing the need for artificial light.
  • Rockfon Blanka®: Acoustic ceiling tiles that have a smooth, deep, matt, super-white surface with high light reflection and light diffusion. They’re designed to contribute to a noticeably brighter and more comfortable indoor environment with as much as 23 percent in energy savings.
  • Chicago Metallic™ Matt-White 11 Grid: Its unique surface reduces the visual contrast between the grid and tile, creating an elegant and almost monolithic look.
  • Rockfon Color-all®: Available in a concealed, semi-concealed and visible grid solution, in 34 exclusive colours, and a variety of tile sizes, granting total design freedom.

Concession Stands and Lounges

It’s not difficult to imagine the chaos that is likely to ensue at the lounges and concession areas when the doors to the biggest film release of the season open.

Noise can’t always be regulated when large groups congregate in a single space, but floor plans and acoustic solutions can minimise the discomfort to make the pre-film experience much more enjoyable for all.

An aspect to note is that hygiene is a priority in any areas that have food preparation, and the concession stands are no exception. The materials used in such areas should resist the accumulation of microorganisms as well as the frequent use of harsh cleaning materials.

Tips for excellent acoustic performance across concession stands and lounge areas:

  1. Install high-quality ceiling and wall acoustic solutions to absorb sound waves and prevent them from reverberating.
  2. Ensure that the solutions used can withstand frequent cleaning with harsh disinfectants.
  3. In food preparation areas, ensure that the solutions used meet are resistant to mould and bacteria.
  4. In lounges, use soft materials across the flooring to minimise reverberations caused by hard surfaces.

Featured products: Rockfon Blanka®  

NL, Zeist, Hotel Theater Figi, Gerben van der Molen, Stars Design, Leisure, Auditorium, Concert Hall, Rockfon Blanka, A-edge, 600x600, white, T24 Black - new 3D application

Product recommendations for concession stands and lounges:

  • Rockfon Blanka®: Acoustic ceiling tiles that have a smooth, deep, matt, super-white surface with high light reflection and light diffusion. They’re designed to contribute to a noticeably brighter and more comfortable indoor environment with as much as 23 percent in energy savings.
  • Rockfon® Universal® Baffles: Suitable for exposed soffits, baffles are the perfect solution to improve speech intelligibility. They allow for multiple suspension design possibilities and are available in 33 contemporary colours.
  • Rockfon Eclipse®: These frameless and innovative acoustic islands are available in a variety of geometric shapes offering excellent sound absorption. They can be suspended from an exposed soffit, or installed underneath a traditional acoustic ceiling.  

Corridors

These circulation spaces share walls with cinema auditoriums, so efforts to prevent noise leakage are essential.

Sound absorption and sound insulation work together hand-in-hand. An acoustic ceiling with high sound absorption allows for lower sound pressure, which decreases the amount of sound transmitted to the adjacent space. With insulation, the sound transmission is lowered even further to enhance the overall acoustic performance.

Tips for excellent acoustic performance in movie theatre corridors:

  1. Install acoustic ceilings and wall panels to help achieve Rw ≥ 74 decibel airborne sound insulation between the corridors and auditoriums.
  2. Install sound barriers separating the hallways from other noisy areas, like the lounges and box office.
  3. Use soft materials across the flooring to minimise reverberations caused by hard surfaces.

Featured products: Rockfon Color-all®  

Cineworld, UK, Gloucester, Main Contractor - Brittania Construction, Ceiling Contractor - D & G Ceilings, Wayne Hutchinson, Rockfon Color-all, Charcoal

Product recommendations for corridors:

  • Rockfon Blanka®: Acoustic ceiling tiles that have a smooth, deep, matt, super-white surface with high light reflection and light diffusion.
  • Rockfon Color-all®: Available in concealed, semi-concealed, and visible grid solutions and in a variety of tile sizes, granting total design freedom.
  • Rockfon Eclipse® wall panel: These architecturally-friendly, frameless acoustic wall islands are perfect for dynamic open atria that witness excess verbal communication.

Toilets

Because of their ease of cleaning and durability, hard surfaces like ceramic and metals are necessary in restrooms. Their use, however, causes sound to reverberate and they’re one of the biggest threats to acoustic comfort.

And unlike other spaces in the theatre complex, it is never recommended to choose soft materials for flooring in commercial bathrooms.

To help offset such limitations, it’s important to look for an acoustic ceiling solution that will not only dampen sound reflection, but also withstand such a humid environment, resist the spread of microorganisms, and handle regular janitorial services.  

Tips for excellent acoustic performance and hygiene in commercial bathrooms:

  1. Install high-quality ceiling solutions to absorb sound waves and prevent them from reverberating.
  2. Ensure that the solutions used meet are resistant to mould and bacteria.
  3. Ensure that the solutions used can withstand frequent cleaning with harsh disinfectants.
  4. Ensure that the solutions used are corrosion-resistant to minimise any rusting.

Featured products: Rockfon® Koral™, Chicago Metallic™  

Toilet in Pontypridd Riverside Scheme in Wales United Kingdom, Rockfon Koral E-edge 600x600, Chicago Metallic T15 2790 ECR grid

Product recommendations for bathrooms:

  • Rockfon Blanka®: Acoustic ceiling tiles with smooth, deep, matte, and super-white surfaces, high light reflection, and light diffusion.
  • Chicago Metallic™ Matt-White 11 Grid: Features a unique surface that reduces the visual contrast between the grid and tile for an elegant and almost monolithic look, even when the grid is visible.
  • Rockfon CleanSpace™ Essential: a cost-friendly and long-lasting ceiling tile solution that fulfils the highest demands in terms of cleanliness but it also has enhanced acoustic properties, contributing to a healthy indoor environment.
  • Rockfon Koral®: A multi-purpose tile available in an attractive white, micro-textured surface and a selection of edges and dimensions.  
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