ABSTRACT
This chapter explains the need for neutral rooms. It discusses the effect of shape on modal patterns. The chapter examines the effect of a room on a musical performance. It also discusses the sound paths within a complex acoustic control structure. The chapter also examines the transfer of sound between high and low density media. Historically, the recording studios have been relatively neutral environments. Generally, a recording room can be considered to be in the acoustically small category if it is impossible to be less than 4 or 5 m from the nearest wall surface. Neutral rooms are desirable for many types of acoustic recordings, although current thinking places much more emphasis on the comfort of the musicians than was encountered in some of the rather coldly neutral rooms which were prevalent in the mid-twentieth century. Hard floors can be made from many materials, but they generally subdivide into vegetable or mineral origins.
