No matter where you are, some tones sound pleasant while others annoy you. You don’t realize it, but it acts like a stressor. In this context, you must have encountered the term white noise at least once regarding its impact on sleep, concentration levels, and other unpleasant sounds. And if you felt curious about it, you may also have thought of exploring concepts like pink noise, brown noise, etc. When learning about techniques that leverage these elements, you must have also bumped into a technology called sound masking. So, what are all these? Why does everyone talk about sound machines, noise masking systems, and colored noises? Generally, business owners and entrepreneurs show interest in these to improve their offices’ acoustics for speech confidentiality and noisy distractions.
Before buying anything, such as white noise speakers for offices, let’s learn a few aspects of colored noises to invest in the proper devices and use them best.
The reason behind calling white noise white
White noise is also a mixture of sound frequencies humans can discern and play. Almost everyone knows that white light contains various colors available in a given color scale. Just as the white color represents all the colors, white noise allows you to hear all frequencies simultaneously. Because of this range, sound engineers and technicians consider white noise as broadband noise – a continuous sound frequency that can be high, medium, and low simultaneously. Many ordinary sounds belong to white noise – wind, waterfall, heavy rain, ventilators, etc. You can also associate it with the loud cheering of the audience in a stadium. In concrete terms, you can relate white noise to the gap you witness when switching between FM channels. Or, imagine turning on a TV without a signal.
The curiosity about pink noise
Removing some high frequencies of white noise leads to equal energy for each octave, giving you a pink noise experience. More precisely, slightly flattened white noise qualifies as pink noise. The sound can be softer than pure white noise because of the weaker frequencies. It works like the color spectrum that looks pink when its visible light is tweaked. Nevertheless, it’s essential to recognize that color or light reference is just an analogy to simplify the matter.
Why does white or pink noise matter?
In soundscape, technicians refer to pink and white noises to determine a sound system’s frequency, which can be a speaker. Suppose you install a sound system to produce white noise. The technician will assess the output’s frequency using a linear spectrum. The analyzer will examine the frequencies’ flatness on different octave levels to identify whether it’s pink or white. As mentioned, a logarithmic scale will show a perfectly flat frequency if it’s pink. If you want to check the office wall’s sound-blocking capacity, play pink noise at high volume on either side and capture its effect on the logarithmic spectrum on the opposite part. Generally, professionals resort to this measure to investigate the acoustic strength of a building or the sound insulation trait of dividers.
Acousticians also say that white noise’s ability to mask noises present in the environment makes it suitable for human hearing. Since it contains all familiar frequencies, it becomes easy to respond to white noise positively. Even when you travel to the workplace, you get exposed to many unwanted sounds of trains, buses, cars, emergency vehicles, and more. The bleeps of notifications on your smartphone can also be a distraction. But the sound masking ability of white noise devices can help you concentrate more on your tasks.
Why do offices need sound masking solutions?
70% of modern offices are open space plans to facilitate collaboration and creativity. People opt for them also because of the notion that such layouts keep the work environment more energetic. Of course, affordability is part and parcel. But has it been able to accomplish everything as promised, or are there some valid concerns around its application? In the office, several people work on the same floor with different phones ringing simultaneously, someone discussing something with the other person, and equipment cranking in the background. Together all these make for a noisy environment. When you perform a task that demands full cognitive attention, these sounds take your focus away from the core work. You feel bothered by the murmurs interfering with your brain. And this is the harsh truth of an open-plan office.
How do you tackle this? You may have heard that acoustic designs consider three critical aspects – sound absorption, blocking, and masking. People use materials like unique wall panels, ceiling tiles, and carpets to absorb unwanted sounds. You can ensure this differently: make room walls sound absorbent, install higher partitions, and use sound masking technologies. These changes can be 73% effective in ensuring speech privacy. You can block the noise penetration through cubicles and wall structures, improving the indoor audio environment by 81%. But masking sound in the workplace can help attain 87% efficiency. Physical materials for soaking sound can cost you about USD$ 2-4 per sq ft. Sound blocking methods like walls and cubicles are expensive and slightly unappealing at USD$ 3-5 per sq ft. When the combination of the two is applied, your office’s privacy index can improve by 77%.
If you compare this against the choice of sound masking technology, you will find the latter is more affordable and efficient at USD$ 1-2 per sq ft, enhancing the privacy index by 87%. You get white noise speakers and other equipment to address office noise issues. Please explore those systems to give your employee a healthy work environment. They can be more productive when their health is good, and they can focus on their tasks without distractions. Make sure you pick only a reliable product from a trusted store. It’s an investment, not just monetary but emotional and reputation-wise too. Hence, you want to select the best tools. You can consult a sound designer or engineer if you need help choosing suitable options for your office. They can look into your requirements, office space, and budget to determine more appropriate choices.
