Stop looking at power! 90% people have misunderstood the real core knowledge of professional sound

Many customers, even novice peers, only look at one parameter when choosing a stereo: how much power.

I always feel that the greater the wattage, the louder the sound and the better the effect. But in professional audio engineering, power is only the most basic reference, and it is definitely not the standard of sound quality. Many live scenes have harsh voices, stuffy voices, muddy bass and unclear speech. It is not that the equipment is not big enough, but that the audio cognition and debugging logic are wrong.

Today, I will share a set of professional audio core knowledge points that are common and practical in the industry, which are common for meetings, stages, bars and lecture halls.

First, the core of professional audio: clarity, not volume.
Home audio pursues "good sound and shock", while professional engineering audio pursues "clarity, stability and uniformity".

Especially in meetings, lecture halls and multi-function halls, vocal clarity is always the first.

Many venues are noisy because:

Too much bass, lack of intermediate frequency, harsh high frequency, uneven sound field and unreasonable microphone pickup interval.

Even if you use the best speaker, as long as the frequency response is unbalanced and the frequency division is chaotic, the sound will be stuffy, explosive and inaudible.

Second, why do high-power speakers sound bad instead?
Many people misunderstand: large venues must have super power.

The actual industry logic is: matching is greater than power.

There are three fatal problems in small space reactor with high power equipment:

1, the sound pressure is too high, the reflection is serious, the echo is superimposed, and the voice is blurred.

2, the low-frequency standing wave is serious, buzzing, and talking is very tired.

3, it is easy to whistle, and the microphone explodes as soon as it is turned on.

The true meaning of professional sound: right power+right point+accurate adjustment = good sound quality.

Third, the sound quality depends on these three core parameters (experts only look at these three)
1. Frequency response range (unclear decision)
The core frequency band of human voice is concentrated in 200 Hz–4 kHz.

Many cheap speakers have low-frequency turbidity and lack of high frequency, resulting in:

Speak dully, vaguely, and can't hear clearly from a distance.

Professional engineering speakers, focusing on if permeability, not bass shock.

2, directivity (determine the sound field is uneven)
The layman listens to the whole ring, but the expert listens to the whole audience differently.

Good sound system: front row doesn't explode, back row doesn't whisper, and there is no dead corner.

Inferior installation: it is deafening near, inaudible in the distance, and small while ringing.

3. Distortion (determine whether it is harsh or not)
The lower the distortion, the cleaner the voice, and the longer it takes to listen.

Many venues hold meetings for an hour, and everyone is dizzy and harsh, that is, the harmonic distortion is too high.

Fourth, why is the same equipment good for others and bad for you?
Professional audio, three-point equipment, seven-point debugging.

Identical speakers, amplifiers and microphones:

Can't tune: whistling, murmuring, muffled sound, exploding sound, low voice turbidity.

Can debug: the voice is transparent, clean, even, stable and effortless.

The real gap in engineering is not in hardware, but in:

Equalizer adjustment, delay alignment, compression threshold, howling suppression, frequency division setting, sound field compensation.

V. Audio core logic of different scenes (dry goods in the industry)
Meeting room: give priority to vocal clarity and weaken bass.

No need to shock, just clean, stable, no howling and clear long-distance call.

Lecture hall, multi-function hall: human voice is dominant, taking into account the dynamics.

Speak clearly, sing without bombing, and balance high and low frequencies.

Stage performance: dynamic, wide sound field and high fidelity.

Sufficient margin is needed to withstand large dynamic and loud pressure.

Bar night show: heavy low frequency, atmosphere and rhythm

Emphasis on atmosphere rendering and moderate modification of human voice.

Sixth, industry summary: the true essence of professional audio
Doing sound engineering is not selling speakers, power or parameters.

It uses professional equipment+acoustic logic+precise debugging to solve the sound problem on site.

If you don't know acoustics, debugging and stacking equipment, you will never achieve good results.

In the future audio industry, people who can only sell equipment will be eliminated, leaving professional practitioners who really understand technology, sound field and debugging.