How SabineScore works

The Sabine equation

Reverberation time (RT60) is estimated with the Sabine equation, computed in metric internally:

where V is room volume (m³) and A is total absorption in metric sabins (m²). Imperial inputs are converted to metric before calculation and results converted back for display.

Baseline (untreated) room

The untreated room is assumed to have hard, reflective surfaces sharing a single average absorption coefficient of 0.05 across all six surfaces (walls, floor, ceiling). Existing absorption is that coefficient times total surface area. This is a deliberate simplification — a real survey would assign per-surface coefficients.

Target and required absorption

Each use case maps to a target RT60 range; the calculator solves for the midpoint of that range. It computes the absorption required to reach the target and subtracts what the room already has. The difference is the additional absorption your treatment must supply.

Per-product quantities

Each product provides absorption equal to its NRC times its coverage area. The quantity needed is the required additional absorption divided by that per-unit absorption, rounded up. The headline area estimate assumes a nominal NRC of 0.90; the comparison table gives the exact quantity for each real product. Results are ranked by acoustic fit only — no manufacturer is ever favored.

Some products show an NRC above 1.00. That's expected for thick or suspended items (baffles, clouds, thick panels): under ASTM C423, edge diffraction lets a finite sample absorb more sound than its flat face area implies, so the coefficient can read greater than one.