A comparison of different techniques for simulating and measuring acoustic parameters in a place of worship: Sant Jaume Basilica in Valencia, Spain

Abstract

The study of rooms devoted to sound transmission has become a discipline in which all the fundamentals areas of current scientific research in acoustics converge. To demonstrate how this convergence arises in this work, we present a complete and detailed acoustics study of the Sant Jaume Basilica in Algemesí (Valencia, Spain), a building which has been declared a site of cultural interest. Starting from this overall perspective, the first part of this paper describes the features of the room studied (chosen for its complexity), the usual parameters for the analysis of room acoustics, and two measurement methodologies and two simulating methods widely used by the scientific community. Based on the theoretical results (obtained from modelling) and measurements following the recommendations of ISO 3382 Standard [1], we study the errors in 'just noticeable differences' in acoustic parameters that a listener may perceive. The aim of the study is to highlight the drawbacks and successes of the procedures used. From the perspective of comparing the results, the purpose of this study is not to assess the experimental procedures themselves or the modelling systems, but rather to demonstrate, using the four possible measurement-calculation combinations, whether the differences obtained between the theoretical values and experimental values are within a reasonable range of acceptability.