Ground truth for Room Acoustical
Simulation (GRAS)
–
Documentation of the database
Lukas Asp¨ock, Michael Vorl¨ander
RWTH Aachen, Institute of Technical Acoustics,
Kopernikusstrae 5, D-52074 Aachen, Germany
{las; mvo}@akustik.rwth-aachen.de
Fabian Brinkmann, David Ackermann, Stefan Weinzierl
TU Berlin, Audio Communication Group,
Einsteinufer 17c, D-10587 Berlin, Germany
{fabian.brinkmann; david.ackermann; stefan.weinzierl}@tu-berlin.de
Contact: [email protected]berlin.de
March 14, 2018
Contents
1 General Information 1
2 Documentation 1
2.1 Scene descriptions 1
2.2 Source and receiver descriptions 2
2.3 Surface descriptions 5
2.4 Impulse responses 5
2.5 Additional data 6
3 Scene overview 7
Scene 1: Simple reflection (infinite plate) 9
Scene 2: Simple reflection and diffraction (finite plate) 10
Scene 3: Multiple reflection (finite plate) 11
Scene 4: Simple reflection (reflector array) 12
Scene 5: Simple diffraction (infinite edge) 13
Scene 6: Diffraction (finite body) 14
Scene 7: Multiple diffraction (seat dip effect) 15
Scene 8: Coupled rooms (laboratory & reverberation chamber) 16
Scene 9: Small room (seminar room) 17
Scene 10: Medium room (chamber music hall) 18
Scene 11: Large room (auditorium) 19
Acknowledgements 20
1 General Information
The Ground truth for Room Acoustical Simulation (GRAS) database contains eleven
acoustical scenes that are intended for the evaluation of room acoustical simulation
software. This comprises simple scenes (no. 1-7) that isolate certain acoustic phenomena,
as well as complex environments (no. 8-11) of different shape and size. Each scene
consists of (a) a scene description giving the room geometry, and the positions of the
acoustic sources and receivers, (b) the corresponding source and receiver characteristics,
(c) the description of the acoustic materials by means of absorption and scattering
coefficients, and (d) the measured single channel and binaural impulse responses.
The database is separated into multiple zip-files, in case only a certain part of the
database is needed. The zip files can be extracted to the original folder structure
in the following way: Under UNIX based operating systems, the terminal command
unzip \*.zip can be used after changing the working directory to the folder that con-
tains the zip files. Under Windows operating system, the default unzipping tool can be
used. In this case it has to be confirmed that the content of each zip file is merged into
already existing folders.
The data are organized in the folders 1 Scene descriptions,2 Source and receiver
descriptions,3 Surface descriptions, and 4 Additional data that are explained
in the section 2 Documentation. The eleven scenes are introduced one by one in the cor-
responding sections (e.g. Scene 8: Coupled rooms (laboratory & reverberation chamber)),
which also list all input data that are required for the acoustic simulation of the scenes.
An overview of the scenes that are included in the database is given in Table 2.
2 Documentation
The database structure is outlined in the following. More information on the concept of
the GRAS database and the data acquisition can be found in an accompanying research
paper.
2.1 Scene descriptions
The scene geometries can be found in the folder 1 Scene descriptions and are pro-
vided as SketchUp1models. All files are named according to the scheme sceneNo IRtype,
e.g. scene10 RIR defines the geometry of the medium room for simulating single-channel
room impulse responses, whereas scene10 BRIR defines the same room with source and
receiver positions for simulating two-channel binaural room impulse responses. In some
cases, a scene is divided into sub-scenes, which is noted by sceneNo IRtype subScene,
1SketchUp Make is free for educational purposes and can be downloaded here
1
e.g. scene1 RIR Diffusor. In addition to the SketchUp files, one screenshot of each
scene configuration is provided as a png file.
Each SketchUp file contains the 3D model of the room, as well as the positions and
orientations of the sources and receivers. The surfaces of the 3D models have textures as-
signed to them that specify their material. For example the texture mat RockFonSonarG
links to a material whose surface properties can be found in the corresponding folder
(cf. Section Surface properties). To view the texture of a surface in SketchUp, use the
Sample Point option of the Paint Bucket Tool. If the object belongs to a group or a
component, it is necessary to first go in the edit mode of the group by double clicking the
object before being able to show the material. The degree of detail in the scene geometry
is thought to be sufficiently accurate for acoustic simulations, but may be reduced to
foster the needs of a specific simulation software.
Source and receiver positions are marked with 3D icons and corresponding text labels.
The label position refers to the acoustic centers of the source and receiver. They are
named LSno type for the sources (loudspeakers), and MPno type for the receivers (mi-
crophones). For example LS1 Genelec8020c gives the position of the first loudspeaker
that was a Genelec 8020c active 2-way monitor in this case. The directivity files are
named correspondingly and will be described in the next section. The relevant informa-
tion about position and orientation is always given in the label – the positions of the
objects in the SketchUp file might show slight deviations. Positions are always specified
with respect to the global coordinate system of the scene where ϕ[◦] gives the orien-
tation in the horizontal plane (orientation in the x/y plane, ϕ= 0 pointing in positive
x-direction, ϕ= 90 pointing in positive y-direction), and ϑ[◦] specifies the elevation
(ϑ= 90 pointing in positive z-direction, ϑ=−90 pointing in negative z-direction).
2.2 Source and receiver descriptions
Three different sources and three receiver types were used for creating the GRAS database:
A 3-way dodecahedron loudspeaker and a Genelec 8020c 2-way near-field monitor were
used for measuring single channel impulse responses, and QSC K8 2-way PA monitors
were used for measuring binaural impulse responses. A G.R.A.S. AF40 1/2” free field
measurement microphone was used for the acquisition of single channel impulse responses
in the free-field environments, while a 1/2” B&K 4134 diffuse-field measurement micro-
phone was used in reverberant scenarios. The FABIAN head and torso simulator was
used for measuring binaural impulse responses.
Directivities by means of impulse responses and/or third octave spectra are stored in
comma-separated value (CSV) and/or MATLAB files inside the folder 2 Directivities.
They are provided on a Gauss-like spherical sampling grid with an angular resolution of
1◦along azimuth, and elevation, with a total of 64,442 sampling points. Each line in the
CSV-files holds the data for one sampling point of the grid as specified in Figure 1 (c, d).
The structure of the provided MAT-files is shown in Figure 1 (e, f). Note that differ-
ent coordinate conventions are used for loudspeaker directivities (Figure 1a), and head-
related impulse responses (HRIRs) (Figure 1b). Moreover, the coordinate convention of
the directivity files is independent from the absolute coordinate system of the scene ge-
ometries given in the SketchUp files. The directivities of the dodecahedron loudspeaker,
and the two measurement microphones were assumed to be omnidirectional.
Source directivities (Genelc 8020c & QSC-K8 loudspeaker)
The source directivities are stored in the front-pole coordinate system. In these cases,
Φ[◦] gives the orientation in the frontal plane (y/z plane, Φ= 0 pointing in positive
z-direction, Φ= 90 pointing in positive y-direction), and Θ[◦] gives the orientation in
2
Front-Pole Orientation
⇥
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⇥
P000T000
P000T180
P000T090
P090T090
P270T090
x(front)
y
z(
up)
(a) Front pole coordinate convention.
Top-Pole Orientation
Azimuth
Elevation
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A000E+00
A000E-90
A000E+90
A090E+00
A270E+00
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y
z(
up)
(b) Top pole coordinate convention.
1P000T000,3.1549356,-5.1039181,5.2946804,-6.3453707,3.2898423,-5.1400114,4.2449563,...
2P000T001,2.4440977,-6.2950617,5.7606979,-5.0275684,2.8864353,-5.4994686,3.8488389,...
.
.
.
64441 P359T179,-1.2831306,-0.8082714,-1.9258609,-2.0064113,-2.4464460,-2.4244988,-2.1148782,...
64442 P000T180,-1.2037028,-0.7688371,-1.6461457,-1.5970641,-2.1745634,-1.9213576,-2.3674620,...
(c) Impulse response data format (front pole convention).
1f in Hz, 20, 25, ..., 20000,
2P000T000,-73.9423324 + 41.6702700i,-78.6705701 + 315.0149088i,...,2028.4094010 + 2827.0861137i,
3P000T001,-74.4630423 + 41.5323030i,-79.9799539 + 314.4980953i,...,-303.6213314 + 3420.0222030i,
.
.
.
64442 P359T179,-21.5571372 + 37.5295540i,35.9925572 + 299.1564067i,...,78.3276506 - 63.5002594i,
64443 P000T180,-22.5353947 + 37.6447504i,34.7547710 + 299.3479605i,...,-8.3261083 - 99.2947006i,
(d) 3rd octave spectrum data format (front pole convention).
Genelec8020 1x1 64442 IR front pole.mat
IR <4096x64442>
Phi <1x64442>
Theta <1x64442>
Genelec8020 1x1 64442 MPS front pole.mat
MPS <31x64442>
Phi <1x64442>
Theta <1x64442>
Frequency <31x1>
(e) Loudspeaker directivity data format MAT-file.
HATO 0 1x1 64442 HRIRs top pole.mat
HRIR L <256x64442>
HRIR L <256x64442>
azimuth <1x64442>
elevation <1x64442>
(f) HATO directivity data format MAT-file.
Figure 1: Coordinate conventions and data format.
3
the median plane (x/z plane, Θ= 0 pointing in positive x-direction, Θ= 90 pointing
in positive z-direction). Loudspeaker directivities are provided as 4096 sample impulse
response (IR) at a sampling rate of 44.1 kHz, and third-octave band magnitude/phase
spectra (MPS) from 20 Hz to 20 kHz:
•LoudspeakerName_1x1_64442_IR_front_pole.csv
•LoudspeakerName_1x1_64442_MPS_front_pole.csv
Please note that the on-axis frequency and impulse responses are included in the first
row of the csv and mat files. The directivities were not normalized to frontal sound
incidence, and the on-axis frequency responses must be included in the simulation, i.e.,
the directivities should be used as they are without further normalization.
Source description (ITA dodecahedral omnidirectional loudspeaker)
The directivity of the custom dodecahedral loudspeaker that was used in scenes 8-11
could not be measured due to mechanical restrictions. Instead, the diffuse field sound
power spectrum is provided in third octave frequencies together with technical drawings
of the three-way speaker, and a written documentation.
Receiver directivities (FABIAN Head-related impulse responses – HRIRs)
The HRIRs are provided in the top pole coordinate system. In this case, the azimuth
ϕ[◦] gives the orientation in the horizontal plane (x/y plane, Azimuth = 0 pointing in
positive x-direction, Azimuth = 90 pointing in positive y-direction), and the elevation
ϑ[◦] gives the orientation in the median plane (x/z plane, Elevation = 0 pointing in
positive x-direction, Elevation = 90 pointing in positive z-direction). The HRIRs are
provided as 256 sample impulse responses. Separate datasets are provided for 45 different
head-above-torso orientations (HATOs) between ±44◦with a resolution of 2◦, whereby
a HATO of 10◦denotes a head rotation of ten degree to the left, and a HATO of -10◦
denotes a head rotation of ten degree to the right. The corresponding file sis named:
•HATO_10_1x1_64442_top_pole.csv (.mat)
•HATO_-10_1x1_64442_top_pole.csv (.mat)
Different HATOs are necessary, to reflect the head orientation of the FABIAN head
and torso simulator during the BRIR measurements. HRIRs were measured for HATOs
between ±50◦in steps of 10◦and taken from the FABIAN database [1,2]. They were
interpolated as described in Brinkmann et al. [3] using functions from AKtools for Mat-
lab [4]:
AKhrirInterpolation(az, el, HATO, ’measured sh’).
3-D surface mesh representation of FABIAN’s head and torso are provided for wave based
BRIR simulations. They are available for the neutral HATO, and in two resolutions,
that provide valid results up to 6 kHz and 22 kHz. The corresponding files are named:
•FABIAN_6k_HATO0.stl
with average edge lengths of 2 mm, 10 mm, and 10 mm for the pinnae, head, and
torso can be used for simulation up to 6 kHz
•FABIAN_22k_HATO0.stl
with average edge lengths of 2 mm, 2 mm, and 10 mm for the pinnae, head, and
torso can be used for simulation up to 22 kHz
4
Meshes for HATOS between ±50◦with a resolution of 10◦are contained in the FABIAN
database [2]. To obtain HATOs with a higher resolution, the cylindrical neck in the
meshes can be cut and rotated above the z-axis.
2.3 Surface descriptions
Because of the large number of acoustic materials that were involved in the creation of
the GRAS database, and a lack of established in-situ methods to determine the acous-
tical impedance across the full acoustical frequency range, characteristics of the walls
and surfaces of the scenarios are only provided as absorption and scattering coefficients
in third octave band values for the frequency range from 20 Hz to 20 kHz. They can
be found in the folder 3 Surfaces. An overview of the 35 materials is given in the file
AllMaterials.pdf. Each material’s characteristic is defined in a CSV file (see folder
csv), a short documentation in a corresponding text file (see folder descr), a figure
showing the absorption and scattering values (see folder plots), and an image of the
corresponding surface (see folder img). While the materials that were used in the simple
scenarios (scenes 1-7) have their individual documentation, only one documentation file
for all materials inside the complex rooms (scenes 8-11) is given, and named correspond-
ingly. The scene descriptions, provided in the *.skp files, indicate which material should
be used for the surfaces of the scene (cf. Sec. 2.1 Scene descriptions ).
Different acquisition techniques were applied to determine absorption coefficients of
the materials. For the simple scenarios (1-5), the absorption was either determined by
impedance tube measurements [5,6] for a frequency range from 100 Hz up to 7 kHz or by
applying a transfer function method, valid from 100 Hz up to 15 kHz, to the measured
results of the scene. For the rooms, the absorption values were estimated based on in-situ
measurements using a PU-probe [7], and a modified microflown procedure regarding the
measurement setup and post-processing. This method provides results between 200 Hz
and 10 kHz. The results were averaged over multiple measurements and several post
processing methods were applied. The final data was manually adjusted by referencing
to similar materials in absorption databases. For very low and high frequencies, missing
data was estimated and extrapolated to cover the range from 20 Hz to 20 kHz for all
materials used in the Round Robin. Scattering coefficients were estimated according to
structural dimensions of the materials.
We are aware that some of the applied measurement techniques contain a high level
of measurement uncertainties and do not necessarily represent the real acoustical char-
acteristics of the materials. However, the absorption and scattering coefficients were
prepared with the goal to provide a set of input data containing plausible values for the
boundary conditions.
2.4 Impulse responses
The measured singe channel and binaural impulse responses are contained in the folders
1 Scenes/*/RIRs and 1 Scenes/*/BRIRs, respectively. They are provided as SOFA
files according to AES69-2015 standard [8] and wav-files (sampling rate 44.1 kHz). The
SOFA files contain all IRs of one scene and hold additional meta data, while the wav files
only contain a single IR but might be easier to read across different operating systems.
In case of the binaural impulse responses, the first channel of the wav-file corresponds
to the left ears impulse response.
The files are named following the scheme sceneNo type addInfo.type. For exam-
ple scene1 RIRs Rigid.sofa holds all IRs for the Rigid sub-scene of scene 1, whereas
scene1 RIR Rigid LS1 MP3.wav holds the IR for a specific loudspeaker-microphone com-
bination of the same scene. For scenes 8 to 11, impulse responses were measured for 4 dif-
5
ferent orientations of the Genelec 8020c speaker. This is denoted by LSorientation label
and is detailed in the corresponding scene descriptions in sections Scene 8 -Scene 11.
Calibration and Processing
Singe-channel impulse responses: To establish an absolute sound pressure level for
the measured single-channel room impulse responses, the signal input chain was cali-
brated with a microphone calibrator, and the output chain was calibrated to a free field
sound pressure of 80 dB at 1 kHz, and a distance of 2 m in front of the loudspeaker (i.e.
Φ=Θ= 0◦in Figure 1a). As a consequence, the unit of the single-channel impulse
responses is Pascal.
Binaural impulse responses: FABIAN is equipped with DPA 4060 microphones at
the blocked ear channels. Their on axis free-field frequency response was removed from
all BRIRs. Because the BRIRs are intended for auralization, they were normalized to 1
(0 dB) between 300 Hz and 1 kHz. For each scene, the scalar gain factor was obtained
from the loudspeaker closest to FABIAN and a HATO of 0◦with AKtools for Matlab [9]:
[ , ,gain] = AKnormalize(brir l r, ’abs’, ’mean’, ’mean’, 1, [300 1000]);
Afterwards, the gain was applied to all BRIRs of the corresponding scene. Consequently,
the binaural impulse responses are without unit. The smallest common time of flight
– i.e., the leading zeros – was removed from the BRIRs to reduce the system latency
during auralization. This was done separately for each scene, and it was made sure that
differences in time of flight between loudspeaker positions and different HATOs remained
as they were.
SOFA files
The SOFA files can, for instance, be read with the Matlab/Octave API. Inside the
SOFA files, the impulse responses are stored in the field Data.IR. The dimensions of
this field differ among scenes and IR types (single channel, or binaural) and are listed in
Table 1. For an unambiguous assignment of the loudspeaker-microphone combinations
to the entries in Data.IR, additional meta data entries were created (c.f. Table 1, meta
data). The EmitterID and ReceiverID list the loudspeaker and microphone number
according to Sec. 2.1 Scene descriptions. In scene 5, for example, the impulse response
of loudspeaker 4 and microphone 2 are stored in the 8th column, i.e., Data.IR(8,:,:).
In case of the scenes 1-8, the ListenerView (which equals the HATO) is relative to the
source, i.e. a ListenerView of 0 means that FABIAN is directly facing the source. In the
case of scenes 9-11, the listener view is relative to loudspeaker 7 (the center speaker), i.e.
a ListenerView of 0 means that FABIAN is facing loudspeaker 7, while loudspeaker 3 is
to it’s left, and loudspeaker 6 to it’s right.
2.5 Additional data
For your convenience, two kinds of additional data are provided. Room acoustical pa-
rameters in third octaves were calculated using the ITAtoolbox [10] and saved as comma-
separated values. A Matlab script for loading the impulse responses and calculating the
parameters is also available. This is intended for a physical comparison of measured
and simulated impulse responses. Moreover, a short excerpt of an anechoic string quar-
tet recording and binaural auralizations of scenes 9-11 are included in the database.
These files are intended for a perceptual comparison of measured and simulated impulse
responses.
6
# Type Data.IR Dimensions Meta data
1-7 RIR M ×R×N M: Number of IRs M: EmitterID, ReceiverID
R: 1 R: -
N: IR duration [samples] N: -
8-11 RIR M ×R×E×N M: Measurements for each R,E M: MeasurementView
R: Microphone pos. R: ReceiverID
E: Loudspeaker pos. E: EmitterID
N: IR duration [samples] N: -
1-11 BRIR M ×R×E×N M: Number of HATOs M: ListenerView
R: 2 (left, and right ear) R: ReceiverID
E: Loudspeaker pos. E: EmitterID
N: IR duration [samples] N: -
Table 1: Data format of impulse responses inside the SOFA files. The Meta data column,
lists which field in the SOFA files hold additional information on the order of
the impulse responses.
3 Scene overview
A list of the scenes that are included in the GRAS database is given in Table 2. Although
a detailed description of the data acquisition is out of the scope of this documentation
and is left to the accompanying research paper, a brief description is given for your
convenience.
All single channel (room) impulse responses (RIRs) were measured with the ITA-
Toolbox [10] for Matlab, while the binaural (room) impulse responses (BRIRs) were
measured with the FABIAN head and torso simulator measurement system for Mat-
lab [11]. In case of the RIRs, the measurement chain was fully calibrated for measureing
with absolute sound pressure level. Swept sine sweeps and deconvolution by means of
spectral division [12] were applied to obtain all impulse responses. A list of the equip-
ment used for the acoustic measurements is given in Table 3. The following hardware
was used:
RIRs Scenes 1, 5, 6, 7 - Hardware A, D, F, H, J
RIRs Scenes 2, 3, 4 - Hardware A, D, F, H, K
RIRs Scenes 8, 9, 10, 11 - Hardware A, C, E, F, H, L
BRIRs Scenes 1, 3, 5, 8 - Hardware A, G, I, J
BRIRs Scenes 9, 10, 11 - Hardware B, G, I, J
Cross line lasers (Bosch Quigo), and a laser distance meter (Bosch DLE 50 Professional)
were used for the alignment of objects, sources, and receivers within a scene, and a
VariSphear Microphone array system was used for scanning the room geometries of
scenes 8-11. The measurements that took place in Aachen were conducted by Lukas
Asp¨ock, Fabian Brinkmann, Thomas Mainz, and Hannes Helmolz. Measurements in
Berlin were conducted by Fabian Brinkmann, David Ackermann, Lukas Asp¨ock, Rob
Opdam, and Hannes Helmholz.
7
#Name Date Location RIR BRIR
1simple reflection
(infinite plate)
24.-25. Nov.
2015
RWTH
Aachen 3/3 1/1
2simple reflection and
diffraction (finite plate)
9.-10. Dec.
2015 TU Berlin 6/5 -
3multiple reflection
(parallel finite plates)
8. Dec.
2015 TU Berlin 1/1 1/1
4single reflection
(reflector array)
10. Dec.
2015 TU Berlin 6/6 -
5diffraction
(infinite wedge)
26. Nov.
2015
RWTH
Aachen 4/4 1/1
6diffraction
(finite body)
16. Dec.
2016
RWTH
Aachen 3/3 -
7multiple diffraction
(seat dip effect)
19.-20. Dec.
2016
RWTH
Aachen 2/4 -
8
coupled rooms
(laboratory
& reverberation
chamber)
26. Nov.
2015
RWTH
Aachen 2/2 2/2
9small room
(seminar room)
23. Nov.
2015
RWTH
Aachen 2/5 5/1
10 medium room
(chamber music hall)
3.-4. Dec.
2015
Konzerthaus,
Berlin 3/5 5/1
11 large room
(auditorium)
2. Dec.
2015 TU Berlin 2/5 5/1
Table 2: Over view of the GRAS scenes. Columns RIR and BRIR give the number of
source/receiver positions for each scene.
# Type Manufacturer Model
A Loudspeaker Genelec 8020c (2-way active studio monitor)
B Loudspeaker QSC K8 (2-way active PA speaker)
C Loudspeaker RWTH Aachen 3-way dodecahedron loudspeaker,
with FourAudio HD2 loudspeaker management system
D Microphone G.R.A.S. 40AF 1/2” free-field capsule
E Microphone Bruel & Kjær Type 4134 1/2” diffuse-field capsule
F Microphone Bruel & Kjær Type 2669-B 1/2” microphone preamplifier
G Microphone TU Berlin FABIAN head and torso simulator,
with DPA 4060 microphones
H Preamplifier Bruel & Kjær Type 2692-A-0I1 Nexus charge amplifier
I Preamplifier Lake People C360 2-channel microphone preamp
J Audio interface RME Multiface II with HDSP cardbus
K Audio Interface RME Fireface UC
L Audio Interfaces RME Digiface (HDSP cardbus) with OctaMic preamp
Table 3: Hardware used for acquisition of the GRAS database.
8
Scene 1: Simple reflection (infinite plate)
Short description: Simple reflection on three different (infinite) surfaces: Hard
floor of hemi anechoic chamber, RockFon absorber and medium
density fiberboard (MDF) diffusor. Monaural impulse re-
sponses for three loudspeaker positions and angles (30 ◦,45 ◦,
60 ◦) and three microphone positions. Binaural impulse re-
sponses for one loudspeaker position and one receiver position.
Room: hemi anechoic chamber RWTH Aachen
(V= 296 m3,flow = 100 Hz)
Temperature: 20.3 ◦C
Humidity: 41.5 %
Sampling rate: 44100 Hz
Scene geometry: scene1 RIR Floor.skp
scene1 RIR Absorber.skp
scene1 RIR Diffusor.skp
scene1 BRIR Floor.skp
scene1 BRIR Absorber.skp
scene1 BRIR Diffusor.skp
Output IRs: 29 RIRs; 3 BRIR sets (11,025 samples duration)
Comment(s): For a more detailed description of the reflecting objects, see
*.skp files in the folder AdditionalSceneDescription.
9
Scene 2: Simple reflection and diffraction (finite plate)
Short description: Simple reflection and diffraction on, and around finite square
boards with edge length of 1 m, and 2 m, rigid and absorbing
surface, and multiple angles of sound incidence (30◦, 45◦, 60◦).
Plates were of medium density fiberboard (MDF) with a thick-
ness of 25 mm. As absorbing material, Rockfon SONAR-G
with a thickness of 20 mm was glued to the plate.
Room: fully anechoic chamber TU Berlin (V= 1070 m3,flow = 63 Hz)
Temperature: 17.6 ◦C
Humidity: 47 %
Sampling rate:44100 Hz
Scene geometry: scene2 RIR 1mPlate Rigid.skp
scene2 RIR 1mPlate Absorbing.skp
scene2 RIR 2mPlate Rigid.skp
scene2 RIR 2mPlate Absorbing.skp
Output IRs: 18 RIRs; 0 BRIRs (6,000 samples duration)
Comment(s): Due to logistical reasons diffraction was not measured for the
2 m plate with the absorbing surface. Sound transmission can
be approximated based on density of the reflector plate, pro-
vided in the material description file mat MDF25mmA plane.
The supporting structure, that holds the reflector, was included
in the scene geometry for completeness, but might be removed
for acoustical simulation.
10
Scene 3: Multiple reflection (finite plate)
Short description: Multiple reflections between two finite square boards with edge
length of 2 m, and rigid surfaces. Plates were of medium density
fiberboard (MDF) with a thickness of 25 mm.
Room: fully anechoic chamber TU Berlin (V= 1070 m3,flow = 63 Hz)
Temperature: 17.3 ◦C
Humidity: 49.5 %
Sampling rate: 44100 Hz
Scene geometry: scene3 RIR.skp
scene3 BRIR.skp
Output IRs: 1 RIRs; 1 BRIR set (50,000 samples duration)
Comment(s): Sound transmission can be approximated based on density of
the reflector plate, provided in the material description file
mat MDF25mmA plane. The supporting structure, that holds
the reflector, was included in the scene geometry for complete-
ness, but might be removed for acoustical simulation.
11
Scene 4: Simple reflection (reflector array)
Short description: Simple reflection on a reflector array with rigid surfaces, and
for multiple angles of sound incidence (30◦, 45◦, 60◦). The
loudspeaker was positioned to aim at the center of the array
(on-center), and between two plates (off-center). Plates were
of medium density fiberboard (MDF) with an edge length of 68
cm, and a thickness of 25 mm.
Room: fully anechoic chamber TU Berlin (V= 1070 m3,flow = 63 Hz)
Temperature: 17.6 ◦C
Humidity: 45.5 %
Sampling rate: 44100 Hz
Scene geometry: scene4 onCenter.skp
scene4 offCenter.skp
scene4 sketch.pdf
Output IRs: 18 RIRs; 0 BRIRs (8,000 samples duration)
Comment(s): The SketchUp files show the actual geometry of the reflector
array. The intended geometry of a perfectly even spaced array
could not be met, however, deviations are below 1 cm in most
of the cases (cf. scene4 sketch.pdf). The reflector array was
hung from the ceiling with cords. Sound transmission can be
approximated based on density of the reflector plates, provided
in the material description file mat MDF25mmA plane.
12
Scene 5: Simple diffraction (infinite edge)
Short description: Simple diffraction at a partition (25mm MDF) with a height of
2.07 m. Monaural impulse responses for four loudspeaker and
four microphone positions (different heights). Binaural impulse
responses for one loudspeaker position and one receiver posi-
tion.
Room: hemi anechoic chamber RWTH Aachen
(V= 296 m3,flow = 100 Hz)
Temperature: 20.3 ◦C
Humidity: 40.3 %
Sampling rate: 44100 Hz
Scene geometry: scene5 RIR.skp
scene5 BRIR.skp
Output IRs: 16 RIRs; 1 BRIR set (11,025 samples duration)
Comment(s): Sound transmission can be approximated based on the den-
sity of the partition, provided in the material description file
mat MDF25mmB plane.
13
Scene 6: Diffraction (finite body)
Short description: Diffraction around a cubic body made of 18 hollow wooden
blocks (25mm MDF) with a total height and depth of 0.72 m
and a width of 4.14 m. Monaural impulse responses for three
loudspeaker and three microphone positions (different heights).
Room: hemi anechoic chamber RWTH Aachen
(V= 296 m3,flow = 100 Hz)
Temperature: 19.9 ◦C
Humidity: 40.1 %
Sampling rate: 44100 Hz
Scene geometry: scene6 RIR.skp
Output IRs: 9 RIRs, 0 BRIRs (11,025 samples duration)
Comment(s): Sound transmission can be approximated based on the den-
sity of the wood, provided in the material description file
mat MDF25mmB plane. Note that the body is set up by sep-
arated components, check the scene description file for details.
14
Scene 7: Multiple diffraction (seat dip effect)
Short description: Seat dip like diffraction around 15 cubic blocks with a height
of 0.27 m, depth of 0.12 m, and a length of 4.1 m (25mm
MDF). Monaural impulse responses for two loudspeaker and
four microphone positions (different heights).
Room: hemi anechoic chamber RWTH Aachen
(V= 296 m3,flow = 100 Hz)
Temperature: 19.2 ◦C
Humidity: 40.3 %
Sampling rate: 44100 Hz
Scene geometry: scene7 RIR.skp
Output IRs: 8 RIRs, = BRIRs (11,025 samples duration)
Comment(s): Sound transmission can be approximated based on the den-
sity of the wood, provided in the material description file
mat MDF25mmB plane.
15
Scene 8: Coupled rooms (laboratory & reverberation chamber)
Short description: A simple case of coupled rooms where a reverberant chamber is
coupled to a laboratory room with a lower reverberation time.
The scene was measured for two different opening angles of
the door (DoorAngle1=4.1◦, DoorAngle3=30.4◦) for the door
between the rooms.
Temperature: 18.2 ◦C
Humidity: 47.6 %
Sampling rate: 44100 Hz
Scene geometry: scene8 RIR DoorAngle1.skp
scene8 RIR DoorAngle3.skp
scene8 BRIR 01 DoorAngle3.skp
scene8 BRIR 02 DoorAngle3.skp
scene8 TW1.skp (geometry only)
scene8 TW3.skp (geometry only)
Output IRs: 40 RIRs; 2 BRIR sets (198,450 samples duration – 4.5 s)
RIRs for the Genelec 8020c were measured for 4 orientations
with the following labels and x/y/z orientation vectors accord-
ing to the scene’s global coordinate system:
01: [−0.6552 0.7555 0]
02: [−0.7555 −0.6552 0]
03: [0.6552 −0.7555 0]
04: [0.7555 0.6552 0]
WARNING: The level of the RIRs was manually corrected by 6 dB to meet
the expected direct sound level.
16
Scene 9: Small room (seminar room)
Short description: The seminar room at Aachen University was chosen for the
small room because its relatively simple and easy to describe
geometry, but challenging low frequency behaviour.
Temperature: 19.5 ◦C
Humidity: 41.7 %
Sampling rate: 44100 Hz
Scene geometry: scene9 RIR.skp
scene9 BRIR.skp
scene9.skp (geometry only)
Output IRs: 49 RIRs; 5 BRIR sets (154,350 samples duration – 3.5 s)
RIRs for the Genelec 8020c were measured for 4 orientations
with the following labels and x/y/z orientation vectors accord-
ing to the scene’s global coordinate system:
positiveX: [100]
positiveY: [010]
negativeX: [−100]
negativeY: [0−1 0]
WARNING: The level of the RIRs was manually corrected by 6 dB to meet
the expected direct sound level. The RIR of the Genelec 8020c
speaker for LS1 (orientation positive Y) MP5 is missing.
17
Scene 10: Medium room (chamber music hall)
Short description: The small hall of the Konzerthaus Berlin was chosen for the
medium room because of its relevance for chamber music and
its relatively simple and easy to describe geometry.
Temperature: 22.4 ◦C
Humidity: 40.9 %
Sampling rate: 44100 Hz
Scene geometry: scene10 RIR.skp
scene10 BRIR.skp
scene10.skp (geometry only)
Output IRs: 70 RIRs; 5 BRIR sets (154,350 samples duration – 3.5 s)
RIRs for the Genelec 8020c were measured for 4 orientations
with the following labels and x/y/z orientation vectors accord-
ing to the scene’s global coordinate system:
positiveX: [100]
positiveY: [010]
negativeX: [−100]
negativeY: [0−1 0]
Comment(s): The room has a considerable volume above its ceiling, which
is included in the 3D model and might be excluded or simpli-
fied for acoustic simulation. The volume is coupled by large
connections at the stage, and small connections on the ceiling.
WARNING: The level of the RIRs was manually corrected by 6 dB to meet
the expected direct sound level.
18
Scene 11: Large room (auditorium)
Short description: The Auditorium Maximum at TU Berlin was chosen for the
large room because of its relatively simple and easy to describe
geometry.
Temperature: 20.9 ◦C
Humidity: 37.5 %
Sampling rate: 44100 Hz
Scene geometry: scene11 RIR.skp
scene11 BRIR.skp
scene11.skp (geometry only)
Output IRs: 50 RIRs; 5 BRIR sets (154,350 samples duration – 3.5 s)
RIRs for the Genelec 8020c were measured for 4 orientations
with the following labels and x/y/z orientation vectors accord-
ing to the scene’s global coordinate system:
positiveX: [100]
positiveY: [010]
negativeX: [−100]
negativeY: [0−1 0]
Comment(s): The model provides a high degree of detail that can be reduced
depending on the needs of each participant.
WARNING: The level of the RIRs was manually corrected by 6 dB to meet
the expected direct sound level.
19
Acknowledgements
We would like to thank Thomas Maintz, Rob Opdam, Philipp Eschbach, Ingo Witew,
Johannes Klein, and the workshop from the Institute of Technical Acoustics at RWTH
Aachen University; Hannes Helmholtz, and Omid Kokabi from the Audio Communica-
tion Group at TU Berlin for assistance during the compilation of the GRAS database,
and Oliver Strauch for measuring the directivity of the QSC-K8.
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20