Acoustic Terms and Definitions: Reverberation or reverb
Reverberation or reverb, is created when a sound or signal is reflected causing numerous reflections to build up and then decay as the sound is absorbed by the surfaces of objects in the space – which could include furniture, people, and even air.
Reverberation is frequency dependent: the length of the decay, or reverberation time, receives special consideration in the architectural design of spaces which need to have specific reverberation times to achieve optimum performance for their intended activity. In comparison to a distinct echo, that is detectable at a minimum of 50 to 100 ms after the previous sound, reverberation is the occurrence of reflections that arrive in a sequence of less than approximately 50 ms. As time passes, the amplitude of the reflections gradually reduces to non-noticeable levels. Reverberation is not limited to indoor spaces as it exists in forests and other outdoor environments where reflection exists.
Reverberation occurs naturally when a person sings, talks, or plays an instrument acoustically in a hall or performance space with sound-reflective surfaces. The sound of reverberation is often electronically added to the vocals of singers and to musical instruments. This is done in both live sound systems and sound recordings by using effects units. Effects units that are specialized in the generation of the reverberation effect are commonly called reverbs.
Whereas reverberation normally adds to the naturalness of recorded sound by adding a sense of space, reverberation can reduce speech intelligibility, especially when noise is also present. Users of hearing aids frequently report difficulty in understanding speech in reverberant, noisy situations. Reverberation is a very significant source of mistakes in automatic speech recognition. Dereverberation is the process of reducing the level of reverberation in a sound or signal.