Estimate sound reduction from an acoustic barrier, sound wall, fence, screen, or outdoor noise barrier. Enter source distance, receiver distance, barrier height, line-of-sight height, and starting sound level to estimate insertion loss and final noise level.
Barrier height:
Enter how far the barrier top rises above the straight line between the sound source and listener.
Distances:
The calculator estimates the extra diffracted path around the top of the barrier compared with the direct path.
Insertion loss:
The path difference and frequency are used to estimate practical barrier sound reduction, then gap penalties are applied.
An acoustic barrier calculator helps estimate the benefit of a sound wall, privacy fence, equipment screen, highway barrier, outdoor mechanical screen, or earth berm.
This is a simplified planning estimate. Real performance depends on barrier length, height, mass, air leaks, ground effects, reflections, source height, receiver height, weather, and frequency content.
This calculator uses a simplified barrier insertion loss estimate based on path difference:
An acoustic barrier is a wall, fence, screen, berm, or solid structure placed between a sound source and receiver to reduce direct sound transmission.
Many practical outdoor barriers reduce noise by roughly 5 to 15 dB, depending on height, length, location, sealing, source frequency, and site conditions.
A fence can help if it is solid, dense, tall enough, and free of gaps. Open slat fences or lightweight fences usually provide much less sound reduction.
Low-frequency sound has longer wavelengths, so it bends or diffracts around the barrier more easily than higher-frequency sound.