Low absorption levels increase reverberant field level by sustaining sound energy

Evidence

Secondly, because in the steady state the reverberant sound at any time instant is the sum of all the energy in the reverberation tail, the overall sound level is increased by reverberation. The level of the reverberation will depend on how fast the sound is absorbed in the room. A low level of absorption will result in sound that stays around in the room for longer and so will give a higher level of reverberant field. — David Howard, Jamie Angus, coustics and Psychoacoustics, 1795

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Open and dense forest canopies create distinct sound atmospheres — Vinson Brown, Reading the Woods: Seeing More in…, 154