Sound-power specifications only make sense in diffuse fields impossible in small rooms

Evidence

In terms of specifying the performance of these loudspeakers it was common practice to use sound power, the total sound radiated by the loudspeaker. This can only have validity in a strongly diffuse sound field, which is impossible in small listening rooms. Of these, only (c) appears to have achieved a 234. ragged approximation of that target performance. In typical listening rooms the sound quality from these loudspeakers is predictably colored. — Toole, Floyd E, Sound reproduction- the acoustics and…, 830

Categorization

• XREF: Directly relevant to the reader’s psychoacoustics goal - sound power as a spec assumes diffuse-field conditions, connecting to room acoustics theory elsewhere in the book. — connects to: True diffuse sound fields cannot form in small absorptive listening rooms; Critical distance is ill-defined in small rooms because short reverberation times fail steady state — Toole, Floyd E, Sound reproduction- the acoustics and…, 1307; The diffuse field assumption underpins room acoustics predictions but fails at low frequencies (+4 more)
• yield-rescued: below the book’s yield-target cutoff, included anyway for connecting to: True diffuse sound fields cannot form in small absorptive listening rooms; Critical distance is ill-defined in small rooms because short reverberation times fail steady state — Toole, Floyd E, Sound reproduction- the acoustics and…, 1307; The diffuse field assumption underpins room acoustics predictions but fails at low frequencies (+4 more)

Broader Connections

• True diffuse sound fields cannot form in small absorptive listening rooms #corroborates (0.96)
• Small listening rooms lack diffuse reverberation and contain only early reflections #corroborates (0.93) — Toole, Floyd E, Sound reproduction- the acoustics and…, 477