A Denver Westword post starring burrito chain Chipotle’s sound engineer, Christopher Golub, set off a firestorm last week at the music media when author Chris Utterback stated you wouldn’t hear Radiohead being played in Chipotle since “the high, tenuous yowl of Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke wreaks havoc with the concrete and steel of a Chipotle buildout.” Golub later calmed angry fans down when he clarified that Chipotle does play Radiohead tunes; he simply can’t play everything by the band because of the tonal qualities. “There’s not a lot to absorb sound except the burritos themselves,” Golub says of this restaurant’s over 1,400 locations. “Music seems different in there from your car and headphones.”
I found it intriguing that a large company like the burrito-making behemoth would have an on-staff sound engineer to especially curate playlists to take into account its own hard-surface interior design. What’s more, the company employs acoustical architect Matt Emmi from One Button to do things like install acoustical ceiling panels and wooden boxes to help diffuse and absorb sound from speakers. It’s all in an attempt to create the very best music-listening experience possible. Plus it can teach us a few matters.
The difficulty in making a pleasing music-listening experience stems from the fact that Chipotle restaurants have been designed in exactly what Emmi says is a contemporary architectural fashion in both residential and commercial design: minimalist design, with a great deal of concrete and glass. “Fundamentally the most hostile environment for sound,” Emmi says. That’s because hard, flat surfaces are terrible at absorbing sound and diffusing it, both key components in creating warm, rich sound. “Glass and concrete are most difficult to use,” Emmi says. “They have strong reflection and small absorption.”
Their answer? Golub curates a playlist of music that seems great in these kinds of environments, while Emmi does what he could with the insides to help.
So what precisely does seem good in those concrete and glass-heavy spaces? If you live in a similar space — say, an open floor plan with paned windows, a great deal of concrete and minimalist furniture — next time you are having a party you may want to check out Manu Chau. “They are one of my favorite examples,” Emmi says. “It’s a South American sort of folky pop. They have an almost bouncy tone, with a bass line that’s quite simple to latch onto. It comes through cleanly despite a high-noise floor and also a lot of complexity which exists in the space. Buena Vista Social Club is fantastic too. And the song ‘True Affection’ by The Blow has a nice tone to it”
You might also check out Chipotle’s playlists on its website, in addition to its own Spotify and Rdio accounts to see what’s playing at the restaurants.
And if you’re looking for the best possible sound at home, here are a Couple of tips from Emmi:
Tommy Chambers Interiors, Inc..
The very best room contour is really a shoebox, where the length, height and width are various. A block is the form. This has to do with how sound waves reflect off the surfaces.
Ellen Grasso & Sons
Put your sound system on among those far ends of this space, along a short wall rather than the long wall. This allows the sound to travel outside and diffuse and reflect supporting the listener.
Scheinholtz Associates
Position speakers an equal distance from each long wall. If a single speaker is closer or further to the wall than another, the sound from 1 speaker will reach your ear before another and lead to delay, limiting sound quality. “Attempt to get it absolutely geometric if possible,” Emmi says.
Cynthia Mason Interiors
If you can, put a floor-to-ceiling bookshelf behind the sound system and facing it. Quite simply, on every end of the space. This will create ideal uneven surfaces for optimal absorption and diffusion.
Insert acoustic panels. Emmi says the optimal solution for sound quality is to begin from the bottom up before construction or during a remodel and install acoustic panels behind the sheetrock, or as insulating material. You are able to buy acoustic panels to install on your walls, but Emmi says they are not very aesthetically pleasing. “Acoustic panels are a hard sell,” he says. “They tend to control the room unless they are being designed into the space with cedar panels or something.”
Read more about sound absorbers
Bliss Home Theaters & Automation, Inc
Get an overstuffed couch and thick carpets or matting under the carpet. “The minimalist design that the better,” Emmi says. “If you walk into a room that looks like it is going to sound great, it probably will. Think of a Integral East Coast yacht club quarters with lots of wood paneling on the ceiling and also a lot of carpeting, bulgy couches, bulgy side chairs and a hot environment.”
What do you really do for good sound in the home? Please tell us in the Comments.
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