Anechoic chambers are rooms designed to minimize sound or other frequencies. Some are as small as a mini-fridge, others large enough to hold airliners. The image above is from the quietest place on earth, an anechoic chamber at the University of Salford in the UK. Human ears can hear sounds above 0dBA; the chamber above blocks sounds louder than -12.4dBA.
The designs of these spaces varies depending on the use – for example, the anechoic chamber at the University of Salford is a room floating within another room on neoprene springs. What is consistent, however, are the pyramidal foam pieces stuck to everything, turning the room into a jagged modernist sculpture.
Opposite of an anechoic chamber is the reverberation room, which is designed to evenly disperse sound. Reverberation rooms (and reverb in general) calls for another post. The images below are of forty-nine silent spaces. Some are grand and almost opulent, others creepy and basement-like. Click on thumbnails for larger images.
