Our story · The sound of the room
Dining, live music and conversation all belong at MOTD. We planned the sound of the room alongside its architecture, with specialist acoustic consultation informing the ceiling and wall treatments now installed.
01 · The intention
MOTD moves from afternoon drinks to dinner and evening music. Our acoustic brief considered both amplified music and speech within that shared space.
Reverberation is the sound that lingers after a voice or instrument stops. The consultant studied how to control that lingering sound across different frequencies, using absorptive treatments integrated into the room.
02 · What we installed
Custom-made, suspended glass-fibre baffles provide sound absorption above the dining room. Their thickness, size and spacing were considered as part of the acoustic design.
Perforated panels work with absorbent material and an air gap behind them. The consultant recommended this wall treatment alongside the ceiling baffles to address the remaining low-frequency reverberation in the model.
From the consultant’s report
The original construction drawing and material reference photos help explain the ceiling and wall treatments. Open any image to inspect it at full size.
Report · page 9
The section shows the perforated face, two 50 mm layers of absorbent infill and a 50 mm air gap to the wall. Original drawing and annotations from the report.
Report · page 8
The report’s material reference shows the perforated face and the backing beneath it.
Report · page 10
The report’s assembly reference shows the baffle edge and its metal fixing detail.
03 · How the design developed
The consultant used ODEON 12.0 room-acoustic modelling to compare three treatment arrangements. MOTD implemented the recommended optimised ceiling and wall design.
The initial decorative scheme used 20 mm polyester-fibre ceiling baffles. The model predicted more lingering sound than the consultant’s design targets.
A second simulation used 50 mm glass-fibre baffles. Predicted mid- and high-frequency reverberation improved, with further work needed at lower frequencies.
The recommendation refined baffle dimensions and spacing, and replaced the proposed wall treatment with perforated acoustic panels and absorbent backing.
04 · Consultant simulation
The final design was modelled at 0.71 seconds at both 500 Hz and 1,000 Hz, compared with 1.18 and 0.96 seconds respectively in the original design.
These are design-stage simulations, not measurements taken in the completed venue. “Original design” refers to an earlier proposed treatment arrangement.
All bars use the same scale: 0–2.00 seconds.
| Frequency | Original design | 50 mm ceiling baffles | Optimised ceiling + walls |
|---|---|---|---|
| 125 Hz | 1.88 | 0.98 | 0.82 |
| 250 Hz | 1.83 | 0.94 | 0.79 |
| 500 Hz | 1.18 | 0.74 | 0.71 |
| 1,000 Hz | 0.96 | 0.72 | 0.71 |
| 2,000 Hz | 0.94 | 0.69 | 0.63 |
| 4,000 Hz | 0.71 | 0.60 | 0.59 |
Experience the room
Bar & Dining