What are reflection, reverb, and standing waves?
What is reflection? Sound waves reflect off of objects the same way billiard balls bounce off the bumpers of a pool table the angle of incidence equals the angle of reflection. A sound wave hitting a flat wall at 45° will reflect off it at 45°. The reflected wave can interfere with the incident (original) wave, producing the constructive and destructive interference mentioned above it can increase its amplitude or, with phase cancellation, decrease its amplitude. In a typical listening environment, we are hearing sounds that have reflected off numerous objects and surfaces, with the reflections themselves interfering with other reflections. Just as color is determined by which frequencies of light are reflected or not, the color or acoustic characteristics of a particular listening environment is determined by the angles and materials the sound may reflect off. Different materials reflect some frequencies more efficiently than others, due to their roughness or absobancy characteristics
