Intro to Modern Sound Measurement
Sound Measurement is no longer optional. Smaart shows what your system really does, including frequency response, phase, and SPL. It removes guesswork, improves clarity, and ensures consistent results across venues. Measurement is now a standard part of the engineer’s workflow.
Your perception of sound isn’t objective.
Think of running a restaurant in winter. The heater is on, but your perception of temperature is completely different from your customers’. You’re running around serving, moving, and lifting trays, so 18°C feels fine. But the guests sitting at their tables? They’d prefer 22°C. How could you possibly know? 22 would feel like a sauna to you! Sound works the same way.
Your perception of sound isn’t objective. You get used to higher levels over time, and subtle issues like frequency response—or “coloration”—can sneak by unnoticed. Is your system really reproducing what’s coming from the mixing console, or are some frequencies missing or exaggerated? You won’t know unless you measure.
Sound measurement technology has come a long way.
PA measurement technology has come a long way. Enter dual-channel FFT systems like Smaart (remember that term for future blog posts!). But like any tool, Smaart is only as useful / good as the engineer using it. You need to understand the squiggly lines on the screen and make informed decisions so everything sounds perfect when the show starts.
Heck, you can even use Smaart during a live gig to monitor frequency response, phase, and SPL. While initial alignment is key, real-time measurements let you adapt to changes in the room—audience size, temperature shifts, or unexpected acoustic quirks—when it matters most.
Developed by experienced sound engineers
Developed by experienced sound engineers, Smaart is constantly updated with practical features that make your workflow faster and more efficient. Identify phase issues in seconds, get reliable SPL readings, and find that annoying rogue frequency in a heartbeat. No more tuning by shouting “one-two, one-two”! Those days are over.
Smaart is excellent on its own, but most users find they get much more out of it after some structured training. That’s where our seminars come in. At TZ Audio we run practical seminars, both online and in-venue. We offer seminar-only or full “all you need packages” including software & hardware. It’s simply the fastest way to become comfortable and confident with the measuring a sound system.
If you’re in Norway, Sweden, Denmark or Iceland – or elsewhere – we offer is online seminars and traveling to Norway is a valid option too of course. We’re here if you have any questions about the software or upcoming seminars.
Thanks for reading!