Acoustic Screens

In many projects, loudspeaker arrays are integrated invisibly into the venue architecture — placed behind LED walls, projection surfaces, fabric, or custom-designed panels. These are referred to as acoustic screens, and they play a critical role in both the aesthetics and acoustic performance of a HOLOPLOT system.

What is an acoustic screen?

An acoustic screen is any physical surface that is placed directly in front of a HOLOPLOT array. Examples include:

• LED video walls

• Fabric coverings

• Acoustically transparent panels

• Custom venue-specific installations

While screens allow for clean visual integration, they can affect sound transmission depending on the material, thickness, and angle. Without compensation, this can lead to changes in frequency response and sound level across the beam.

Screen-aware beam optimization

HOLOPLOT Plan takes screens into account during the beam optimization process. Once a screen is placed in the design, every beam emitted from the array behind it is automatically optimized with compensation tailored to that screen’s acoustic characteristics.

Each screen type has its own defined effect on sound transmission. These effects are measured and accounted for by the optimization algorithms, ensuring that system performance remains consistent and reliable, even when arrays are fully concealed.

No manual EQing or filter adjustment is required — the compensation is built into the beam’s design itself.

How to use acoustic screens in Plan

1. Add a screen to an array Screens are added directly to arrays in your HOLOPLOT Plan project. This tells the optimization engine that the array is placed behind a physical screen and that compensation should be applied automatically to all beams from that array.

2. Select a screen type You can either:

   • Choose a default screen from the dropdown list (Screen 1 to Screen 4), each representing a different screen material or configuration

   • Upload a custom screen with your own acoustic profile

   To upload a custom screen:

   Place your screen’s JSON file in the following directory:

   • macOS Macintosh HD > Applications > HOLOPLOT Plan.app > Contents > Resources > custom_screens

   • Windows C:\Program Files\HOLOPLOT Plan\resources\custom_screens

   Restart Plan to load your custom screen into the selection menu.

3. Continue your design as usual Once a screen is applied, its acoustic effect is automatically factored into the beam optimization. Simulation results reflect the compensated response, ensuring that the system performs as expected — even when arrays are fully concealed.