The technical concepts, terminology, and calculation procedures relating to the detailed and simplified ASTC calculation methods are discussed in detail, with numerous worked examples, in the NRC publication entitled “Guide to Calculating Airborne Sound Transmission in Buildings”. This Guide includes references to readily available sources of pertinent data.
For many common constructions, the calculations required by Article 5.8.1.4. can be performed using software tools, such as soundPATHS, which is available on NRC’s website.
The simplified calculation method may not always identify the prominent flanking paths. Furthermore, it corresponds more closely with the results of the detailed calculation method where the separating assembly and the flanking constructions are both constructed according to the same method, i.e. either both are lightweight construction (steel or wood framing) or both are heavyweight construction (masonry or concrete).