Room acoustic simulations performed with wave-based methods are becoming feasible alternatives to geometrical acoustics thanks to the increasing power of computers. In this preliminary study, two of these methods are investigated: the Finite Difference Time Domain (FDTD) method and the Equivalent Source Method (ESM). The Image Source Method (ISM) is also used as a reference for comparison of the results. The two selected methods perform calculations in the time domain. This has the advantage of obtaining results for all frequencies up to a selected limit in a single simulation, instead of running separate simulations for each individual frequency. Time-domain calculations also directly yield the impulse response of a room, from which acoustic parameters and auralization signals can be derived.
