Abarth 500e: Well, the sound is right

The roar of a performance car is an emotional component that can disappear forever with the transition to an electric vehicle. However, auto manufacturers decided to design a Synthetic rhombus dedicated to their flagship models. This is the caseAbarth 500efor which the manufacturer has invested significant resources in creating the appropriate sound (see Video below). This was reported by the Italian company itself, which details the development process.

clatterAbarth 500e Developed by a dedicated team of audio engineers in collaboration with the Sound Design Studio at the NVH (Noise Vibration & Harshness) division of Stellantis in Italy, they are the same responsible for the Record Monza exhaust used in the Abarths internal combustion engine. Overall, the design lasted about 2 years, with the 6 months of continuous work it required More than 6000 hours Analyze and create the perfect sound for every stage of the driving experience with the participation of a team of experts. The technical director followed a project management phase, with NVH professionals who instead dedicated themselves to improvement, focusing on both the creative and technological part of the process.

Part of the acoustic tests and studies were carried out in a semi-anechoic chamber, which is a room specially designed to be isolated from its surroundings in order to make reliable noise measurements. Thus it was possible to recreate an acoustically reflective surface, such as a road. For optimal performance and as close as possible to the original, the The current sound of a gasoline engine The Abarth was recorded during all the different phases of driving: acceleration, deceleration, braking and fast cornering. The recordings were then analyzed to extract all the frequencies characteristic of Abarth, in order to create a new sound in a virtual matrix enriched by additional tones.

The matrix was then tested in the studio and on the stationary vehicle with different configurations in order to obtain the best result. The crucial point was balancing sound generator To provide the driver with the most enjoyable driving experience even at high speeds, while respecting the smoothing restrictions of noise pollution and ensuring Realistic sound. This made it possible to “synchronize” the intensity of the sound in relation to driving conditions and vehicle speed (the sound is processed through the external rear loudspeaker). For example, when a fileAbarth 500e The sound generator is off, replicating the Record Monza exhaust sound at idle.