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Acoustic anechoic chambers are enclosed spaces which are highly isolated from outside noise sources and also highly absorbent to any noise produced inside. The one at Orfield Laboratories in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA is in the Guinness Book of World Records as the quietest place on Earth. There is an urban legend that spending more than 30 minutes in one will drive you crazy.

I realize that I can probably peek into some of the research facilities, but I would like to test my sanity against one. By this I mean that I would like to spend up to 1 hour alone inside of a reasonably well constructed chamber, but is doesn't have to be at the level of quality of 'the quietest place on Earth'.

Is it possible, as a tourist, to visit an anechoic chamber where one can experience acoustic deprivation for up to an hour? I am interested in locations anywhere in the world.

Walls of an acoustic anechoic chamber

Related question: Where is the quietest place on Earth?

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  • Changed title to clarify, otherwise it just sounds like you're asking about quiet places anywhere, not specifically the chambers. Upvoted.
    – Mark Mayo
    Commented May 8, 2015 at 1:16
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    @MarkMayo You totally killed my clickbait title :P.
    – Chris Mueller
    Commented May 8, 2015 at 1:22
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    sorry, but this is arguably more likely to get you traffic so I think of it as helping ;)
    – Mark Mayo
    Commented May 13, 2015 at 8:56
  • When I was a student at the University of British Columbia around 2005 I got a brief tour of an anechoic chamber I think it was in the engineering labs as I recall it was colocated with a wind tunnel. It had a cool cable mesh floor so the cones were even under you. As I recall some of my peers did not enjoy being in there. I believe it brought to my attention to the sounds that my body makes such as breath, heartbeat, digestion et cetera. I would like to try meditating in such as space. I feel it offered a novel sensory experience akin to spending time in a flotation ( aka sensory deprivation
    – KWH
    Commented Feb 1, 2019 at 16:24
  • I bought four of of these (in Boston and Santa Barbara) and our CFO is still mad at me :-). Rest assured they do not drive you crazy, I've spent a a lot more time in there then 30 minutes. Sorry, none of them are open to the public.
    – Hilmar
    Commented Feb 1, 2019 at 21:53

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Anechoic Chambers Around the World

Since most anechoic chambers are part of company/university laboratories, it is safe to assume that they are generally not open to the public on a regular basis. Nevertheless it is also safe to assume that these facilities might be available for rent to other companies/enterprises/institutions.

Below is an incomplete list of rentable anechoic chambers around the world:

If all else fails you can always take a virtual tour of the EMC RF Anechoic Test Facility in Sydney, Australia.

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