Acoustically Transparent Screen Acoustically transparent (AT) projector screen

What an acoustically transparent screen is

An acoustically transparent screen (AT screen) replaces the solid vinyl or fabric of a normal projector screen with a material that sound can pass through. Behind it, the left, center and right speakers sit in the position the film's sound designer intended, at the image rather than beside it. AccuCal's 2016 Projection Screen Material Report says acoustically transparent materials become more important on 2.35:1 screens over 9 ft wide, because on a wide screen it is hard to place front speakers where they do not block the image and every seat can hear them.

The materials fall into two families. Woven materials use a knitted or woven fabric whose gaps pass sound. Perforated materials are a vinyl sheet with micro holes. The same report says "these materials either have small holes in them or are some type of woven material," that perforated materials are available with higher gain and are generally usable at 15 ft or more, while the weaves are generally 1.0 gain or less and several are usable at 11 ft or more, and that "most weaves will impact the sound less than a perforated screen."

How sound loss works

Sound loss is frequency dependent: low frequencies pass around the material, and the highest octaves lose the most. AccuCal measured treble relative to the level at 2 kHz and found, at 20 kHz: Center Stage XD 2 dB down, Enlightor 4K 2.5 dB, Center Stage UF 2 dB, ClearPix2 White 1 dB, ClearPix3 White 7 dB, SW-4500 4 dB. The loss rolled in smoothly, typically from 2 or 3 kHz to 20 kHz. A black backing, which stops projector light passing through and keeps speakers from showing, "added another 1 db loss at 20 kHz" on the first three weaves and 0.5 dB on ClearPix2 and ClearPix3.

Elite Screens publishes a single mean attenuation number across 8 to 20 kHz. Its comparison sheet (dated April 2026) lists -2.36 dB for AcousticPro UHD, -2.96 dB for CineWhite A8K and -6.98 dB for CineGrey 4D AT, an ambient-light-rejecting material that blocks 63% of ambient light. The sheet also lists hole size for the perforated versions: 0.32 mm average for AcousticPro UHD and 0.55 mm for CineGrey 4D AT, while Elite's product pages give 0.178 mm for AcousticPro 1080P3 and 0.09 mm for CineWhite A8K. Treat vendor attenuation figures as one test method's result; the independent report ran its own measurement and noted that measured gain often falls short of published gain (AcousticPro 4K: published 1.1, measured about 0.71).

The loss is mostly a treble tilt and can be corrected. AccuCal's note on ClearPix3, whose treble loss is 7 dB, says "the equalization correction for treble is rather large." In practice, run your AVR's room correction (see Audyssey MultEQ XT32 or YPAO) after the screen is installed so the loss is part of the measurement. A 1 to 3 dB tilt is easy to fix; a 7 dB tilt costs headroom in the tweeter amplifier channel.

Woven vs perforated, and moiré

Woven AT screens tend to lose less sound and look softer. Perforated screens can use higher-gain coatings and ambient light rejection but lose more treble. Elite describes CineWhite A8K as an "ultra-fine knitted weave design for high resolution projectors" that "negates the moiré effect," and its AcousticPro UHD sheet calls the material "moiré-free." Moire is an interference pattern between the weave and the display's pixel grid. AccuCal says it appears when the pattern is too large relative to the pixel size, that screens over 10 ft wide rarely show it from a weave or perforation pattern, and that the way to avoid it is to test a sample at the final image size, optionally having the manufacturer tilt the pattern. It also warns that a very open weave can streak the image and show objects behind the screen if there is no black backing.

Light behavior differs from a solid screen too. Elite states that the AcousticPro UHD and A8K material "performs at its best in a light controlled environment" rather than in a room with ambient light, and its AcousticPro UHD electric version has no black backing, relying on a dense weave with 0.32 mm average perforations to limit light penetration. For ambient light, see ALR screens and screen gain.

Speaker layout behind the screen

Elite's FAQ on speaker distance is practical: a screen mounted flush against the wall over a properly installed in-wall speaker will have a sufficient distance by itself, with about 1 inch between the speaker's dust cap and the screen and a 5 mm (0.2 inch) gap between the speaker's grille and the AT material.

Ultra-short-throw projectors add a wrinkle. Elite's CineWhite A4K page notes the A4K is "optimized for ultra-short throw projector installations, with dedicated clearance for a center channel speaker," and the A8K page lists compatibility with ultra-short throw and short throw projectors. Not every AT material suits a short-throw lens: Elite lists its electric AcousticPro UHD screens as "Not compatible with Ultra/Short-throw Projectors" (see ultra-short-throw projectors and throw ratio).

Blacken the wall behind the screen. AccuCal advises that "the area behind the screen should be black to prevent light from reflecting back," commonly with black fabric, which on woven materials adds about 1 dB of loss on top of the figure shown.

Common confusions

Transparent does not mean lossless. Even the best weaves in the independent test lose about 1 dB at 20 kHz plus backing, and the worst lose 7 dB.

Gain 1.0 on paper is not 1.0 on screen. AccuCal's measured on-axis gain was below published for most materials, for example 0.82 against 1.0 for AcousticPro 1080 and 0.71 against 1.1 for AcousticPro 4K. Budget extra projector brightness (see ANSI lumens).

Knowledge boundary. The Elite pages loaded do not state the test method behind their mean-attenuation figures, so compare them only across Elite's own materials. For layouts and distances behind a screen, the speaker layout tool and the projector throw tool cover the geometry.