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I was playing again with my free smartphone sound level meter.
Works pretty good.
And it matches my old Radio Shack Sound level gizmo pretty well.
(pretty well is within 3dB)
I have recently been playing music a little louder than in the past. So I am up to an average of 68dB average for Jazz combo, seated at my listening position
With no excuse (If all you have is a landline... Forgive me..)the app is free.. Plenty of them, free..
What is YOUR average playing level?
Follow Ups:
I use an app on my iPhone called SPL Meter. It looks like an old school analogue meter. I have it left on its default calibration settings as it is supposed to know the device it is installed on. I did, a few years ago, borrow a professional sound meter and the iphone version was within a db or two.
With C weighting and slow response I know that my system is just getting going around 95dB at my listening position. It becomes spectacular around 105dB, and large bass sequences will push it to 110dB+.
My listening room has a cubic volume of ~18000 sq ft (double height barn conversion, fully detached).
Occasionaly I'll take a reading at a rock concert, my highest was 119dB (The Twilight Sad), generally loud gigs are at 115dB, and 'usual' gigs are 110dB
I know these are relative and not absolute values.
"My listening room has a cubic volume of ~18000 sq ft "
Interesting. Huh.
Of course, sorry I meant 'squirrels' ;-)
Reality -
See attached B&K 2270 accurate sound measurements in my listening room playing Frampton and measuring 1 second intervals with Fast Max and Minimums, Slow Max and Peak levels for each second. OK this was LOUD - but still not at typical concert levels I have measured recently. These measurements are "Unweighted" not A-weighted - the A-weighted values were 5-10 dB less (also measured simultaneously.
I was pushing close to 1000 Watt peaks into the MMG's
A few points. You just can't say how many dB without saying the measurement frequency weighting and detector type.
"The hardest thing of all is to find a black cat in a dark room, especially if there is no cat" - Confucius
Nt
I tried it. At peaks of 80 had to turn it down as it hurt my ears.
Comfortably loud in the mid 60's, normal listening in the mid 50's.
Of course, my free meter may not be all that accurate.
I just measured my voice:
dBA average 53.4 dB
Max Fast Level 62.5 dBA
Peak level 81.72dBC
Loudness 10 Sones
Even a human voice has a 20-25 dB crest factor (ratio of peak to average level. A lot (most) recorded music is less that 15dB crest factor - and we wonder why it doesn't sound real???!?
Recording engineers fault.
"The hardest thing of all is to find a black cat in a dark room, especially if there is no cat" - Confucius
That was how my meter was calibrated. In a quiet room the meter was held three feet in font of me as I spoke in a normal voice. It's most likely close enough for government work.
Louder is BETTER!
I do most of my listening at an average level around 75 dB, measured at the listening position with a calibrated meter or mic with C weighting.
Below 70 dB average is for background music that you can comfortably talk over without raising your voice too much. Above 85 dB average is "cranking it", which is something I do only occasionally, usually when drinking and not for long periods.
dBA, or dBC?
There are numerous audio apps for smartphones, including many sound level meter apps. Not all are created equal with regard to accuracy. Free isn't always best, you might want to splurge and spend $2 - $5 for a better one.
:)
Below that, you ear starts to miss bottom end that's in the recording. Above that, you start hearing bass that actually isn't there; Fletcher-Munson works both ways. So for most pop/rock, I keep it around 85. Much less for string trios/quartets etc. Big orchestral slams might be above that somewhat, but not much. In my studio-assistant career (now retired) all the good engineers kept the steady-state levels pretty close to 85. They knew that's the level where you hear it as it is. Some hotshot hip-hop engineers blasted away, and their recordings always ended up extremely bass-shy. When we would hear the boom-boom coming from a soundproof room, the old-timers would smile, because they knew what the end product would be. (The clients were always impressed, feeling the shock waves in the control room pounding on their chests, but that changed when they heard the lean, wan end product outside the studio.)
I rarely listen louder, but once in a while it's fun. I've had Tannoy Stirling GR's for a few months now. They are the only dynamic speaker I've heard that are as good at whispering as Quad ESL 57's. Really. Strangely, they are also sound wonderful blowing the walls down. Tonal balance and presentation (row A vs row ZZ) are absolutely unchanged from ppp to ffff. Every other dynamic speaker I've had sounded distant and veiled below their "good" level, and sounded hard, glare-y, too in-your-face as they got too loud. These don't; the whispers are exquisite and can give goosebumps. As the volume increases, the sound just gets BIGGER, which can be thrilling with the right music. I've had these for a few months now, and am learning from them every day. They have changed the game for me completely, which is unexpected after forty-odd years. I'll do a review, but it will take a few months more before I really understand what's going on with them.
WW
"A man need merely light the filaments of his receiving set and the world's greatest artists will perform for him." Alfred N. Goldsmith, RCA, 1922
85 db using which weighting? That would be consistent for my listening at power levels with "C". At least with peaks, not steady average.
Right now, I'm listening to a classical music stream in the office peaking around 62 db using the Studio Six app for iOS.
With regards to "whispering ESLs", I find that as my system's resolution has improved over the years, I find as satisfying an experience found at slightly lower levels with my large panel area stats. They won't thump your chest with mid bass heavy dance music but can waft a satisfying heavy concert drum wave past my ears. :)
Which weighting? I generally use C, but no one in the studio looks at SPL meters; they just set volumes at the level that lets them hear as deeply as possible into the mix. For midrange, that is usually around 85 dB, with either weighting. That level is just loud enough so you have to lean in close to carry on a conversation, but you don't have to shout. A lot depends on the speakers - Scott Hull's big Duntechs at Masterdisk don't really do their thing until they are pretty loud; the Yammy NS10M's are better at low levels, but still benefit from some volume; the Doug Sax/Manley Tannoy ML10's are great at almost any level, though the bottom-ish end falls off a cliff.
Listen at the level you enjoy.
WW
"A man need merely light the filaments of his receiving set and the world's greatest artists will perform for him." Alfred N. Goldsmith, RCA, 1922
I dunno, but I like looking at my free apps AirPlay Mirrored to the big screen from my Apple iPad or iPhone. This was at our old place. Haven't played with the silly apps in a while.
What make is your audio rack Abe?
Abe's rack is in their Synergy line. You can pick your aluminum supports color,shelving type and quantity and add doors etc. Very a la carte, very cool. Look at the designs and solutions tabs. I was a dealer. Good company.
ET
"If at first you don't succeed, keep on sucking till you do suck seed" - Curly Howard 1936
Edits: 02/04/17 02/04/17
I like their racks. I also have the normal (single width) S40 and the short S20 racks.
They're very versatile but can be a bit of a challenge getting all the shelves exactly level and where you want them. I think Salamander provides a small bubble level but I use a larger one from my toolbox.
The options and flexibility for setup are great features, but along with that flexibility comes a little planning and effort to get everything adjusted just the way you want it.
My Salamander Synergy S40 rack
This was at another house but I still have the rack. I opted for the drawer at the bottom for misc items like cables, spare tubes, whatever.
Their rail system looks a lot like the Bosch Rexroth line.
AKA - 80/20 inc
Edits: 02/04/17
Thanks for the info!
Sure.
It redefines a DIY rack.
Additional gadgets for my Synergy racks.
Its even harder to level their entry level line which uses bolts and rubber washers on a threaded rod. See link. I like all their stuff.
ET
"If at first you don't succeed, keep on sucking till you do suck seed" - Curly Howard 1936
.
Abe-
beautiful pics! Hopefully you are showing that sweet Accuphase cd player some love?
It's a Salamander rack.
It is the "S20" height and double width.
OK, if you say so.
ET
"If at first you don't succeed, keep on sucking till you do suck seed" - Curly Howard 1936
It's OK, I don't mind.
nt
"Our stereos do not add any distortion to your music, and they do not take any away!" Sony ad.
But if you remember she had a sizable hearing loss and 68dB would never do.
ET
"If at first you don't succeed, keep on sucking till you do suck seed" - Curly Howard 1936
...the hearing loss was only in one ear.
well one ear was dead since she was a teenager from an accident and she wore an aid in the other as I recall
ET
"If at first you don't succeed, keep on sucking till you do suck seed" - Curly Howard 1936
Edits: 02/05/17
How good does your hearing really have to be to simply check the sound level? And how do we know the OP is Elizabeth anyway?
Same listed occupation, exact same audio equipment, same location, same disposition as Elisabeth.
If it squawks like a duck, and walks like a duck, it is a duck.
"Our stereos do not add any distortion to your music, and they do not take any away!" Sony ad.
You could be right. I don't know Elizabeth personally, only from this forum.
I've done the same thing myself a few times. Any woman who is brave enough to hang out here has to have a pretty thick skin to put up with all the sexist BS.
Sue
but I've been here over 12 years and just post a lot especially of late. 16,608 posts in that time.
ET
"If at first you don't succeed, keep on sucking till you do suck seed" - Curly Howard 1936
Edits: 02/04/17
.
As the old saying goes...
"Just because you're paranoid, it doesn't mean that they aren't out to get you"
Cheers
Welly
He hoped and prayed that there wasn't an afterlife. Then he realized there was a contradiction involved here and merely hoped that there wasn't an afterlife.
- Douglas Adams
I like that
ET
"If at first you don't succeed, keep on sucking till you do suck seed" - Curly Howard 1936
.
.
And like Awe-d-o-file , I've been locked in the Asylum for about a decade now. It gets to you. ;-)
Edits: 02/04/17
So 68 is right in the ballpark of civilized noise making.
Perhaps you have a hearing problem, and need it louder? That is understandable. And some folks just want to blow their hearing all to Hell. No sympathy from me there.
I have always kept the music at lower levels once I reached 'adulthood'.. Believe it or not, with a constant use of low levels like 55dB for Chamber music, 80 is really really loud in comparison.
My one exception to the low levels is some opera. I just love a full blown opera voice.
So some operas I listen at as high a dB level as 80dB.
I was a board certified hearing instrument specialist for about five years and know the numbers. I have excellent hearing my audiogram looks great, only 3K is 10dB down.
I do like loud from time to time. I follow the OSHA guidelines and then some.
ET
"If at first you don't succeed, keep on sucking till you do suck seed" - Curly Howard 1936
I had a pet Parrot once poor b***ger born with no beak
But I taught him to suck seed
Sorry D
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