[W126 Coupe] Becker & Speakers for sale

[Axel Wulff]

Reading up on loudness issues, things are a bit more complicated that I 
remembered. It seems the human ear's sensitivity to different sound pressure 
levels depends on the frequency of the sound, whether it is noise or music, 
and whether the difference is between very low volume to merely low volume, 
or from a high volume to even higher.

Wikipedia summarizes the "rule of thumb" as follows:

"A widely used "rule of thumb" for the loudness of a particular sound is 
that the sound must be increased in intensity by a factor of ten for the 
sound to be perceived as twice as loud. A common way of stating it is that 
it takes 10 violins to sound twice as loud as one violin. Another way to 
state the rule is to say that the loudness doubles for every 10 phon 
increase in the sound loudness level. Although this rule is widely used, it 
must be emphasized that it is an approximate general statement based upon a 
great deal of investigation of average human hearing but it is not to be 
taken as a hard and fast rule."

So, in order to double the perceived loudness of music (goin from, say, 60 
db to 70 db) the amplification power must be 10x (increasing from, say, 3 
watt to 30 watt).


Regards,
Axel J. Wulff
610-731-5453 Cellular
610-572-4611 Home





>From: Dan Landiss <dan at landiss.com>
>Reply-To: dan at landiss.com,Mercedes Coupes Mailing Lists 
><mbcoupes at mbcoupes.com>
>To: Mercedes Coupes Mailing Lists <mbcoupes at mbcoupes.com>
>Subject: Re: [W126 Coupe] Becker & Speakers for sale
>Date: Mon, 11 Sep 2006 16:37:37 -0500
>
>on 9/11/2006 3:18 PM Axel Wulff wrote:
>
>>Not to nitpick, but db is measured on a log scale
>
>That is correct.
>
>>and a difference in 3 db means that the sound level to a listener is 
>>double/half, depending on which way you go.
>
>No, one of the reasons a log scale was chosen was that twice as much power 
>does NOT sound twice as loud. It is generally accepted that the average 
>listener can perceive a 1 dB change in a steady, pure tone; and a 3 dB 
>change in more complex waveforms.
>
>>I.e to go from 90 db to 93 db takes twice the amplification power
>
>Yes
>
>>and will sound twice as loud.
>
>No, a just perceptible difference. Some sources say a 10 dB increase is 
>twice as loud, t everyone agrees on that number. It might be higher in the 
>case of music.
>
>--
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>Never argue with a dragon, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup.
>
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