Maplins noise meters
Discussion
Maplins may feel differently, but my car is somewhere between 98 and 102 decibels at 45 degrees and 1 metre from the tailpipe, at 3/4 revs.
The two cheaper meters Maplins sell were tested side by side ths afternoon. One read 93 decibels,the other 111 decibels.
I will report back on Monday what the actual reading should be.
The two cheaper meters Maplins sell were tested side by side ths afternoon. One read 93 decibels,the other 111 decibels.
I will report back on Monday what the actual reading should be.
Apologies in advance if you know all this :
Are you measuring dba? Not dbc, as circuit noise tests are dba (something to do with 'weighting' but no idea what it means in reality)
When I looked at Maplins they had:
(1) Maplin mini sound level meter - only measures dbc AFAIK
(2) Maplin digital sound level meter - measures both dba and dbc - you can switch it to 'A' and set to 'high' range and to 'slow' - we found this gave us a pretty accurate/comparable reading but it did vary slightly depending on location/surroundings.
I learnt the dba bit and bought option (2) during a painful experience trying to get my Elise down from 111 dba last year.
Hope that helps?
Are you measuring dba? Not dbc, as circuit noise tests are dba (something to do with 'weighting' but no idea what it means in reality)
When I looked at Maplins they had:
(1) Maplin mini sound level meter - only measures dbc AFAIK
(2) Maplin digital sound level meter - measures both dba and dbc - you can switch it to 'A' and set to 'high' range and to 'slow' - we found this gave us a pretty accurate/comparable reading but it did vary slightly depending on location/surroundings.
I learnt the dba bit and bought option (2) during a painful experience trying to get my Elise down from 111 dba last year.
Hope that helps?
Right. Drove to Cadwell Park. Another MSV circuit. Had a sound check. Weird (impossible) results.
They tested both pipes at 3/4 max revs (4500). One read 101dB, the other 106dB.
Weird (I before E, except after W) because the TVR 8 pipe manifold exhaust all comes into one pipe for the cat, one pipe to the silencer, then splits into two to go through the silencer. The ends sound the same to the naked ear.
He did the first test standing out to the driver's side. At a guess he didn't change sides to do the second test, so got the benefit of both pipes? I don't know. I will get the truth on Monday.
The key info - they use an NM102 tester, calibrated before the test, and hold it at an angle of 30 degrees, half a metre from the exhaust. 30 degrees: if you join the noise meter to the exhaust pipe with a half metre bamboo cane, the angle between the cane and your back bumper would be 30 degrees.
They tested both pipes at 3/4 max revs (4500). One read 101dB, the other 106dB.
Weird (I before E, except after W) because the TVR 8 pipe manifold exhaust all comes into one pipe for the cat, one pipe to the silencer, then splits into two to go through the silencer. The ends sound the same to the naked ear.
He did the first test standing out to the driver's side. At a guess he didn't change sides to do the second test, so got the benefit of both pipes? I don't know. I will get the truth on Monday.
The key info - they use an NM102 tester, calibrated before the test, and hold it at an angle of 30 degrees, half a metre from the exhaust. 30 degrees: if you join the noise meter to the exhaust pipe with a half metre bamboo cane, the angle between the cane and your back bumper would be 30 degrees.
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