Understanding dB - How much do you need?
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Joined: Nov 2007
Posts: 61
old hand
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OP
old hand
Joined: Nov 2007
Posts: 61 |
I noticed that most of my audio gear measures in negative db when i play with the volume. Why does it to this? Example: my reciever is usually listened to around -26db or less..-28 lets say. But i can crank it up to positive numbers. What does that mean? why don't they just count from 0-MAX like most thing lol (take it to 11? ) Also, how much dB do you actually need in a sub to be able to hear the frequencies, and how does that work with sub20hz stuff that you can't even hear. Is 50dB enough? is 80dB the minimum? and lastly, anyone have a response graph on the new EP3503 cheers
-Omar Team Mischief
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Re: Understanding dB - How much do you need?
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Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 3,602
connoisseur
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connoisseur
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 3,602 |
The negative numbers are "relative to" a reference level... 0.
Like, some set up their receivers so when the volume control is set to 0, the program audio will be at, say, 85dB SPL at the listening position... thus, when the receiver reads -20, sound pressure levels at the listening position would be down 20dB from the reference of 85dB, or 65dB.
Of course, that assumes all program material is recorded at the same levels, all equipment outputs the same line levels, etc...
As for the sub stuff... set your sub to approximately the same levels as your other speakers (taking into account the lowered sensitivity of most SPL meters in the low range) and it will be balanced with your system... and then if you're most people, throw away that setting and turn the sub up until your junk jiggles during either the famous "depth charge" or "tank tap" scenes in various movies.
Bren R.
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Re: Understanding dB - How much do you need?
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Joined: Sep 2004
Posts: 11,458
shareholder in the making
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shareholder in the making
Joined: Sep 2004
Posts: 11,458 |
Woo - Hoo! It's official, Ladies and Gentleman! Bren has used the term "junk jiggles" for the One Thousandth Time!!!! Jack, do you have any celebratory icons you can lend to the celebration?
::::::: No disrespect to Axiom, but my favorite woofer is my yellow lab :::::::
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Re: Understanding dB - How much do you need?
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Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 6,331
axiomite
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axiomite
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 6,331 |
I was gonna go with . But then, I figured he'd reply with . Then I'd call him a , and he'd call me a . Hard to argue with that, so his term for me being more accurate than my term for him would mean . So I decided to tone it down and just go with
Jack
"People generally quarrel because they cannot argue." - G. K. Chesterton
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Re: Understanding dB - How much do you need?
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Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 12,077 Likes: 7
Founder, Axiom Upgrade Club shareholder in the making
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Founder, Axiom Upgrade Club shareholder in the making
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 12,077 Likes: 7 |
Those aren't signs of old age, but they sure are signs.
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Re: Understanding dB - How much do you need?
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Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 3,602
connoisseur
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connoisseur
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 3,602 |
But Mark... at least on here you don't get to see the hand motions that go with it. Bren R.
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Re: Understanding dB - How much do you need?
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Joined: Sep 2004
Posts: 11,458
shareholder in the making
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shareholder in the making
Joined: Sep 2004
Posts: 11,458 |
But Mark... at least on here you don't get to see the hand motions that go with it. But I've been imagining them all along......
::::::: No disrespect to Axiom, but my favorite woofer is my yellow lab :::::::
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Re: Understanding dB - How much do you need?
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Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 325
devotee
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devotee
Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 325 |
As to how many hz you can actually hear from the subwoofer, I think the more important issue is the visceral feel you get from the sub. At the lower octaves you can feel the pressure more than hear it, if that makes any sense...
Epic Grande Master 500 w/ on wall VP180
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Re: Understanding dB - How much do you need?
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Joined: Feb 2005
Posts: 5,210
axiomite
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axiomite
Joined: Feb 2005
Posts: 5,210 |
At the lower octaves you can feel the pressure more than hear it, if that makes any sense... Oh it does, absolutely.
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Re: Understanding dB - How much do you need?
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Joined: Nov 2007
Posts: 61
old hand
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OP
old hand
Joined: Nov 2007
Posts: 61 |
As to how many hz you can actually hear from the subwoofer, I think the more important issue is the visceral feel you get from the sub. At the lower octaves you can feel the pressure more than hear it, if that makes any sense... with regards to this point, i think the axiom subs produce sub 20hz frequencies (as do the SVS's for that matter), at around 50-60dB. Is this a usable level or is it just a technical spec so that we can say "our subs do make subsonic levels". Also, what happens when i'm listening at say...80dB or so (or -13...whatever the hell that means haha) and the movie has a sound recorded at 10hz but the sub can only produce that sound at 50dB, does it just go haywire and not render it at all, or does it just render at at a lower level. P.S. - That Junk Jiggle reference was PRICELESS.
-Omar Team Mischief
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