SPL measurements..

es347

VIP/Donor & WBF Founding Member
Apr 20, 2010
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Midwest fly over state..
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JackD201

WBF Founding Member
Apr 20, 2010
12,308
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Manila, Philippines
Sounds flat and measures flat aren't the same thing my friend. :) Measurements are the best place to start but you ARE allowed to deviate ;)
 

tmallin

WBF Technical Expert
May 19, 2010
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Chicagoland

Ethan Winer

Banned
Jul 8, 2010
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New Milford, CT
I've been driving myself crazy tonight with a Stereophile test disc and my spl meter. I have done sweeps from 20 to 200 hz

Most test tone CDs are useless because they contain sine waves at only third-octave intervals. That's way too coarse to assess bass response in a room. Another problem with test tone CDs is they don't show ringing, which is just as damaging as a skewed response. If you have a computer that can connect to your system, room measuring software is far better. See the Room Measuring series in my forum:

http://www.whatsbestforum.com/forumdisplay.php?167-Ethan-Winer-The-Audio-Skeptic

If you can't easily connect a computer to your system, second best is sine waves at 1 Hz intervals:

RealTraps Test Tone CD

--Ethan
 

Mark (Basspig) Weiss

Well-Known Member
Aug 3, 2010
682
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New Milford, CT
www.basspig.com
Be advised that the Radio Shack meters internally clip around 116dB, so any efforts at testing maximum SPL may come back with inaccurate results. The mic preamp stage is what clips, according to my investigation with an oscilloscope, probing various points.
I eventually combed eBay for a year and found a real sound level meter and bought it from a state highway department. It comes with a calibrator and a NIST traceable certificate, so I know the readings I take are accurate all the way to 140dB. It's a British import, but I highly recommend the CEL 241/1, as a serious measurement instrument.
For sweeps, I recommend Room EQ Wizard (thanks Ethan, for turing me on to that product!), calibrated with a good SPL meter for meaningful results.
 

ack

VIP/Donor & WBF Founding Member
May 6, 2010
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Boston, MA
When I opened my meter 33-2055 the values for the caps are completely different - this is the digital version of it. Would the mods still work?
 

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