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Noise floors

I'd like to address an issue that every single audiophile experiences, that being inherent/ambient steady state noise floors. Here we spend so much effort and money on our equipment in order to lower noise floor and increase resolution, transparency, only to lose some percentage of it on relatively high ambient noise floors. By this I mean the noise generated internally by home, hvac systems and so much more, add to that external, outside the home generated noise. Measuring over many years, over large variables, lowest readings of mid 20db to highest mid 50db in my dedicated listening room, these are steady state readings, any particular system in house may activate and or outdoor generated noises, which are even more variable, may kick in raising if from here.

And so, while we can address both these internal and external generated noise floors to some extent, we can't rid ourselves entirely of them. I presume there are widely varying levels of these noise floors for each of us, and it should be accounted for in reviews or evaluations of equipment. And could be reason for trusting only long term reviews, with varying noise floor levels within one's listening room, short term listening could have taken place during time of best or worse case room noise floor.

But mostly what bothers me is, here all this effort and money spent on equipment in attempt to lower noise floor, and so much of that lost by relatively ridiculous levels of steady state and/or ambient noise. Makes one think about getting closed back headphones, or moving out to extremely remote area to home with minimal internally generated noise. To think how much better  the very system I presently have would sound in that environment!


sns
unreceivedogma's avatar
unreceivedogma
1,000 posts
 
SNS, thank you for that link. Very interesting, perhaps a bit more detail than I need but very cool to read.

I was being a little coy in my comment above.
In my view, the room isn’t half of the audio system, it’s a third. The other third is our brain itself, and what it brings to the listening experience.

Listen to Poppy Crum’s (chief scientist at Dolby Lans) presentation here.
https://youtu.be/BYTlN6wjcvQ

more later. 
Best - ML

theaudioatticvinylsundays.com
sns OP
3,377 posts
 
A lot there, having been a sociology major in school, I've been long aware of bias, misperception, etc.  And so I agree our brains should be considered as a component of our audio systems, taken together with listening room easily should get as much or more attention as the equipment itself.

Unfortunately, brains and rooms can't be rotated in and out of our systems as the equipment is. Many listening rooms require compromises for all sorts of reasons, and minds are generally not easily changed. The quest for obtaining that perfect mix of equipment is what occupies the mind, the room and training of mind not so much.

The goal of an audio system imo, is to both maximize resolution and minimize the need to ignore the bad things, a point where analytical listening melds into musical enjoyment, one moves past the point of analyzing the sound long term. The ambient noise level of my listening room during daytime is by far the weakest link in my system at this point Anything above a constant 30db or so is bothersome for me, at mid 20's I'm content. Still, I'd like to hear my system at something less than mid 20's, wonder how much more low level info I may be missing.
One more thing to add, at late night listening I'm generally 80-85db peak listening, I can always turn up volume to hear more low level info, but 80-85db is my comfort zone for a lot of music.
unreceivedogma's avatar
unreceivedogma
1,000 posts
 
Well, what’s your goal? 15 db? 10? 5? 0?

There is a point of “silence” at which the mind is not designed to adapt. The mind needs some noise simply so that it can keep us balanced while standing up. The mind needs some noise because it is programmed to listen. Absent all ambience, it will listen to the sound of our own body: heartbeat, breathing, even the sound of the blood pulsing through your ears. Absent that sound, it will create its own: that’s what tinnitus is.

A lab in Minnesota is so quiet that the longest anyone could stand being in it was about 45 minutes or so before they would want to run out screaming.

My room is around mid to high 20s db. I think that is practical, and good enough, because frankly, once the LP starts playing, the mind takes care of the problem: it “diminishes” the ambience and makes it recede to imperceptibility. I think that Millercarbon was alluding to this in his first comment: beyond a certain point, what’s the point?

https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/orfield-labs-quiet-chamber
sns OP
3,377 posts
 
My practical goal for the ambient noise floor has been met. Mid 20db has been totally satisfying. My intention for anything lower is theoretical. And I'd agree one wouldn't want a totally dead room, some ambience and/or noise is our natural environment. My only intention for OP was for people to pay attention to minimizing ambient noise levels in listening rooms. Lots of talk about room treatments, which is vitally important, ambient noise part of equation.


millercarbon's avatar
millercarbon
12,531 posts
 
The key to a low noise floor is nailing. If the floor creaks it is a sure sign they nailed too far apart.
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