poor grammer on the question, I know, but I recently downloaded the SPL Meter app for my iPhone and I am shocked by how low the volume level actually is when I listen to music.
I thought I was normally listening at high SPL levels, but I have found that at about 85 it's too loud to think (when it reads 65, you can't talk to someone else in the room). I checked it against my real SPL Meter and the readings are pretty accurate.
I thought I was listening at about 90+ dbl on average, but I have discovered it's actually about 60 to 75 db, and that actually seems loud to me. I guess I'm happy about that, but does anyone else check the Decibel level, and what's considered "Reference Level"?
Tvad, you are a menace to the neighborhood! Hope you don't live in a NY apartment, or we will lose you to an angry next door, below, or above neighbor.
Man, on both my RatShack meter and my iPhone at 75 db it's deafening. I must have whimpy ears.
Usually 85 to 90,but when i want to jam 110 to 115dbs according to my spl meter at my seated position 15 feet away.Yes i know that's too loud for most audiophiles but it's my friday routine thing for a half hour or hour.
Ditto here!85dB - 90dB. Sometimes louder. Rarely quieter. This is measured from the listening seat with a Radio Shack decibel meter.... Its background music below 65db not for serious listening imho.Live performances are not at 65db so how could you judge a recording performance at 65db or below?80db for that matter..JD
MacDad -- You'll find a lot of interesting discussion of the same question in this thread.
Quoting my own answer therein:
This is a difficult question to answer, because it is highly dependent on the dynamic range of the music, and because it is (as Shadorne points out) also highly dependent on the quality of the recording.
It's pretty well recognized that music which is accurately recorded and reproduced will tend to be played louder than inaccurate, unrealistically reproduced, distorted music.
But even more significantly, music with wide dynamic range, such as well-recorded classical symphony orchestra, will tend to be played with the volume control set MUCH higher than for highly compressed material, such as most major popular releases. That will mean that the average volume level of the wide dynamic range material will be less than the average volume of the highly compressed material, but the peak volume of the wide dynamic range material will be MUCH higher.
A notable case in point would be the early Sheffield Labs direct-to-disk recording of Prokofiev's "Romeo and Juliet," conducted by Erich Leinsdorf (which is presently available remastered onto cd). I've never used an spl meter, but I would estimate that I listen to that recording with the average level in the low 70's, but with peak levels reaching around 105db (estimated based on speaker efficiency, amplifier power, and attenuation due to listening distance).
And btw, I can tell you that the 105db is not anywhere close to being as loud as the peak levels in a live performance of the same work, as listened to in the very front row at Tanglewood!
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