Understanding dB level

Comments · 143

• JU

  @juliocesarpereira4325 · 2 years ago (edited)

  I was an audio operator at an FM station in the late 1980s and early 1990s. I used a walkman as a monitor instead of the sound of the console, so I had exactly the end result just like any regular listener. I learned how to use the minimum and maximum audio processor thresholds to my advantage, so I could leave the scratches and cracks noises from  some records well below the music. I also used this when playing ads and the station identification so they would sound louder without sounding compressed. I really enjoyed doing this. And yes, I respected the 0dB limit at all times.

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• SO

  @sorini75 · 1 year ago (edited)

  I recently discovered a channel on YouTube, from Romania, in which sound engineers are invited. A highly experienced sound engineer was asked what the best sound experience at a concert was. He said something like Star Trek terms, especially for Romania in those years, it was Michael Jackson Dangerous tour concert Bucharest. He said he heard many sounds from other concerts but nothing impressed him like that concert. When the sound system was turned to 0 decibels, people called the police, because in the neighborhood around the stadium, many windows  from houses were broken.

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• TU

  @turboboost99 · 2 years ago

  The simplest way to explain it is to say that 0dB is the reference level for full output (unattenuated) and all the negative dB markings are relative to that reference.  In other words, -20dB means 20dB (nominally) below the reference, or 20dB of attenuation.  You often see a negative infinity symbol at the bottom of the volume dB scale, which of course means full attenuation.  Key to getting all of this is to understand that all volume controls are attenuators, not boosters.

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• MA

  @Magic-Twenty-Nine · 2 years ago

  It's like a faucet. Everyone is aware that it is not responsible for the water pressure in the pipe, but rather dampens it so that we can draw water comfortably and in measured quantities.

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• PA

  @paolovolante · 2 years ago (edited)

  Thank you, Paul, as always. I think it&apos;s important to mention also the fact that the dB scale is logarithmic, not linear. In fact, each -10 dB is equivalent to reducing the perceived volume by half. If we consider 0 dB as 100% of the sound we can get, this is the relation between dB and volume:<br>0 dB = 100% perceived output level<br>-10 dB = 50% perceived output level (approximately)<br>-20 dB = 25% perceived output level (approximately)<br>-30 dB = 12.5% perceived output level (approximately)<br>and so on...

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• VE

  @ver64 · 3 weeks ago

  THANKS ALOT….finally DBs explain &nbsp;in simple words…BIG👍🏻 and subscribed.

• SI

  @siddharthbiswas9028 · 2 years ago

  Thanks for the explanation. I have also always wondered about this

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• JO

  @johnnytoobad7785 · 2 years ago

  Negative 10 db is typically referred to as 10db &quot;down&quot;...from full &quot;rated&quot; output. &nbsp;(typically volts)<br>It all started with VU meters on pro mixing consoles (in the fifties).<br>0db was the max value you could apply before the mag-tape became &quot;fully saturated&quot;.<br>The scale just became widely accepted in recording studios, then home (open reel) tape decks, later cassette decks then pre-amps and amps.<br>(although most VU meters on amps are...&quot;just for show&quot;)

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• JJ

  @jjarango2 · 2 years ago

  Hello Paul. I watch your videos every day and have learned a great deal from them. Thank you for making them. From watching your videos so much, it seems to me that one of your collaborators passes you the questions they ask and you improvise a response, in a great way, to say the least. However, in this question about dB, which seemed simple, the answer didn&apos;t come out well. Sometimes improvising an answer to a question based on a very solid knowledge base is not so easy. It would be worthwhile making another video to clarify this matter properly. Again, a thousand thanks for your videos (and for your high-end products, of which I am a proud owner of 3 of them [BHK Signature Preamplifier, DirectStream DAC MK2 and the AirLens streamer]).

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• WL

  @wlnmn7217 · 2 years ago

  Thanks Paul, this video is of particular interest to me because it was actually a review of an older PS Audio product line, the GCC 100 and 250, that prompted me to research and finally understand how volume actually works in most audio amps. I had been an audiofile for many years. But Like most people, I believed that turning up the volume meant turning up the juice, or power. I was fascinated to learn that the volume knob actually progressively removes or releases suppression from the full signal, which increases the power and volume level. That was interesting enough, but the real kicker was learning that the quality of sound was actually increasing as the volume went up because the power suppression that keeps the volume low is also diminishing the signal quality. For years I thought that I could actually hear more detail at higher volume levels, and I had to grin and bear the standard comment that higher volume doesn&apos;t make better sound. Granted, the difference in detail might be minimal between moderate and higher listening levels. But I was certain that I was hearing a difference, with more detail at higher volume levels. The PS Audio GCC line of amps used &nbsp;a &quot;gain control cell, or gain cell&quot; for volume control (I think). The gain control cell, if I understand it, does not control volume by suppressing the full signal, and meading &nbsp;the power out as the volume is turned up. Consequently, the GCC amps apparently provided superb detail at low volume levels, which most other amps with standard volume controls don&apos;t by comparison. The reviews of the GCC line, all positive, said so. But there was one disappointing aspect... none of the reviews and articles ever explained exactly how the gain control cell worked. I&apos;ve also heard it called a gain cell, and I&apos;m guessing that these two terms refer to the same mechanism? So, after this long explanation, I&apos;m hoping that you might be able to find a little time to respond and explain how the gain control cell actually controlled volume. If I remember correctly, the GCC 100 and 250 were class D integrated amps? Does the gain cell only work with class D, or could it also be used with class AB, and A amps? Thanks again for this video, and if you have a spare minute to shed some light of how gain cells work, I&apos;d love to finally get a little closure on that old technical question.

• SP

  @spacemissing · 2 years ago

  Maybe this will only muddy the waters, but here&apos;s one way to think of it: &nbsp; <br>It&apos;s like temperature, except that temperature is linear and loudness is logarithmic --- <br>and, technically, you can use any volume level as &quot;zero&quot; for comparison purposes, <br>whereas temperature has fixed references.

• AG

  @AgentEagle · 2 years ago (edited)

  The relative volume scale is primarily used for home theater. 0db is considered ‘reference’ level, which means when calibrated correctly, each speaker will be playing at 85db at ‘0’, allowing for peaks of 105db from bed layer channels and 115db from the LFE channel. This ensures that your level of loudness is how the sound engineer intended it to be and it replicates what is heard in a commercial cinema.

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