VO-BB - 20 YEARS OLD!

Bish · Posted: Wed Feb 29, 2012 11:29 am Post subject:

That certainly gets into a whole different realm of perception. The dynamic range of normal human hearing is immense... pin-drops to thunderbolts! We do our own processing, and I'm afraid measurement of sound pressure levels (SPL) is well beyond my pay-grade! The only thing I know about them first-hand is back in the 70s when I used to race bikes, they started to introduce noise limits for the bikes because of local residents... Jeez... If you're going to live near Brands Hatch, don't get snitty about the noise! ... Oh, and when the clubs started to put them in because local authorities limited the noise of performing bands... big red light flashing next to the mixing board and me having to turn it down the minimum I could get away with.
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Lapianoman · Posted: Wed Feb 29, 2012 4:22 pm Post subject:

I have uploaded a short test file to Soundcloud, which contains approx. 10 seconds of "silence" (just ambient noise with no processing whatsoever), followed by a classic poem.

http://soundcloud.com/lapianoman/vo-bb-test-file

Your comments are appreciated!

Limerick Lane Audio · Contributore Level V Joined: 13 Jan 2012 Posts: 151

Bish · Posted: Wed Feb 29, 2012 5:58 pm Post subject:

Downloaded wav file and loaded into SoundStudio... yup, I agree... around -56dB.

It was peaking at 0dB and I was wondering if that was a) your original recording level b) you had normalized, or c) it was something that Soundcloud had done. My point is that if you (or Soundcloud) had lifted everything, then the -56dB (which is not bad at all really) would also have been raised as well.

As for the poem... thank God it wasn't anything by Paula Nancy Millstone Jennings Wink

Cheers
Bish
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Bish a.k.a. Bish
Smoke me a kipper... I'll be back for breakfast.
I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls.

Lapianoman · Posted: Thu Mar 01, 2012 8:42 am Post subject:

forefront · Joined: 14 Sep 2010 Posts: 21 Location: Estacada, OR

Aha! So that's how you measure Noise Floor.

-80dB

...or -71dB with the fish tank and washing machine switched on Smile

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heyguido · Posted: Wed Mar 14, 2012 8:07 am Post subject:

Once spent two days chasing extraneous hum around the house.... ceiling fans, refrigerator, etc.... but just couldn't find that last, irritating hum..... turned out to be the damn cat fountain.... Embarrassed

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Bish · Posted: Wed Mar 14, 2012 8:16 am Post subject:

Cat fountain? - What a strange concept...

... or did you mean something else?
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Bish a.k.a. Bish
Smoke me a kipper... I'll be back for breakfast.
I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls.

todd ellis · Posted: Wed Mar 14, 2012 10:47 am Post subject:

oddly disturbing.
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Monk · Posted: Thu Mar 15, 2012 8:56 am Post subject:

HA! cat fountain, what's next, dog drinking fountain?

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dwpthe3rd · Posted: Thu Mar 15, 2012 6:09 pm Post subject:

todd ellis · Posted: Fri Mar 16, 2012 6:45 am Post subject:

HA! i got one of those for my sister for christmas a few years ago! she still hasn't forgiven me.
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Bish · Posted: Fri Mar 16, 2012 7:02 am Post subject:

Todd, I guess we're assuming your sister has a dog... otherwise it's not surprising she hasn't forgiven you.

Back on track... last night I stripped down my mic chain and rebuilt with particular mind to cable runs... I may be me looking too hard for a result, but I'd swear that I've knocked another 2dB off my floor.

Every little helps.
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Bish a.k.a. Bish
Smoke me a kipper... I'll be back for breakfast.
I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls.

heyguido · Posted: Fri Mar 16, 2012 9:45 am Post subject:

Good call, Bish..... It's often the little things that make the difference.
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kgenus · Posted: Sat Apr 07, 2012 12:21 pm Post subject:

Well, what you are actually measuring is the continuous RMS level of your current signal chain and room. I just spent the last 48 getting schooled about this and thought I'd pass along a bit of the awful mess of tests and analysis - you need a properly calibrated sound level meter that has an 8 band filter ($2000+) and a 24 hour test period, followed by a noise analysis tool ($800+). Even your signal chain has to have a calibration device actively "in the chain" to ensure the accuracy of results. Gear must tested before and after tests, too. Good news is the results of conducting the tests are pretty much like getting tested by an endocrinologist - you find out everything about your environment.

The RMS tests will go a long way to helping you set up your gate's threshold.
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