Whats Too Loud?(Danger Of Blowing Speakers?)

[zodiak]

Sorry for another potential "dumb" question, just set up my Pioneer 03 & Polk monitor 60's(using just 2 fronts for now)....my question is I have been viewing BD movies currently between -30 to -25 I dont want to damage the speakers so Im curious whats too loud?

I understand without a center Im losing some sound and my room accustics are very poor, but whats a safe range to be listening?

thanks again.

[Intamin]

-30 to -25 should be fine, assuming it's calibrated. Generally, if it's hurting your ears, it's too loud. When you do calibrate your system (if you haven't), 0 is supposed to be reference level, but that is entirely too loud for even me. Another way to tell is if you hear your speakers start distorting or popping, or you can also pick up an spl meter from radioshack and check out how loud it actually is.

[zodiak]

thanks.....yes I used the auto setup(MACC? I think) plus its doesnt hurt it gets loud when there is an explosion or some big pop....so Im good? cool

[McLoki]

when you turn up the volume and it gets louder but no more clear - you are nearing a dangerous edge. As you increase the volume, you should always be able to hear more detail....

Michael

[liquidice]

when you happen to notice that your receiver or speaker has caught fire, it may be too loud. Most people think there is a stigmata in their living space, but it truly is just being pushed to far. So, if you ever start smelling smoke, put down the rosary beads, and grab for the volume control.

[Rob J in WNY]

zodiak,

You mentioned MCACC on your Pioneer 03, which should have calibrated your speakers around a 0dB channel level reference point. To add to the previous posts, -30dB to -25dB system volume is certainly not problematic, unless you are inputting massively loud input signals to your receiver.

It's pretty hard to quantify just when you are pushing it too far, but, barring aforementioned indicators of speaker or receiver damage, if you are listening to point of physical discomfort, suffice it to say that, at that point, may be worse for your ears than your speakers.

I have watched movies all the way through at -13dB on my Pioneer SC-05, and I have Polk T90e fronts (same as Monitor 60). I will say that the soundtrack on the BD was rather low in volume to begin with (there is quite a bit of fluctuation on different titles). I would not want to listen any louder than that, for fear of harming my ears, and bothering neighbors. Really, -13dB was pushing it quite a bit as far as the latter is concerned, though my one neighbor works late nights and doesn't get home until after midnight.

If you ever hear evidence of "clipping," turn down the volume immediately. Clipping occurs when the amplifier has maxed out, and has run out of headroom. It usually creates the commonly heard "blasting car stereo distortion sound" where bass sounds overtake all higher frequencies, creating massive and audible distortion. There are varying opinions on whether clipping ("momentary DC voltage") is damaging to your speakers, but make no mistake, don't take the chance. Turn the volume down quickly.

[zodiak]

thanks again for the info....just so Im clear..... if my volume level is -25 0dB

I shouldnt be in any danger of damaging my equipment....just curious can the 0dB be changed? not that I want to, simply curious.

[tilapiah6]

Originally Posted by Intamin

-30 to -25 should be fine, assuming it's calibrated. Generally, if it's hurting your ears, it's too loud. When you do calibrate your system (if you haven't), 0 is supposed to be reference level, but that is entirely too loud for even me. Another way to tell is if you hear your speakers start distorting or popping, or you can also pick up an spl meter from radioshack and check out how loud it actually is.

So once you've tuned every speaker to 75db using an SPL meter, 0db on the receiver should be reference? That's pretty damn loud. I usually keep it around -5db for movies and -12db for music.

[ShockWave]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-DP89iMe0BY

Don't try this afer 500 plays you WILL blow your speakers!

[Johnny Vinyl]

I have yet to adjust the speaker levels from the receiver. The only thing I do is run the YPAO whenever I change my speaker positioning. Is there a specific reason as to why I should consider adjusting the speaker levels? It sounds pretty good to me and I don't understand what the gain would be in doing so.

The loudest I have ever had my receiver's setting is -7dB and I only stopped there as I thought the Cops would surely be at my door in minutes. I could surely have gone lower, but I'm a considerate guy. For the record...at that level there was no strain from either my AVR or my speakers.

Also, please explain this "reference" level to me. Does that mean I should listen to a 0db signal to obtain a volume that is as the movie recommends? I don't understand this.

John (The Analog Dog)

[Driver_King]

John, you should be fine with leaving your speakers at their current level. However, I am a little worried about what you just said. I'm sure you've calibrated your system with an SPL meter at least and have accurately adjusted the speaker distances and have messed with the equalizers and tone controls, right? I would consult your receiver's manual for detailed instructions on adjusting more complex settings...

[McLoki]

Originally Posted by John72953

Also, please explain this "reference" level to me. Does that mean I should listen to a 0db signal to obtain a volume that is as the movie recommends? I don't understand this.

John (The Analog Dog)

What is reference level? - A decent answer comes from here....

Long story short - it is an arbitrary number that people set their home theaters to. (reference level is the volume level when your AVR is set to 0) It allows you to listen to a movie at -15 in your house with your home theater and have it the exact same volume as -15 is at my house with my home theater.

I usually listen to most movies at -15 to -20. (-25 late night) I typically demo at -10 or so.

Most theaters will not be able to hit 0 without clipping. (usually due to the 115db peak capability required from the subwoofer)

A few words on "Reference Level"

Before we start talking about the pieces and parts, we first need to take a quick refresher on the concept of "Reference Level", as you are going to be hearing that term quite a bit in the coming paragraphs. Simply stated, Reference Level is a standard, known, predictable and reproducible playback volume level. When movie sound tracks are crafted, they are done so on systems which are locked at this level. The sound artist does not play around with a big volume knob when doing his/her work. If the sound artist wants something to be loud, they make that sound loud within the sound track. When they want something to be soft, they make that element soft within the sound track. Movie theaters set their playback level by the exact same rules, so when the movie is shown, you hear EXACTLY what the sound artist heard when they were making the piece. Loud, soft, in-between, it's all there, and no one touches the master volume knob over the course of a two-hour movie.

To achieve THX certification, components must play at this reference level without breaking, distorting, buzzing, rattling or any other distracting effects.

Reference level is by any definition, objective or subjective, quite loud. It basically mirrors the dynamic range of the studio system, which in the case of all movie sound tracks, is 105 dB. Any single channel of the system is calibrated to play 0 dB FSD (the loudest sound the sound track can contain) at 105 dB (115 dB for the LFE channel). While that is really, REALLY loud, its important to remember that there is 105 dB of dynamic range and the artist can put a sound at any level they want. So while a system's volume may be set to reference level, dialogue within the sound track can, and most often is, at a normal, natural level. Reference level, with the dynamic range available, permits a movie to have that normal, natural dialogue, and then suddenly a spectacular, loud car chase without anyone touching the volume control. Every element in the sound track comes out as it should.

Now, having said all that, watching a movie at reference level in a home theater is almost never done. It can be extremely loud to begin with, but the close spaces typical of home theaters make it perceptibly even more so. Reference level is still very important in home theater though for several reasons. Because it is the absolute loudest a sound track should ever be played, its fairly intuitive that its a good idea to have a system that can competently go that loud. It gives you a sort of "safe maximum" volume level, even though you may never push it that high. Even more important though is knowing what volume you are at RELATIVE to reference level because if we go too low, we literally lose the quietest sounds since they are pushed below the audible threshold, surrounds lose their presence, the perceived spectral distribution of the track is altered, and dialogue intelligibility suffers.

[DragonSarc]

Originally Posted by ShockWave

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-DP89iMe0BY

Don't try this afer 500 plays you WILL blow your speakers!

classic even the CD version!!!!

[DragonSarc]

when you start yelling instead of just saying something in a regular voice at somebody beside you