Extreme Loudness
 

I mentioned it before at this place, words like trillion and sextillion have an huge appeal to me. They make me dizzy and I love this. I like to savour that the earth weighs 6 sextillion tons. And i also like think about the googolplex and the volume of the pacific ocean in liters. And the supposed density short after the big bang. Anyway, what I haven't explored are the extremes in loudness. Is there something like a mega or giga-decibel? Couldn't find anything. I mean 150 db is pretty loud ...

Serve my semi-arithmophobe fascination for the big numbers!

Kant, from what I remember, probably has the answers. Something to the effect of that art must always aspire to the sublime; something to the effect of Wagner affecting an apogee of art, or at least representing it. You can [fail to] concieve of a very large number; a very large decibelage will probably deafen you.

I take it you're not impressed by Spinal Tap turning their amps to 11 then?

10000 decibel is 1 kilobel and that's the biggest unit I could find with google
http://www.sengpielaudio.com/ConvBel.htm

Gulasch - wenn Sie die Gefuehl der Taubheit zu erfahren wollen, hoeren Sie auf den Kopfhoeren die Schallplatte von Swans "Cop" mit vollem Lautstaerke. :D

I liek that fact that neutron starts are so dense that if brught a piece the size of a sugar cube to earth it would weigh 100 million tons.

bloody hell!

If you have heard 150db at any of the db weights you shouldn't be hearing anything anymore. the loudest i have been in is 110dba at the desk, which is very very very loud. that was with a nexo line array the pa which is used alot for major rock concerts

Thanks for your co-operation.

I'm not necessarily looking for noises made by human, let alone not necessarily music though. I just like to read high numbers with a scientific background. So the answer to my question (if there is any) would most probably have something to do with astronomy.

I'm not sure, if I heard 150 db, but once I induced a very loud noise in the rehearsal room, because I fucked up with the microphone or something. I think I read somewhere you are going deaf at 150db and die at 180 db. Can someone verify this?

Instigation to suicide?

pretty basic infos here: http://www.entnet.org/healthinfo/hea...se_hearing.cfm

If the earth, which weighs 6 sextillion tons (6x10^21), had the density of a supermassive black hole, it would have a diameter of 9 millimeters.

this is interesting and fun
http://www.makeitlouder.com/Decibel%20Level%20Chart.txt

here some numbers for those into it

190 dBA Heavy weapons, c. 10 m behind the weapon (maximum level)
180 dBA Toy pistol fired close to ear (maximum level)
170 dBA Slap on the ear, fire cracker explodes on shoulder, small arms at a distance of c. 50 cm (all maximum level)
160 dBA Hammer stroke on brass tubing or steel plate from 1 m distance, airbag deployment very close (30 cm - all maximum level)
150 dBA Hammer stroke in a smithy at 5 m distance (maximum level)
130 dBA Loud hand clapping at 1 m distance (maximum level)
120 dBA Whistle at 1 m distance, test run of a jet at 15 m distance Threshold of pain, above this fast-acting hearing damage in short action is possible
115 dBA Take-off sound of planes at 10 m distance 110 dBA Siren at 10 m distance, frequent sound level in discotheques and close to loudspeakers at rock concerts, violin close to the ear of an orchestra musicians (maximum level)
105 dBA Chain saw at 1 m distance, banging car door at 1 m distance (max. level),
racing car at 40 m distance, possible level with music head phones
100 dBA Frequent level with music via head phones, jack hammer at 10 m distance
95 dBA Loud crying, hand circular saw at 1 m distance
90 dBA Angle grinder outside at 1 m distance Over a duration of 40 hours a week hearing damage is possible 85 dBA 2-stroke chain-saw at 10 m distance, loud WC flush at 1 m distance
80 dBA Very loud traffic noise of passing lorries at 7.5 m distance, high traffic on an expressway at 25 m distance
75 dBA Passing car at 7.5 m distance, un-silenced wood shredder at 10 m distance
70 dBA Level close to a main road by day, quiet hair dryer at 1 m distance to ear
65 dBA Bad risk of heart circulation disease at constant impact
60 dBA Noisy lawn mower at 10 m distance 55 dBA Low volume of radio or TV at 1 m distance 1 m, noisy vacuum cleaner at 10 m distance
50 dBA Refrigerator at 1 m distance, bird twitter outside at 15 m distance
45 dBA Noise of normal living; talking, or radio in the background
40 dBA Distraction when learning or concentration possible
35 dBA Very quiet room fan at low speed at 1 m distance
25 dBA Sound of breathing at 1 m distance
0 dBA Auditory threshold