JonMyrlennBailey
Active member
Let's assume that a full-size SD-40 locomotive has a whistle that is 140 decibels at 50 feet and can be heard up to two miles away by naked human ears on a quiet day.
Should the loudness of scale-model sound and how far it carries be in linear proportion to full-size sounds?
In G-scale, 1:22.50, if my theory holds correct, the whistle of a G-scale SD-40 should only be heard up to 433.33 feet away then. Divide two miles, 10,560 feet, by 22.50, G-scale ratio.
Decibels is logarithmic and nonlinear. It's not simple multiplication and division to calculate decibels value.
If a full-size train whistle is 140 decibels at 50 feet for example, I don't know what dividing that sound intensity by 22.50 would be in terms of a decibel value.
My theory for scale-model intensity level also holds true for all sound objects in scale modeling: animals, train engines, airbrakes, people, voices, church bells, vehicles, aircraft, boats, machinery, etc.
Should the loudness of scale-model sound and how far it carries be in linear proportion to full-size sounds?
In G-scale, 1:22.50, if my theory holds correct, the whistle of a G-scale SD-40 should only be heard up to 433.33 feet away then. Divide two miles, 10,560 feet, by 22.50, G-scale ratio.
Decibels is logarithmic and nonlinear. It's not simple multiplication and division to calculate decibels value.
If a full-size train whistle is 140 decibels at 50 feet for example, I don't know what dividing that sound intensity by 22.50 would be in terms of a decibel value.
My theory for scale-model intensity level also holds true for all sound objects in scale modeling: animals, train engines, airbrakes, people, voices, church bells, vehicles, aircraft, boats, machinery, etc.
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