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Hand-held Analyzer Types 2250 and 2270 – User Manual
Decibel (dB): The measurement unit for expressing the relative intensity of sound. A direct
application of linear scales (in Pa) to the measurement of sound pressure
leads to large and unwieldy numbers. As the ear responds logarithmically
rather than linearly to stimuli, it is more practical to express acoustic
parameters as a logarithmic ratio of the measured value to a reference value.
This logarithmic ratio is called a decibel or dB. The advantage of using dB
can be clearly seen in the below illustration. Here, the linear scale with its
large numbers is converted into a manageable scale from 0 dB at the
threshold of hearing (20 Pa) to 130 dB at the threshold of pain (100 Pa).
Our hearing covers a surprisingly wide range of sound pressures – a ratio of over a million to one. The
dB scale makes the numbers manageable
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