[MErwin]

How do you guys determine the SPL levels (dB levels) of your headphone listening (other than through the iPhone's dB tool)?

I would like to keep my listening levels within a safe range (ideally below 85 dB's for multi-hour listening sessions) but I can't figure out how to determine this. (In my setup the iPhone tool doesn't provide the data).

I'm using the Sennheiser 660Sv2, driven by an Astrell & Kern PA10 portable amplifier, with my Windows laptop as a source, or my iPhone as a source. (By the way, I'm really enjoying this combination of components and sources!).

Thanks for any thoughts on this!

 

[VNandor]

I've seen this question popping up on various headphone forums from time to time for years now so you already should find plenty of info on the topic. I think using a multimeter combined with this site is a good balance of relatively easy, cheap and accurate way to finding out your listening level. I use this method myself except I skip using the website because I can do the required "math" myself and also check for other stuff that the site does not take into account.

In short, you plug in your headphone's specs into the calculator, which for sensitivity is 104dB/1V, you pick the unit of measurement which is db(1vrms), and put in 300ohms for impedance. Then, you pick the headphone loudness value in dB SPL that most closely matches with the volts that you measured using your multimeter. This method hides away most of the complications that otherwise comes up with determining headphone loudness without ending up being wildly inaccurate. The trickiest part is using the multimeter properly to get a good reading of the voltage your amp sends to the headphones when listening.

 

[Luckyleo]

I bought this from Amazon for under $21 and it seems to do the job for me. Put it between the two headphone cups and the measurement is real time. Good luck!

https://www.amazon.com/BAFX-Product...&sprefix=sound+measuremen,aps,118&sr=8-6&th=1

 

[VNandor]

Without at least DIY-ing some crude ear simulation, this is going to be extremely inaccurate. The headphones should seal around something, ideally the same way it seals around the ears. Without getting any seal while measuring, the measured value will be far below what you actually end up listening to once you put your headphones on. That would be closer to what you heard if you put on the headphones without letting the pads touching your ears/jaw.

Even just using a sheet of cardboard for seal and poking the mic through it would be considerably better than just directly putting the mic into the cup.