decibels of a top fuel car (1 Viewer)

[Smiley]

Hello, new guy here, figured now would be a good time to say hello!

I have to tell you that being close to the Fuel Dragsters is loud and in some cases downright PAINFUL! I took this shot from the Cecil County Div 1 race last year. I don't know if the fact I was above the pipes made a difference, but after a few cars it was painful to not block my ears, especially during the burnout.

 

[willy]

Welcome to the Mater, Brian...and oh yea...it hurts.

 

[r2]

Ray, you are an absolute fortress when it comes to keeping secrets!! Are you serious...........the motor used to be in the front on the T/F cars?..........what will they think of next? Airplane wings on the back? Seriously, I first heard a nitro car run at Bristol in '85, it was in the pits and I thought, "Man, this is gonna be good!" .............I almost peed myself when KB blipped the throttle! I remember thinkin' this is what the wrath of God must sound like!

Terry
Everytime I hear the word 96%, I smack Rick in the back of the head and just look at him... He bumps it up a touch and everyone, including the motor are HAPPY again...
Now 98% and you have to remember that we are on a budget... 8 pistons a run is our limit... Can't sneeze the Blower either... Then we have to just drink beer the rest of the day... BORING!! Always put a drop of 97% behind each ear, and drag it to the lanes...

 

[FuelCarBuilder]

I have to think it is WAY louder than 120db. More like in the 140's I think...and of course it will vary with the distance from the car.

 

[Toejam]

I have heard of Fuel cars blowing out Flouresent lighting in garages. But those aren't Windows either.

 

[Wes]

Back when NHRA was making .90 cars run mufflers (and actually checking them with Db meters) we used our Radio Shack model to get some numbers on fuel cars while on track. We were bored at a national event once plus we wanted to know how much louder they were as compared to our S/C and S/G cars....

At ground level approximately 50 feet away from an idling TF car we got anywhere from 85-96 Db. Burnout was slightly louder, just topping 100 Db on average. Launch was alot more than everyone's estimating. I was standing in the short-chute at the Motorplex when I took these readings. On a single pass at launch the needle hit 150+ Db but quickly went down as the car sped away. When a pair ran it got close to 160 Db. All we could figure is that the pressure waves from the closer car kept most of the sound from the other car away from the meter. As the cars went down track the needle would drop to about 110 Db.

Later that same day I snuck out onto the return road near the finish line. Would you believe the cars are quieter there than on the launch? Only 120-130 Db depending on how fast the car blew past me. I could only brave about 3 passes of that before I headed back to the finish line grandstands. There was a significant drop in Db there...never got over 110 Db.

The loudest cars at that national event? A blown-alcohol dragster and, get this, a STOCKER! The BAD pegged the needle on the burnout and the B/SA hit 165 at the 60' mark. How the hell could the stocker be louder?? Header design, size of the engine, RPM, and the frequency, or "note," the car was singing. Now I know why I get headaches watching those things...the stockers, I mean.

I took a reading of a Funny Car from the gas station almost a mile away at dusk. 93 Db at launch from almost directly behind the track. Pretty impressive.

Wish I still had that meter and could compare my old readings to now on 85%. I'd love to see if there is indeed any differences as everyone claims. They sound the same to me...actually meaner now than 10 years ago.

 

[ProNitro Pete]

Does anyone know what the decibels of a top fuel car is when it's started and then under power?

Started : Just below my kids fighting over chores:
Under Power: Just above my wife telling em how its gonna be!

 

[Bob]

I agree Wes, a pair of fuel cars up close on the launch are in excess of 150 dB. At that level, it goes beyond noise -- it is physically disturbing!

Sound pressure levels are also relative to distance and the acoustics of the venue, and some venues can actually amplify the sound. At Norwalk, the sportsman cars are louder at the top of the grandstands than they are at ground level! That has to have something to do with the aluminum grandstands, their angle to the track, and the higher frequencies normally emitted by the sportsman car's exhaust.

Acoustical physics is a strange animal. I've studied it as part of my "regular" job (loudspeaker sales and service), and all too often, the characteristics of sound environments are just the opposite of what one might think.

The affects sound has on the human ear are also variable. Sustained high frequency sound at high sound pressure levels is what does the most permanent damage to hearing. Low frequency sound rattles stuff, but it isn't as hard on your ears as are the higher frequencies. Sub-sonic sound waves would make an excellent weapon, if someone could figure out a way to generate them at a high level...

And to dispel a myth posted on a website that opposes a certain dragstrip being built in Ohio, an increase of SPL of 10dB (110 to 120 for example) IS NOT TEN TIMES AS LOUD! IT IS TWICE AS LOUD! And I meant to shout!

 

[Toejam]

I'm curious just how hearing loss Buster Couch had? Or Rick Stewart now?

 

[Bazzil]

A few weeks ago at an event over here the fuel cars would set off a car alarm, which I assumed was coming from one of the cars in the officials park area just behind the control tower.

Either that or someone was breaking into cars every time a fueler launched

 

[Kelly]

huh? what?

 

[The Counterfeiter]

Ex wife v.2 brings a few of the Honeywell engineers she babysits to the races. We were even with the starting line, about 50 feet from the cars.
Db meter they brought out registered 150! -

 

[Jenn]

I'm curious just how hearing loss Buster Couch had? Or Rick Stewart now?

Rick is very hard of hearing. You have to yell in his ear sometimes. He's got ear plugs similar to what a rock star would wear during a concert though, he has to take those out before you can start yelling at him.

 

[willy]

I really feel 150db is conservative. It's the entire body concept for me..

If it were just noise..we'd all be in trouble..but the whole concept of the experience sucking the air out of your lungs..and the throb of them going by altering your heart pattern..well..what's the problem..Huh?

Headphones have altered my hearing more than nitro.

 

[Doug in the woods]

hearing loss is not something to take lightly people.
Anything over 80DB will cause temp hearing loss. Extended noise say 100+ db will cause perment hearing damage.
I used to do alot of grinding sharpening lawnmower blades as well as visiting several drag strips.
Well that was when I was under 40. At 55 I wish I had protected my ears better.
Today I am on my 3rd set of hearing aids (adverage life of a pair of hearing aids is 3-4 years and at $3000-$5000 per pair plus $2 per week for batteries it isn't cheap.
Word to the younger generation=protect your hearing or expect some big hearing aid bills later in life.
And don't even consider them hearing aids they advertise on TV. They are a come-on.
And as reference to the ricter scale readings I recall they had a scale in Sonoma in late 90's that regerestered 2.5.
A jet airplane = 120db
a lawnblower=100
normal talking=50 or so.

 

[BrettV]

[

And to dispel a myth posted on a website that opposes a certain dragstrip being built in Ohio, an increase of SPL of 10dB (110 to 120 for example) IS NOT TEN TIMES AS LOUD! IT IS TWICE AS LOUD! And I meant to shout!

Actually, decibels are logarithmic, so a difference of 10 dB is 10 times, a 3dB difference is 2 times.

hearing loss is not something to take lightly people.
Anything over 80DB will cause temp hearing loss. Extended noise say 100+ db will cause perment hearing damage.
I used to do alot of grinding sharpening lawnmower blades as well as visiting several drag strips.

I hear ya. Even though I've always been protective of my my hearing, I still have tinnitus in my left ear. At Richmond i wore ear plugs AND muffs, later switching to earplugs and track radio headphones. We paent all of Sunday at the finish line - the cars did seem less loud at the finish line than at the start.

Brett

 

[Bob]

Actually, decibels are logarithmic, so a difference of 10 dB is 10 times, a 3dB difference is 2 times.

I think you might be confusing audio power relationships to SPL with actual SPL increases. If you double the power being sent to a particular speaker, the SPL will increase by 3dB. Such an increase is noticeable, but not significant. To double the SPL to a particular speaker, the power must be increased 10 fold. In other words, 1000 watts is twice as loud as 100 watts, an increase of 10dB.

 

[Jamie]

I think you might be confusing audio power relationships to SPL with actual SPL increases. If you double the power being sent to a particular speaker, the SPL will increase by 3dB. Such an increase is noticeable, but not significant. To double the SPL to a particular speaker, the power must be increased 10 fold. In other words, 1000 watts is twice as loud as 100 watts, an increase of 10dB.

Here's a pretty neat resource. There's a lot of variables at play, especially sound pressure level as it relates to decibels since decibels are a logarithmic scale, as well as the perception of sound loudness by the human ear.

About Decibels (dB)

 

[Rollout96]

Here's a pretty neat resource. There's a lot of variables at play, especially sound pressure level as it relates to decibels since decibels are a logarithmic scale, as well as the perception of sound loudness by the human ear.

About Decibels (dB)

Thanks for that. The comparison chart at the bottom was kind of cool.

All these years and I NEVER realized that decibels were logarithmic!!!!

 

[Jay]

WHAT? SPEAK UP? HUH? I CAN'T F'N HEAR YOU? WHAT DID YOU SAY...? OH...SORRY...I PLAY WITH THESE HERE NITRO CARS AND IT HAS MY HEARING ALL F'D UP...BUT I LOVE IT.....SORRY...WRITE DOWN WHAT YOU ARE TRYING TO SAY BECAUSE ICAN'T HERE YOU....AND TELL THE LIBRARIAN THAT I AM SORRY TO BE SHOUTING LIKE THIS....