Looking for a decibel sensor
-
Hi all,
For a new project I'm looking at decibel sensors. I found some very expensive options from Cirrus (UK), Cesva (PL) or Libelium (ES). They all cost €1000 or more. And most of them are on 12V or more.
Does anyone know a good alternative (on price and/or on voltage)? I would prefer 5V or less.
It surprises me that decibel sensors are so hard to find, while tons of decibel meters are available on Amazon for very reasonable prices...
Thanks for your replies!
-
@secantscope Many of the decibel meters have a USB connection for data out - maybe worth looking into that?
If size is an issue then you could dismantle a meter and use whats inside?
When I looked a long time ago I just got the basic sound modules and made do with them.
How accurate does the reading have to be and are there any legal implications in your intended use (e.g. in a place of work)?
-
Hi Skywatch, thanks for your reply. We've looked into using decibel meters with USB or RS232 output, but this is tricky because these meters are not intended to operate 24/7 for years on end. And we don't want to write software to keep this meter on...
Dismantling is indeed an option but this is a lot of work.
Readings should be accurate but not to the legal level. So I guess the accuracy of a €200 decibel meter from amazon should be fine.
I guess there's no affordable sensors on the market because they are not frequently bought...
-
Something like this might work if you just want a noise level, but don't actually need a calibrated readout.
-
@secantscope I understand - It is a few years since I looked into this and then the only conclusion I could make was to take a meter and interface with usb. It would be more work and my needs case didn't warrant that at the time.
I am sorry I could not be of more help in this, but it just seems to be the way things have been for a while. Maybe in the future things will change.
As @nagelc suggested a lesser sensor could be used and you could calibrate it yourself. Seems little other options really. (Now I said that you just wait for a killer posting with just the thing you want linked) !!!
