Stock horn dB - FYI info..

[Bografan]

Backstory: A couple of days ago, I had a dude drift into my lane a couple of times. So i dropped back out of the way and laid on my horn, whereupon he meandered back into his lane (I think he was impaired, he acted as if he was the only car on the road).

But it got me thinking: do I know how well my horns are working?

So I brought home a sound level meter that we use at work and tested 'em. Just wanted to share my findings of this not-so-technical testing. Meter is a Extech (made by FLIR Systems) sound level meter, 40 to 130db range, accurate to +/- 2 dB. Model 407730 if you think it's important enough to know.

Vehicle tested is my 2007 v6 4th Gen T4R. Approx. 130K miles on the mill. (I am the second owner) I am assuming no abnormal amount of wear on the horns other than driving around in this wonderful Houston traffic, and previously, New Orleans traffic.

Tested while sitting my driveway.

Meter to front grill distance, 10 feet
dB average, 3 honks= 87

Meter to grill, 6 feet
dB average, 3 honks= 87

Meter to grill, 3 feet
dB average, 3 honks= 89

Meter to grill, 0 feet (right up in mah grill)
DB average, 3 honks= 89


Nothing exciting, nothing suprising. Just thought it might help if someone were curious and looking for the info.

*** actually, sorta suprised that I can yell almost as loud as my horns (85dB) and my little goofnugget boxer/pit/hound mutt can blow it out of the water (97dB). The things you find out when you bring test equipment home from work....

 

[snowboardwcu]

great metrics. i like your style, and also like bringing FLIR related things home from work to measure around with.

sounds like (pun not intended) horn upgrades might be required if a dog can out bark it. i prefer others to have a little turtle head poking out after getting the horn from me.

 

[Bografan]

Thanks, and I agree about the upgrade. I've now been hunting down specs for the Hella Sharptones (118dB, deeper notes than the Supertones/ not as 'European' sounding). Just saw them on amazon for $35. Cant find much documentation or any vids for the PIAA equivalent's horns, so it will likely be the Hellas. Will update the thread if I buy 'em.

 

[Boconnor303]

Please do, been wondering about this
:cheer2:

 

[Bografan]

Okay, been digging a bit for sound bites, found some stuff I'd like to share.

Comparing Hella Sharptones with Supertones:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UqtYXNtkBO0
The yellow sharptones do indeed have a small difference in tones, due to the specs:

Sharptones (Yellow) 415Hz treble note, 350Hz bass note (115db)
Supertones (Red) 500Hz treble, 300Hz bass (118 dB)

But they both sound so damn... anemic. Judging by a lot of the reviews I see here, most folks agree they are an upgrade to the stock T4R horns, but don't seem to be satisfied by what they hear. So I kept looking, and I found THIS page:
High-Performance Horns :: Sigma Automotive

Sure, some of the links are broken, in Chinese, what have you, but it was enough to convince me that there are other valid options to spend my hard earned money on. Check out the Bosch Windtones (500Hz treble/420Hz bass)
http://www.bosch.co.jp/jp/aa/products/sound/Windtone.mp3

Last one, I promise. Here's the PIAA horns
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EV0CXA1xSZQ

I don't know what it is, to my ears a dual tone consisting of 400 and 500hz (or close to that) just seems right. Now to find the best deal on them! (Sigma Automotive's prices are waaay out of whack with reality, but it was nice of them to put a bunch of sound clips together for me.

Again, Just trying to help-- so when someone else goes down the `horn rabbit hole' there will be few good resources in one spot.

 

[Porqupine82]

Nice thread. Can't wait for replies. I need new horns

 

[snowboardwcu]

a few months after i got my 4th gen i ripped out the stock horns and put in a set of old GM/Ford 4-Note Horns. They were a pain to mount, but the sound is worth it.

They are significantly louder than stock (no metrics here, obv) and sound perfect together.

side note: they draw 6 amps each. ~25amps for a set of horns. imp:

 

[revox92]

a few months after i got my 4th gen i ripped out the stock horns and put in a set of old GM/Ford 4-Note Horns. They were a pain to mount, but the sound is worth it.

They are significantly louder than stock (no metrics here, obv) and sound perfect together.

side note: they draw 6 amps each. ~25amps for a set of horns. imp:

Heard too the 4-Note horns are loud ones. 6amps each explains it.

 

[Bografan]

Quick update: I don't want to go with air horns/train horns, and hadn't decided which set (bosch, hella, etc) to go with... and in my searches I came across a 12v Air Raid Siren. Supposedly 130dB.. Will post up my finding soon, as it should be in my mailbox by the end of the day.

 

[V8Man]

Standard figures always list car horns to be 115 db. I always thought these were not as they should be. Thanks for the tests.

 

[themuffinman619]

Interested in the outcome.

 

[HiVel-JR]

I bought the Hella horns about 10 years ago, got a second set just for fun.

I can tell you they piss people off when you blow them because i always get flicked off, even if the person i am blowing them at is to blame.

I think i got them from Susquehanna motorsports... rallylights.com or something like that. The sets i have are the actual German made ones. Now I think they are made in China.

 

[Bografan]

With what I'm seeing, four horns is likely the route I'm going to go. I wonder what a set of sharptones and supertones all going off at the same time would sound like?

I bought the Hella horns about 10 years ago, got a second set just for fun.

I can tell you they piss people off when you blow them because i always get flicked off, even if the person i am blowing them at is to blame.

I think i got them from Susquehanna motorsports... rallylights.com or something like that. The sets i have are the actual German made ones. Now I think they are made in China.

View attachment 211808

 

[Bografan]

Another option I came across in my search for replacement horns that are louder, wont kill my wallet and are NOT train horns: I found an inexpensive air raid siren on FleaBay. Advertised as 130db, with "much loud, very big noise".. Their words, not mine. Anyway, shipped to my door it was less than $10 bucks. Why not, I'll give it a shot.

Well, it arrived. I must not have read all of the details or they possibly omitted the fact: this siren is a whopping 3" diameter. Physical presence, very underwhelming. Also, judging by the construction, I'm not sure I would trust it in a wet environment.. But there's bound to be some cubby in my engine compartment that it could be mounted to avoid that, right? (shrug)

It's definitely louder that it looks though, and pretty shrill to boot.
I used the same meter that I used to measure my OEM horns:

129dB @ 1'
109dB @ 3'
108dB @ 6'
106dB @ 10'

I made a short video that I'll try to get uploaded tonight. I'm not digging this for a horn replacement, but if someone were just looking to augment what they had it could be worthwhile. It takes a split second for the little turbine inside the siren to get up to full speed, so I don't think it would add much with the occasional short beeps I use to keep someone's attention where it needs to be. Hell, it would definitely be loud and annoying enough for a backup alarm!

The search continues!

 

[riceandpho]

I bought the Hella horns about 10 years ago, got a second set just for fun.

I can tell you they piss people off when you blow them because i always get flicked off, even if the person i am blowing them at is to blame.

I think i got them from Susquehanna motorsports... rallylights.com or something like that. The sets i have are the actual German made ones. Now I think they are made in China.

View attachment 211808

old pic of mines

 

[HOJeepster]

I personally like the stock yota horn, just enough bark to it

 

[flashnick]

Stebel Nautilus

Just ordered the Stebel Nautilus Compact Mini Air Horn from Amazon, https://amzn.to/2HniuIo. In my research looks like its the most most noise for the size, beating the Hella's by about 21db. Installing on my 5th gen after a frustrating road trip last weekend. If people are going to drive like a-holes, I sure as heck want to be able to honk like one. Rated at 139db, so about a 1.5x improvement over stock. Right now I'm thinking I will add it as an auxiliary to the stock for max effect. Will update with install pics and numbers once it arrives and I get it installed.

 

[wadle5]

Just ordered the Stebel Nautilus Compact Mini Air Horn from Amazon, https://amzn.to/2HniuIo. In my research looks like its the most most noise for the size, beating the Hella's by about 21db. Installing on my 5th gen after a frustrating road trip last weekend. If people are going to drive like a-holes, I sure as heck want to be able to honk like one. Rated at 139db, so about a 1.5x improvement over stock. Right now I'm thinking I will add it as an auxiliary to the stock for max effect. Will update with install pics and numbers once it arrives and I get it installed.

Update when you get them please!

Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk

 

[lightfreak]

Just ordered the Stebel Nautilus Compact Mini Air Horn from Amazon, https://amzn.to/2HniuIo. In my research looks like its the most most noise for the size, beating the Hella's by about 21db. Installing on my 5th gen after a frustrating road trip last weekend. If people are going to drive like a-holes, I sure as heck want to be able to honk like one. Rated at 139db, so about a 1.5x improvement over stock. Right now I'm thinking I will add it as an auxiliary to the stock for max effect. Will update with install pics and numbers once it arrives and I get it installed.

I have one of these on my motorcycle, it gets everyone’s attention real quick.