Wideband sounds are louder than narrowband sounds at equal dB SPL

Evidence

The loudest sounds, when presented at equal SPLs, are in the 2 to 6 kHz range. • Loudness depends on stimulus bandwidth: For bandwidths greater than a critical band, loudness increases with increasing bandwidth, a phenomenon called spectral loudness summation. A sound can be loud because of a high sound level or because it has a broad bandwidth. • Weber’s law predicts that the just detectable amount of intensity is proportional to the intensity of the sound (DI/I = k). Weber’s law holds for noise at moderate-to-high levels but not for low levels or for tones. Tones exhibit a near miss, in which DI/I or DL decreases with increasing intensity. — Jennifer Lentz, Psychoacoustics- Perception of Normal…, 868 (#corroborates, via linked claim)

This effect is especially pronounced at medium levels. At very low levels, the slope of the specific-loudness function becomes steep, and therefore the decrement in height is stronger than the increment produced by the extension over the critical-band rate. Therefore, loudness remains constant or even decreases at very low levels as a function of bandwidth. When exceeding the critical bandwidth at very high levels, loudness does not increase strongly; only for bandwidths larger than about an octave, corresponding to three critical bands, does loudness increase. — Professor Dr.-Ing. Hugo Fastl, Professor Dr.-Ing. Eberhard, Psychoacoustics- Facts and Models, 1288 (#qualifies, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Loudness rises once noise bandwidth exceeds the critical band at constant SPL.; Loudness-calculating procedures outperform simple SPL for practical noise reduction; Different printer types differ up to threefold in perceived loudness (+8 more)

Related

• Wider bandwidth increases perceived loudness at equal sound pressure (similarity 0.94)
• Loudness is the summed specific loudness across critical-band rates, not the raw spectral level (similarity 0.90)
• Loudness rises once noise bandwidth exceeds the critical band at constant SPL. (similarity 0.90)
• A-weighted sound pressure level misrepresents the loudness of broadband noises (similarity 0.90)
• Loudness grows when sound energy spills beyond a single critical band (similarity 0.89)
• Different printer types differ up to threefold in perceived loudness (similarity 0.89)
• Loudness curves from anechoic pure tones fail on real broadband program material (similarity 0.89)
• Loudness grows with bandwidth via area tradeoff except at extreme levels (similarity 0.88)
• Loudness is not reducible to sound pressure level or signal power (similarity 0.88)
• Widening a sound’s bandwidth makes it seem louder at equal total power (similarity 0.88)
• Loudness stays constant below critical bandwidth then grows beyond it (similarity 0.87)
• A sound’s bandwidth independently affects how loud it sounds. (similarity 0.86)
• Wide bandwidth noise sounds as loud as a narrower tone despite lower level (similarity 0.86)
• A tone and wideband noise of very different levels can equally sound loud (similarity 0.85)
• Spreading a sound’s energy across more critical bands increases perceived loudness without raising intensity (similarity 0.85)

Broader Connections

• Wider bandwidth increases perceived loudness at equal sound pressure #corroborates (1.00) — Jennifer Lentz, Psychoacoustics- Perception of Normal…, 868
• Loudness grows with bandwidth via area tradeoff except at extreme levels #qualifies (0.95) — Professor Dr.-Ing. Hugo Fastl, Professor Dr.-Ing. Eberhard, Psychoacoustics- Facts and Models, 1288
• A-weighted sound pressure level misrepresents the loudness of broadband noises #corroborates (0.90)
• A-weighted dB values misrepresent perceived loudness for complex sounds. #corroborates (0.90) — Professor Dr.-Ing. Hugo Fastl, Professor Dr.-Ing. Eberhard, Psychoacoustics- Facts and Models, 1176
• Loudness stays constant below critical bandwidth then grows beyond it #expands (0.90) — Ville Pulkki, Matti Karjalainen, Communication Acoustics- An…, 1034
• A narrowband tone damages the ear more than the same energy spread wide #expands (0.70)