How to measure sound quality?
There are many ways to measure sound quality.
Many measurements that have been created specifically to measure and rate the sound quality. These are some of the most common types of measures used for sound quality.
THD
THD means Total Harmonic Distortion. This is a measure taken to see the total amount of distortion of the original audio signal in playback. Most quality components have less than 1% distortion rate, speakers can have 1 to 5% and the distortion rate of serious subwoofers can produce most distortion sometimes approaching 10%. However, human ears cannot differentiate very low distortion at low levels.
Output power
Output power is the maximum energy per channel, usually shown as Watts. Most speakers or receivers show how many watts they have. There are two peak measurements and RMS. Peak watts is usually what is shown in advertising, usually it is the maximum amount of energy that a speaker or receiver can give out of a very short period of time. RMS stands for Root Media Square and is a more appropriate way to determine power for a longer period of time.
Frequency Response
Frequency response is an important way to determine sound quality. Most human ears can hear frequency (sound), which is about 20 to about 20 K HZ HZ. Bass forms the lower parts of the spectrum frequency response. Most people consider bass frequencies, frequencies below 310 Hz. Bass frequencies include percussion explosions and DVD movie. Midrange frequencies are frequencies ranging from about 310 to about 12K HZ HZ. These frequencies include dialogue and most of the human voice, piano, guitar and other instruments. High frequencies are at the top of the spectrum frequency response. They are usually 12K to about 20K or higher. Cymbals, high notes of the human voice, and some string instruments are included.
Signal to Noise Ratio
Signal to noise ratio is the ratio of sound quality to noise. This measurement is used to measure many devices including receivers, CD players, DVD players, etc. Generally, the highest is decibels (Db), the best sound quality. For example, a signal-to-noise ratio of 90 decibels or 100 is considered high fidelity. Most electronics are generally 80 decibels or more, which is great for many human ears that discern.
It is important to note that terms are not the only way to measure sound. There are several ways to measure sound, components and media that are either digital or analog. However, knowing about the terms that give an idea of the process of measuring sound quality.
