BAFX Products - Decibel Meter/Sound Pressure Level Reader (SPL) / 30-130dBA Range - 1 Year Warranty (Standard)

I own both, the smaller basic meter (BAFX3370 dBA only) and the larger (BAFX3608 dBA/dBC) advanced meter. PROS 1) Gets you some good data for how loud your neighbor's really are, and whether or not you should evacuate before the loudness causes hearing damage. 2) Has a nicely and easily readable lit display, including light sensor for usage within dark or dimly lit areas. 3) For the ADVANCED BAFX3608 dBA/dBC meter: Although Windows only, the software is made by "Sound Lab" and titled "Sound Level Meter", and is a nice simple tool, and easily comprehensible or easily utilized tool, as well as apparently being packaged without bloated software and/or software features. 4) For the ADVANCED BAFX3608 dBA/dBC meter: When connected via USB ports, the device is automatically powered through the USB port. 5) For the ADVANCED BAFX3608 dBA/dBC meter: If you so desire, you can stand at your window or outside your door holding this very large meter for the next door neighbors to readily see you're have issues with their noise! (I wonder if anybody also sells any flags stating a person is going to file a civil complaint?) 6) For the ADVANCED BAFX3608 dBA/dBC meter: This dBC capable device performs much better than the dBA capable devices, and significantly notices the lower-frequency noise range displayed by small 4-cycle engines. CONS 1) Familiarize yourself with the peak level button, else you may find you're not getting the results you desired. 2) No adjustment for auto shut-off power saving feature. (ie. If you plan to leave this device for more than a few minutes, the device auto powers off.) 3) For the ADVANCED BAFX3608 dBA/dBC meter, the unit does not allow the users to specify the initial on state of the readings. For example, the unit defaults to dBA and fast reading when initially turned-on. I prefer to always take readings using dBC and slow, mainly dBC as this tends to detect the lower frequency range better than dBA and selecting slow/average readings to average in anomalies versus readily seeing a distracting spiked sound anomaly. Likely when recording, the slow reading option maybe more desirable unless you're trying to monitor for very short bursts of sounds such as gun shots, and then faster readings are desired in order to capture the short bursts of sound. 4) For the ADVANCED BAFX3608 dBA/dBC meter, although already heavily specified Windows Only software, such a simple device should be able to output using libUSB (and likely does so already) simple streams of data that can be easily piped into a text file for graphing by other open sourced tools. (I'll have to use WireShark to further examine the protocol used, whether serial or libUSB. USB Vendor Device ID is 64bd:74e3 "SM".) 5) For the ADVANCED BAFX3608 dBA/dBC meter, the hardware manual states possible to sync the time with the computer when connected via USB, but no option appears to exist. 6) For the ADVANCED BAFX3608 dBA/dBC meter, a pamphlet packaged with the device gives a download URL for downloading a copy of the software (eg. SLVersion2.exe), but this is really an old copy of the software dated 2015.10.07, and the newest version (as of this writing) is already packaged inside the box of the device, using a small mini CDROM. (The version on the mini CDROM is SoundLabSetup20160720.exe, or dated 2016.07.20) Would really be nice to have a USB feature for computer logging, or memory for logging, and easily transferring (regardless of operating system) to a computer for hard copy. (This feature is now implemented within the larger Advanced BAFX Decibel Meter.) NOTES: The ADVANCED BAFX3608 dBA/dBC meter contains a usb SILICON LABS C8051F320 8051 8-bit Microcontroller hub chip, with the firmware registering the device under Windows' Device Manager as both, a HID-COMPLIANT DEVICE and USB INPUT DEVICE. The device's USB product vendor and model USB id's are 64bd:74e3 "SM". The device contains a likely closed soure firmware, likely incorporating some minimal addressing with arguments commands to initiate retrieving recorded records, ordering the device to start sending live data, and commands for getting the current time and sending the current time. If I had more time, I would provide some C code to perform these functions, but this is tedious work versus having the specifications or already written code. The hardware manufacturer should be providing the firmware specifications (eg. PDF) for communicating to the device via ASM/C programming code. (eg. Uniden provides specifications for their firmware used on their hardware products, although sometimes difficult to find.) ATTACHED: Attaching an image comparing an apparently older basic BAFX sound decibel meter alongside the newer larger BAFX sound decibel meter.

The decibel meter works great! I've been using it on my mom and sister because they're talkative, joke a lot with each other, can't seem to hear themselves, and are obnoxiously loud. My sister's squawking, high-pitched laugh ("Ha!"): 95.7 db from 5 feet away! Wow! No wonder my ears hurt! My mom needs sound amplifiers, so her "normal voice" alone is loud. When she was yelling while making some joke about a grumpy Santa Claus: 93.4 db from 5 feet away! They didn't know I hid the decibel meter, so this is the noise level I have to tolerate every day. (Not easy, let me tell you. But they have their mental/physical disabilities, so I can't always complain.) The great thing about the decibel meter is can turn it on, select the option that measures the top record, maximum noise level, and I can walk away for up to (I think?) a good 15 minutes before it shuts off. One thing I wish it did is has a memory of what it recorded, for when I don't make it back to the meter in time and see how loud they got. I've also captured my mom playing with the silverware as she throws it in the silverware drawer: 118.5 db from 1 foot away! This time, she knew I was using the decibel meter, so she made sure she threw down the silverware with much emphasis. Other than that, what can I say? It's easy to use, conveniently has a battery included in the package, fits comfortably in my hand, and is small enough to hide (It's the length of my hand). I'm happy I made this purchase. The only cons is possibly how quiet it will measure. Even in the middle of the night, when the loud ones are asleep, I can't seem to get it below 32 db in the bathroom, even when I shut off the light, leave the room and shut the door. So, I wouldn't recommend it for measuring how quiet things will get. There's a high possibility it's not as sensitive as an expensive, high-quality decibel meter, which is expectable of a product at this low of a price. Still fun in the higher decibel range, though!

I purchased this tool to verify the noise level of my exhisting dishwasher machine. It was a 22 yr old machine from the time the dBA ratings were not published. I knew I had the quiet pack 2 on it, but I could not find any hard number to compare to the new ones. I used this device to determine the max noise level and it worked very well. Just note that almost absolute silence is something around 40 dBA. I purchased a new machine rated 48dBA while the old one read 65dBA peak. Update Sept. 29 2019: I got my Apple Watch ( iWatch) series 4 updated with iWatch6 which brings the NOISE app. Apple shows the sound levels in dB, but indicates elsewhere these are A weighted, therefore dBA I compared the sound levels using the Apple Watch and the BAFX3370 device and the readings are considerably apart. What concerned me was that I have seen YouTube videos showing the Apple Watch reading very close to more expensive sound meters. It concerned me that I have seen so different readings on both devices, but I am not sure which one is off and which one is accurate. In a very silent environment the Apple Watch indicates 34 dBA and the BAFX3370 oscilantes between 41.5 to 41.8 dBA. Since 6 dBs indicate 4x the level, these readings are light years apart. I will keep the number of starts until I figure out which device is not reporting correctly.

Seems to work great. I've probably needed one of these many, many times. Not really required, just wanting to take a sound level and put a number to. Instead of saying "yep, that sounds loud" I can now say "Yes, that is 118.4dB". Honestly, I have no real need for it, but it's great to put a number on sound levels. It's even fun to just play with. I was putting a new audio system in, and was attempting to compare old system levels to new, to see what my new system did for me. As well as test specific frequency outputs to test and set the audio tuning. I'm no scientist, and I'm not exactly setting up my environment and testing methods as such. But for a way to test levels, this thing is small, easy, and seems to be accurate. I really like it. Anyone wishing to audio tune, test exhaust output dB levels, or even maybe a band checking levels, this thing is easy, and simple and puts a number to it instead of "Yeah, I think that sounds louder".

I initially purchased this to test my baby's white noise machine to ensure it was at a proper distance and noise level for their comfort. It worked right away without any hassle, especially because it was easy to take out of its box, and it included a battery (why don't all electronics make it this convenient?!). I pushed the power button, and it only took about 1-2 seconds to get a reading. I noticed it has a min-max reading as well, which sounds useful for testing noises that have more variation than white noise. With my initial goals completed, I still plan on using this for the long term to test other things in the house such as sound-making toys and music to make sure I don't hurt my kid's ears. Great product and great price!

Well, I bought the cheap $18~ one, it's neat, ID say it works well at midrange and higher frequencies, up to its rated 8khz, it even picks up db at higher frequencies, but it's sensitivity in the bass range kinda sucks, which was mostly what I wanted to test, my sub in my work van, while not as loud as I'm using a different set up, it's still at least 130db, running another sub, at less than double power I hit a certified 136.3db at a car audio meet where they use bass focused, 300+$ meters, with this it registered 100.4, there is zero chance this set up is 36db lower, as that's a very distinguishable difference, with low frequency bass, every 6db is about double the perceived output. While testing my home system, placing the tester on the port, going from 20hz to 100hz results in the highest SPL at 100hz, my system plays it's very loudest from 30hz-45hz, it registered at 10db less in that range. It also registered 95+ db with it in front of my super tweeters, while the bass was easily distinguishable as being far louder on the same song and volume level, by the port it was only 75db. I'm dissapointed, but it was cheap, and the money spent was already on my account from a refund on an our of stock product. Considereling the price it's not a bad deal, it's going to be accurate to itself at the same frequency, so while the number won't be right if it's bass, you could use a test tone to compare how loud two different things are at those specific tones, I can't say it's accurate at mid and high levels, but it seems closer. I wonder if recalibration, could help, maybe it can be calibrated for lower frequencies better, I don't know, it's cheap and knowing it definitely is inaccurate in the bass range is something to take note of. The only way you can use this to test loudness of one thing to another is test tones, at least for bass. The highest SPL I got with my limited testing was 107.9 db at 20hz, when I put it in the port, and that was the loudest I turned the system up as well, mostly BC the frequency doesn't sound loud to us, and I didn't want to get a noise complaint from my neighbors, if I take the defecit of the song that had the tweeter at 95+db and the subs at 75 on the port, at about 44hz, which is where it gets more sensitive compared to 30hz, but anyways a 20db difference and absolute minimum, probably more, 127.9db+ at 20hz pretty darn good, and that 20db is a small estimate, as the bass was definitely louder than the mids and highs, I'll be doing further tests to determine the difference at various frequencies, I'll likely get to test my current vehicle set up when the SPL competition comes back around, for a run I'll do a 40hz test and do it again using this take the difference for testing every sound system I care to at 40 hz. It'll work for now, and I'll at some point buy a much nicer one

First of all, as stated by other reviewer, "this is a basic, low-cost, minimum-feature meter. It does not have memory or graphing or do any complex measurements. It has basically two features -- current sound level, and peak sound level. And, it does one or the other, not both at the same time". In other words, this is not a professional sound measurement device. But it should be more than qualified for average household use. I most use it to measure the loudness of my family members speak and to remind them to lower their volume. Lol. And this one definitely serves its purpose as solid physical evidence. This item definitely does what it says. But if I would have to say, the only room for improvement is that sampling frequency is a bit low. In terms of built, solid built, and it comes with battery, which is a big plus. In terms of size, it is very small and definitely portable. In terms of functionality, it is a bit limited though. Don't expect much more than getting a regular dB test. Just look at the photo for its relatively size compared to a regular mouse. It has two buttons, and that's it. Simple to use.

A decent decibel meter for the price. I bought it to make sure that the music I listen to is within the 80 decibel range that my audiologist does not advise exceeding for prolonged listening. It was perfectly adequate for this use. I can imagine that it would be equally useful for checking levels of industrial noise. The way the controls are laid out is very easy to use, and the feature that allows it to keep a record of the maximum sound level is really useful. I doubt that the accuracy is up to the standards an audiologist would use, but for the price I found this to be a very good product.

Works as described. Reasonably compact, reasonably light. Not a precision or scientific instrument, but does the job it advertises I think, within a margin of error. Mainly good to tell people how loud something is, they should turn it the f down.

Easy to use. Work great

Straight forward, easy to use, lightweight, clear display, Min, Max button. Does exactly what I wanted, decibel readings ratings when setting up my hifi in the house. Good value for money. Battery included, so ready to go once you have it, pretty much.

This works very well in my opinion and is very easy to use. It would be nice if it had a "5 second average" feature, or something along those lines. I find that you have to watch the numbers for 30 seconds or so, then mentally take an average (perhaps "note the modal value" would be better phrasing, though most people wouldn't know what it means).

I can't say how accurate this is because I have nothing else to compare it with. However, the readings do stay quite stable without irregular jumps in a noise-controlled environment. It's pretty quick to respond to noise and seems to have a decent enough polling rate where the readings are continually adjusted. It takes a 9 Volt battery, however the battery that came with mine was already corroded, so that makes me wonder how long this sat on the shelf. The manual states that it comes calibrated and that calibration is good for a year, but if the battery is already corroded a bit, does that mean it's been sitting for over a year, or did they just package it with older stock of batteries?