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Gombessa, thanks for sharing! I'll be curious what it shows when you play louder when you get a chance!

80k, echo!!

Baby baby... Grand grand... In in... Big big... Room... room... MISTAKE!! mistake...

I tried and the meter app on my phone maxes out at 88db, which for short percussive strikes doesn't sound too loud to me (though I wouldn't want it sustained). But of course 1) it's not the actual max and 2) it's probably not accurate anyways.

According to NIOSH, which developed an iPhone app to measure sound levels:

“ 85 dB(A)
Regular and prolonged exposures to noise at or above 85 dB(A) (averaged over 8 hours per day) are considered hazardous.”

I wonder if they do measurements on violins too ----- as they have to put their ear right next to the instrument.

Which probably doesn't even happen for a pro who practices that long unless they're constantly playing ff.

The whole discussion seems unnecessary to me. As long as one is aware of potential hearing damage(which I think is very rare), one can wear musician's ear plugs if necessary. So one can even practice eight hours per day at a high volume although I can't imagine that happens very often.

That's why some measurements could be made ------ just to be on the 'safe' side. And needing to stick in ear plugs every time you sit at that piano could be a real hassle in some ways, including the inconvenience of it, and needing to remove them after each session as well. Also, possibly compromising some clarity etc.

It takes less than 10 seconds to put in or take out ear plugs.

The OP is concerned she may need to find a sound solution for her 7 yo daughter. I think there are many room and piano options available.

I have no idea why you quoted my post here as your comment seems unrelated.

Here is simple way to compare sound levels:

80 dB is equivalent to TEN pianos in that room playing at 70 dB:

70+70+70+70+70+70+70+70+70+70 = 80

I would not let my 7 year old enter that room. Even for 5 minutes.

I don’t consider if unrelated: you and SP discussed earplugs, seeming to forget there is a young pianist.
If you remembered that part, please ignore my post.

A young person can wear earplugs.

So how loud is 83 dB?

That is equivalent to TWENTY pianos at 70 dB playing together in that small room.

And what about 86dB?

Yes you guessed it right.

It is FORTY pianos at 70 dB playing together in that small room.

The OP does not know if she has an accurate db measurement— it was measured with a cellphone app.

80k,

When you receive your sound meter device the below information might be helpful for you to interpret your measurements.

I think a sense of perspective is needed here. For example, here are some sources of comparative noise levels:
https://www.iacacoustics.com/blog-full/comparative-examples-of-noise-levels.html
https://pulsarinstruments.com/news/decibel-chart-noise-level/

You can easily find other sources, and they don't always agree because some machines/environments of the same type can be louder or softer depending on the circumstances.

But busy traffic or a noisy restaurant can be 80 db (or even higher) and a power mower will be 90db or even higher. I think it would be difficult to navigate life while consistently avoiding 5 minutes of exposure to 80 db. And harm from exposure depends on time as well as intensity, as explained here:

http s://blogs.cdc.gov/niosh-science-blog/2016/02/08/noise/

This CDC link also explains the difference between noise exposure recommendations for occupational safety vs general environmental recommendations: The NIOSH 85dba per 8 hour occupational limit is meant to protect against hearing loss for 92% of workers, while the EPA 70dba per 24 hours is intended "to protect 96% of the general population from developing hearing loss as well as to protect 'public health and welfare' (defined as personal comfort and well-being and absence of mental anguish and annoyance)." There are some other differences as explained in the link.

Notice the second article says that up to 2 hours of 5 days/week exposure to 88 dB is safe to avoid hearing loss. Hakki's comments certainly don't agree at all with the figures in that article.

The idea that 80 dB = 10 pianos at 70dB doesn't mean anything unless one knows how loud 70 dB sounds. One might as well say that 80dB is equivalent to 500?
people whispering.

I'm not even sure if I've read about ANY PW posters suffering hearing loss. There are SO many ways to reduce the volume if it's really too loud.

I think I will give up before someone steps in and says “Beethoven was deaf when he composed the 9th Symphony”.

Beethoven was deaf when he composed the 9th Symphony.