Whats louder on average 357 magnum or 44 magnum

It's all about the same. 44 mag would be in the neighborhood of the 41.

.22 caliber rifle 130dB
.223, 55GR. Commercial load 18" barrel 155.5dB
.243 in 22" barrel 155.9dB
.30-30 in 20" barrel 156.0dB.
7mm Magnum in 20" barrel 157.5dB.
.308 in 24" barrel 156.2dB.
.30-06 in 24" barrel 158.5dB. In 18" barrel 163.2dB.
.375 18" barrel with muzzle brake 170 dB.
.410 Bore 28" barrel 150dB. 26" barrel 150.25dB. 18" barrel 156.30dB.
20 Gauge 28" barrel 152.50dB. 22" barrel 154.75dB.
12 Gauge 28" barrel 151.50dB. 26" barrel 156.10dB. 18" barrel 161.50dB.
.25 ACP 155.0 dB.
.32 LONG 152.4 dB.
.32 ACP 153.5 dB.
.380 157.7 dB.
9mm 159.8 dB.
.38 S&W 153.5 dB.
.38 Spl 156.3 dB.
.357 Magnum 164.3 dB.
.41 Magnum 163.2 dB.
.44 Spl 155.9 dB.
.45 ACP 157.0 dB.
.45 COLT 154.7 dB.

My ears tell me a 32 WCF from a revolver is louder than either the 357 or 44 Magnum. Same thing with 45 long Colt loaded with black powder.

My friends all agreed that my .25 automatic was louder than my friends Kel-Tec 9mm.
Had our ear ringing pretty good, we forgot hearing protection so they got mad whenever I fired it without telling them to cover their ear first.

When you start talking about decibel levels over 100 (a very large amount) it doesn't really matter because the human ear is not a sensitive measuring device when overloaded to that degree. Our ears never evolved to process power levels like that. They developed more for the ability to hear very faint sounds. Ask Pete Townsend.

teumessian_fox said:

It's all about the same. 44 mag would be in the neighborhood of the 41.

.22 caliber rifle 130dB
.223, 55GR. Commercial load 18" barrel 155.5dB
.243 in 22" barrel 155.9dB
.30-30 in 20" barrel 156.0dB.
7mm Magnum in 20" barrel 157.5dB.
.308 in 24" barrel 156.2dB.
.30-06 in 24" barrel 158.5dB. In 18" barrel 163.2dB.
.375 18" barrel with muzzle brake 170 dB.
.410 Bore 28" barrel 150dB. 26" barrel 150.25dB. 18" barrel 156.30dB.
20 Gauge 28" barrel 152.50dB. 22" barrel 154.75dB.
12 Gauge 28" barrel 151.50dB. 26" barrel 156.10dB. 18" barrel 161.50dB.
.25 ACP 155.0 dB.
.32 LONG 152.4 dB.
.32 ACP 153.5 dB.
.380 157.7 dB.
9mm 159.8 dB.
.38 S&W 153.5 dB.
.38 Spl 156.3 dB.
.357 Magnum 164.3 dB.
.41 Magnum 163.2 dB.
.44 Spl 155.9 dB.
.45 ACP 157.0 dB.
.45 COLT 154.7 dB.

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My ears don't agree with that chart. 9mm doesn't sound loud to me through my hearing protection. 223 sounds loud as hell through my hearing protection.

The thing with .223 is that the muzzle device will have a big impact on how the report sounds.

It's hard to say how hearing protection affects it, but my impression has always been that both .357 and .44 mag are loud. .357 though seems higher pitched to me and more piercing. .44 mag makes a lower boom to my ear at least.

I think the .357 has a louder crack and the .44 has a loud boom. The .32 S&W-L has a pretty loud crack too.

They are certainly not "all the same". One must realize that there's a huge difference in 2-3db, not relative to $2-$3.

The .357 produces a much sharper crack and to me, is extremely unpleasant. It's pressure relative to bore size. Which is why the .22Mag is so loud and a .30Carbine or heavily loaded .32-20 is louder than anything else. Any of the big bores that don't produce .454 or .460 pressures are going to be less offensive.

Depends on barrel length and load too. This is a 300 Grain Doubletap from a 3" 629.

Its the loudest boom and largest flash I've had from a handgun:

In my experience, 357 Magnum is the loudest handgun round as far as popular calibers go. Yes, a 460 S&W and 500 S&W might be louder, but I can't think of anything else that would top a 357 Magnum IMHO

Since I always use ear protection and typically double up that, I can say that I feel a high sharp CRACK with the .357 out of a short barrel. With the .44mag, I feel a huge BOOOM in my upper body (again using wheelgun).

With the lever action I can really feel the .44 in my cheek/face, where the .357, has a lot less felt impact (doh!)

A question or two? (I don't expect anyone here to have THE answers but may be pleasantly surprised to find we have an audiologist or two on board) How and where would one measure db for each? Indoors? Outdoors? How far away to set measuring device? Where to set it relative to muzzle? Rifle? Handgun? Barrel length?

I do recall taking the the GFs boys shooting a few years back. Mom sat in car about 15 yds behind our range line, reading whilst we made noise. AR, AK, .38, .357, 9mm, .45... all fine and well. I pulled out the 29, shot six and she came flying out of that car with hands over her ears wondering aloud (really LOUD), "WTH did you just shoot?"

So my informal survey shows the .44 being REALLY loud.

I was at my club's outdoor range with some handloads with a dose of 296 and a 125 gr JHP out of a 7 1/2" Ruger Redhawk. Everytime I fired the thing I got "What the hell are you shooting?" From my experience the 357 mag is the loudest pistol cartridge there is,I rather be around someone shooting a rifle of whatever caliber than a 357.

From my experience the 357 mag is the loudest pistol cartridge there is

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Then you haven't shot a .30 Carbine Ruger Blackhawk!

rc

Then you haven't shot a .30 Carbine Ruger Blackhawk!

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Yeah. That's one that's gotta be shot to be believed. Talk about the CRRAAACCCKK from Hades.

I'm with CraigC here.

Keep in mind that from a scientific point of view sound pressures DOUBLE with each 3 DB increase.

The .357 is loud, really loud.

I fired one round from my .357 magnum without wearing hearing protection. One round. Outside. I didn't fire another. I think a second one would have caused a nose bleed. My bell rung for two days

I'm always shocked to hear about people talking about shooting without hearing protection. My doctor told me that a lot of my hearing loss was caused by noise years ago. The nerves are damaged, and after awhile they die.

I have the 500 S&W and also a Taurus Raging 30, which shoots the 30 Carbine round. However, shooting 357 Magnum in the Bond Arms cleared out the range.

"I'm always shocked to hear about people talking about shooting without hearing protection. My doctor told me that a lot of my hearing loss was caused by noise years ago. The nerves are damaged, and after awhile they die."

i shot a heck of a lot of rounds out of a .357 ruger blackhawk years ago w/little or no hearing protection.
i am now entering my senior years w/2 hearing aids and bad tinnitus.

too bad i thought i was bulletproof in my youth.

A difference is 10dB is huge. Even 5dB is nothing to sneeze at. Don't think because they are all north of 100dB that they are all the same.

ie. I would never use a .357Mag as a home defense round, never.

Every 3db is roughly twice the sound intensity, so there is a marked difference in the ability of different firearm cartridge to damage the internal structures of your ear.

Most firearms have a noise level somewhere between 150 - 170 db.

Learn more here:

http://www.freehearingtest.com/hia_gunfirenoise.shtml

and

http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/docs/98-126/chap1.html

My ears don't agree with that chart. 9mm doesn't sound loud to me through my hearing protection. 223 sounds loud as hell through my hearing protection.

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Decibles don't account for several things, and so are not where the story ends. They are just easily measured and provide a number to work with. But there is also the duration, the direction/deflection and magnitude of the wave, etc - A 9mm fired on an outdoor range is not nearly as offensive as one fired inside the tight confines of a vehicle or small room.

On .357 vs. .44; They're both quite loud and operate at similar pressures, but it is my perception that .357 delivers a sharper "crack", while the .44 is a bigger "boom".

I think the .357 has a louder crack and the .44 has a loud boom.

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This.

Decibles don't account for several things, and so are not where the story ends. They are just easily measured and provide a number to work with. But there is also the duration, the direction/deflection and magnitude of the wave, etc - A 9mm fired on an outdoor range is not nearly as offensive as one fired inside the tight confines of a vehicle or small room.

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this too.

They all can, and most likely will, damage your hearing to some extent.
The best hearing protection you can get, that is to say good ear plugs used in conjunction with good muffs, is about 35 dB because your skull and flesh conduct sound too.