When looking for an appropriate weapon, many people would opt to look for one that doesn’t create a lot of noise but can still offer the power and strength you need when it comes to shooting practice and self-defense.
You can find a lot of guns that support silencers, though how quiet are they, really? If you’re curious about how quiet silences weapons are, read on!
How Quiet Are Silencers (Silenced Weapons)?
One thing you should know about silencers is that you shouldn’t call them such. They aren’t completely silent, but they are suppressors. It reduces the noise but won’t completely block it off when you fire the weapon.
So the sound would still be louder and you still need some sort of ear protection.
A common misconception is that silencers (suppressors) are very quiet, coming from movies and video games. But in reality, when you fire a weapon, there are three sources of sound:
- The muzzle blast
- Bullet moving in the air
- Action working from semi-automatic firearms and machine guns
The “silencer” would only reduce the sound of the muzzle, with the latter two being a bit loud when fired.
To be exact, the sound pressure reduces by 30-40dB only. While this is significant, it isn’t exactly silencing. Take note that the usual sound pressure on firearms (pistol or AR-15) would be around 165dB (here’s an excellent article about safe hearing levels). In reality, using a suppressor will end up making it sound more like a jackhammer.
Besides suppressors, guns also have systems made for pure stealth, usual for a .2 or 9mm. It uses subsonic ammunition, which reduces the firearm’s sound presence. But even this wouldn’t be as silent as expected. It would sound like a door slammed very hard.
But with that being said, suppressors and systems that lessen the noise of guns are also very important to invest in, especially if you are planning to use it for self-defense. This is because you wouldn’t want to completely destroy your hearing when firing the gun at home. It will increase the danger in life-threatening situations, and that’s not something you’d want to experience.
Silenced weapons are not truly silent, but they are very loud unless you use a suppressor or system, which only reduces the sound pressure to a minimum, making the sound bearable enough to take, but still loud enough to hear and feel. Basically, it will ring your ear, especially if you aren’t using ear protection!
In Conclusion
The first thing to learn about the noise level of silences weapons would be that it isn’t as quiet as you expect it to be. They are actually something that suppresses the noise and bang it makes to be less conspicuous to your target, may it be humans or animals.
I hope that this article answers your question on the noise levels on weapons. If you’ve got any more questions or would like to share your insights, then do leave a comment. I’d love to hear what you have to think.