Wii noisiest of them all, according to sound meter test
by David Hinkle 
{ Jan 16th 2007 at 4:00PM }
Now, before you all start yelling at us because the graph has a reading for a hard drive on the Wii, which we all now doesn't exist, keep in mind that we did not perform the sound test. Instead, using an analog sound meter, the fine folks in the Pregame Lobby forums are responsible for the graph and results of the sound test. Personally, we can't believe the disc drive on the Wii registered so loud ...
[Via Joystiq]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
gphoenix51 @ Jan 16th 2007 4:35PM
Must be something wrong with mine, it only makes noise when a disk is ejecting or going in. The simple fact that Pregame Lobby somehow got a sound reading for the Hard Drive in the Wii makes the entire test extremely suspect.
Jackson Pritt @ Jan 16th 2007 4:37PM
HAHA OH WOW!
One of my roomies has a 360, and I KNOW it's much louder than the Wii.
I wonder how much Sony and Microsoft paid for that?
Chocolate Starfish @ Jan 17th 2007 9:15AM
70dB is the same amount of noise heavy traffic makes from about 15 feet away. So this guy says that accessing a Wii is like having several trucks drive through his living room.
He failed to take into consideration many factors of sound testing. Distance is one of the primary ones. Not measuring other sounds is another big one. And, as in all experiments, using a measuring device with the proper range is important. My Wii doesn't make any more noise than a person whispering from across the dinner table (about 20dB) which is well outside the range of his meter.
This study is altogether flawed and stupid. Neither Sony nor Microsoft would pay for this. It takes a special kind of stupid to pull together these results, a different kind of stupid to propagate it through the internet on your blog, and the worst kind of stupid to come in here and comment about it.
(yes, that was a shot at myself ;) )
John B @ Jan 16th 2007 5:09PM
I think the media meter bumped up because of the abrupt disc jerking when you switch modes. But higher than the others? I call shenanigans.
Elric @ Jan 16th 2007 5:57PM
I too only hear a peep from my wii when ejeculating. Perhaps there is something wrong with their wii? Abused from over use?
Mista-Sound-Engineer-Guy @ Jan 17th 2007 7:29AM
1. Loudness is subjective.
2. Some frequencies appear louder to the human ear.
3. Humans are the most sensitive to frequencies in the same area as the human voice.
4. Different people have different characteristics to their ears.
5. An SPL (Sound Pressure Level) meter is never linear in its readings. If you do not compensate for this, your readings will be useless.
6. The characteristics and lay-out of your room will GREATLY influence what frequencies are dominant. Also, placement on a resonant surface (as in: not accoustically dead) will affect the way you percieve sound.
7. An SPL meter doesn't know what your room looks like. You need an anechoic chamber, or your results will be way off (as in: not even close to interesting).
Thank you
Andy Robertson @ Jan 16th 2007 5:21PM
What's wrong with a little friendly chirping now and then anyway. It kind of endearing. ;-)
Loban @ Jan 16th 2007 5:33PM
I can never hear my Wii above all the screaming and yelling of my family and friends having fun playing it. However, the PS3's noise is probably rather obvious as you can probably hear crickets chirping while people are playing it.
James @ Jan 16th 2007 5:49PM
Absolutely calling shenanigans. My 360 is 2x as loud as my PC, and my PC is 2x as loud as my Wii. In fact, if I'm not using the Wii input on the TV, with the way the light is colored in my living room I ususually have to sqint at the Wii to tell whether the light is green or orange (on or off).
Paul @ Jan 16th 2007 6:19PM
This is absolutely incorrect. I have a recent Xbox 360 that is whisper quiet while playing back DVDs and when browsing the dashboard or Xbox Live Marketplace. However, while playing a game, the optical drive is extremely noisy. It reads at 16X with little to no load times so I don't mind the noise. My Wii is whisper quiet the entire time though. I only hear a slight noise when ejecting, putting in games, or switching back to the Wii home screen. Still, I have a friend with a PS3 and my Wii is quieter than it. In terms of noise levels: Xbox 360>PS3>Wii
Wayne @ Jan 16th 2007 6:25PM
The experiment was measured in dB, not dBA. This significant in that humans hear better in certain frequencies than others. dB is a measurement made without accounted for the filter effects of the human ear. While dBA, reflects how 'we' would hear it. Also the response rate of the measuring device makes a difference. This ends the public service announcement!
Fatass of Kickassness @ Jan 16th 2007 6:45PM
Why in gods name would you repost this when its already been completely debunked?
R0DJOh @ Jan 16th 2007 7:08PM
They prolly mean that CLICK sound the Wii always does when it changes Channels
Bob @ Jan 16th 2007 7:58PM
"I too only hear a peep from my wii when ejeculating. Perhaps there is something wrong with their wii? Abused from over use?"
XD
Raycer @ Jan 16th 2007 9:24PM
My 360 is definately louder than my Wii overall.the Wii does make some noise while accessing discs but no aircraft quality sounds like my 360 lol.
IMHO, the PS3 is actually the quietest overall.
Comstock @ Jan 16th 2007 9:26PM
I agree with John B and R0DJOh. This test must register the fraction of a second when Wii makes a loud "click" sometimes when accessing a disk. Otherwise, my Wii is unquestionably more quiet than my quite noisy 360, which makes fan noise for a long time.
Tony Rothwell @ Jan 16th 2007 10:48PM
I don't know where they got their Wii, mine the only noise mine makes is ejecting, and then its heaps quiet, and the sounds from the Wii-mote. I had borrowed a friend's 360 for a while and honestly, not only loud, but it melted a candle from a couple of meters away. no jokes.
scott @ Jan 16th 2007 9:55PM
My Wii must be busted, too!
It's quiet as a mouse.
I think my slim PS2 is even louder.
gc @ Jan 16th 2007 10:38PM
i dont believe him. my phat ps2 makes more noise than my friend's 360. my wii only clicks when i load a game in. i am right. GC!
Katrine @ Jan 17th 2007 3:19AM
And it what numbers it was measured? Seems to me lamers made this graph
Cian @ Jan 17th 2007 6:48AM
I think it's important to note that he placed the sound meter about an inch from each of the consoles and I doubt many people have played the wii with it right up to their ear so I don't really doubt his numbers (though I think it might raise some questions about the overall value of the test). I haven't got my hands on a wii yet but, to me, it makes sense that the wii would produce more sound than the others when the drive is running, it's smaller so there's less bulk to absord the vibrations and it tends to be positioned on it's thin edge so there's less opertunity for the sound to be absorded by the shelving unit, of course I have no idea how the fans would impact this. Of course we have to presume that the numbers were peaks rather than averages so that reduces the value of the report further.
daniel @ Jan 18th 2007 10:09AM
this is the biggest bullshit i ever read!!!
i have all three systems. and to say the wii is the loudest... hahah. i´m still suprised how dump people are.
pic of my livingroom. just to prove that i really have all 3 sytems... http://img108.imageshack.us/my.php?image=sany00515rn1.jpg
ima747 @ Jan 17th 2007 10:13AM
Just chiming in with another "I've got a 360 and a Wii" comment.
I can't sleep if my 360 is on because of the fan noise... and it's not in my bedroom. that's not even counting the drive noise. My friend has a launch 360 and side by side it's even louder than mine.
The wii on the other hand only makes a sound I can hear if I'm close enough to be putting a disc in. Period. Never heard it from more then 5 feet away. never heard it across the room. Doesn't bother me when I'm trying to sleep.
The wii has what, 1 tiny ass, slow fan and a flash drive for storage... and an optical drive that's relatively low RPM. Vs ps3 and 360 which have oodles of high speed larger fans, spinning discs with read arms in their hard drives (not that I hear my 360 HD that much, but still, it's there) and optical drives designed to test the ability of plastics under space shuttle lift off situation...
Not that the logical conclusion is always the right one, but it's going to take a lot more than some half-assed "sound meter test" to convince anyone who actualy cares (cmon, who does actualy care... I crammed an old clicky HD in my Xbox1 for example) that something that's got fewer moving parts than a portable system is louder than the gaming equivilent of a jet engine... And if you do care about the noise of your hardware, either you have some REALLY touchy neighbors, or you need some speakers (there is more to hear from a console than soothing white noise).
Tenuto Inuke @ Jan 21st 2007 2:32AM
Dear lord, what a lie. I haven't heard a PS3 yet, but when I go over to my friends I bring over my Wii (the NINTENDO Wii. Shut up guys.) and when he plays his XBox 360 when I'm trying to go to bed, all I can hear is the loud whirring of the system, when he's playing the Wii, all I hear is him cussing at missing the Tennis Ball in Wii Sports XD. (FYI, His TV is set up below his bunk bed, and below that is a pull-out mattress, where I sleep. So I am, inches away from the systems too. Now, the Wii DOES make noise, but it's very quiet. The 360? Sounds like my cat when we give it a bath.
Stephen Jarman @ Jan 17th 2007 1:56PM
I visited the original website and it shows how the tests were conducted. Not very reliable if you ask me...
He said that for the hard drive he measured the noise that the SD card made, for the Wii. The SD slot doesn't even make noise! I don't even have a Wii and I can tell you that! SD has no moving parts (it's "flash"). Therefore, how can it make noise?
A bit weird???
Michael Sliczniak @ Jan 17th 2007 5:26PM
My wii was significantly louder when spinning media when it was on its side. Now that it is horizontal it is much quieter.
tom_squick @ Jan 23rd 2007 8:08PM
What?
Alex @ Feb 15th 2007 5:09PM
My Wii is kinda loud (noticable). When I put in a wii disk it makes a kind of vibrating noise, but when I put in madden 07 or far cry the vibrating was louder (you have to turn all your sound off to hear it). Makes no vibrating noise when gc game is played. Other than that its really quiet. When my friend brought his 360 over, omg it was pretty bad cause of the two fans. lol and like Tony Rothwell said, the 360 melting candles, i bet it can lol, i had to put a cloth over my vcr(imput) because my friends 360 made it pretty darn hot.
For this test, this guy has some pretty podunk equipment or something. I havent heard a ps3 but the wii is like 5x quieter than the 360.