Does it get louder with either velocity, or bullet size?
Just wondering.
Through a suppressor, BTW.

Yes, the sonic crack (Mach cone) gets louder with higher velocity and larger bullets. Suppressor makes no difference.

Yes, DShK rounds have a significantly louder crack than AK and PKM rounds when passing you!

I'm glad I didn't know that.

Tony

This guy probably knows.

The sonic crack of a .223 @ 200yds/6 inches from the sensor is 150 dbs (A weighted) as a data point.

Think about a sonic boom from a supersonic jet doing just Mach 1+….they can break windows and crack walls miles away.

I’ve spent a good amount of time in the pits of ranges with bullets passing over my head.

The difference in cracks for a 223 is indistinguishable for me compared with a 308 or 30-06.

Similarly, I can’t say there’s a difference in the sonic crack when the firing is from the 200 yard line or the 600 yard line (difference in velocity at the target is probably something like 1000 fps.

Things to know; I wear ear puffs in the pit. I probably have hearing damage (from when I didn’t wear plugs in the pit). So my sensitivity to the differences might be poor

I well remember the summers that our window or sliding glass door shattered from the sonic boom of aircraft in the Paine Field Airshow. 😀. I was thinking about this topic recently so it’s timely that it’s up for discussion.

I can understand the difference between an aircraft and a bullet because there’s a hell of a lot of difference in the amount of surface area between the 2. I’d expect an an airplane traveling 1500fps at 2000’agl to be louder than a 30 cal bullet doing 1500fps….or even 3000fps because of the massive increase in surface area. I don’t think a 22cal versus a 30 or 40 cal sonic “boom” (crack) would be discernible to the average ear with everything else being equal?

That was my thought.

Ya, you're deaf... 🤭
You can hear the difference between .308, .223 and 6mm bullets at 600 to 1000 yards.

This can shed some light. I'm sure the audio is different than being there, but still a fun watch