I'm looking for a Decibel (Loudness) Comparison Chart for quadcopters and drones or dirigible. I've never had a drone. I'm a landscape photographer. I need be as quite as possible and still get a photo from 30 to 100 feet above, being as NON annoying as possible to fisherman, hikers. Need to see what camera sees live on controller or ipad 4th gen. I'm just doing low res (minimum 1600 x 1200) still shots to convert to photo art, so a go pro is probably overkill. Budget is $1000.00 USD for drone and camera. I'm not opposed to a dirigible. if it's more silent and can stay put in a 10 MPH breeze. Any help or thoughts?
Bump I can't believe I'm the only one cares about the decibel levels. You know the more quite the operation, the less chance of a complaint. The less scary to wildlife and the less annoying to people. There must be someone here who has checked into this and can help. Please help or tell me of a better forum for this question!
What you ask is a relevant question - but it has not been tested to any reasonable degree! I can speak for the fact that my Phantoms are not loud - especially when you are soft on the throttle. But a true test would require that various models be in the exact same location and in a hover, etc. - if one person tests one someone and other tests a different model elsewhere it's not going to be relevant. If I think of it I will take some db readings and post them just for a start.
Ok, the Phantom 3 - with the newest firmware (it does make a sound difference sometimes). About 80 db max at 3 meters (10 feet) away - the machine at about 1 1/2 meters above ground. About 70 db at 6 meters with the same height above ground. That is very rough, of course, and can change depending on the surroundings and where you are in relation to the machine.
Different props will also make a difference in the sound level. I would think if a person ran higher thrust props it might be significantly quieter due to the fact that the motors were turning slower but would require greater torque. Carbon props may also make a difference due to less flex. I had a whole football stadium freak out when I flew my Phantom 3 over to video my sons graduation. At over 100 feet it could still be heard fairly well. The next day there was several pics on facebook showing the UFO flying over the graduation ceremony.
It also makes a difference where you are located - in this case those people were below the machine which may be the loudest place. The stadium may have served to amplify the sound more. My very general rule say to fly about 150-200 feet high to avoid disturbing folks with the noise. At that height they'd really have to have their ear tuned in to hear it.
Thanks again for the help. I think I need about About 50 db or less at 6 meters outside wide open space. There probably is something like that in the works or in existence.
