Fox says the Micro/Howler is slightly louder (120 db vs. 114 db for the Fox 40 Classic) -- whatever "louder" might mean to various of us. Ritter says the Micro/Howler is louder.
Perhaps mine is defective, though I've seen several others also comment that the Howler is less loud. With mine, the difference is quite detectible.
Whoever makes the "Screamer" says it's the loudest. Then we have the huge Storm.
I haven't tried the Screamer. The storm
is the loudest (of the ones I've tried), but some would consider it too bulky for carry or for kit placement.
Some have noted that the loss of hearing at higher frequencies may impact how various persons perceive "loudness."
Yes, I've read that at Old Jimbo's site, among others. That makes a lot of sense, and has convinced me that I should carry both a higher-frequency whistle and a lower frequency one... though I have not lost much of my ability to hear high frequencies, so that doesn't apply to me, in regard to this case. It also would be an unlikely reason for people to think that the Howler is quieter, because the two other whistles have a higher frequency component than the Howler.
Then there is the matter of which whistle produces the most noise with reduced effort -
A good point which definitely deserves further investigation.
There is room here for science. We need a bright youngster who is in search of a HS science project.
I agree that more testing would be great, but I think you are overestimating the need for extreme youth. In any case, I will further investigate, myself. I will go to a large, empty beach where I often photograph, and I'll bring my closest friend and her young daughter. I'll keep moving further away from them, blowing each whistle in turn, and find out what they each have to say about which sounds loudest at a given distance, and about which they can hear from farthest.
By the way, the perceptions of high-school age testers regarding perceived loudness should probably be given less weight than the perceptions of older folks, since most SAR workers are in their 30s-50s.
Mike
