I have both a k5 and a k3 hooked up to my air system, and the k5 is louder. Maybe the setup you heard had a broken or worn out k5.
My modified K5 is much louder than my modified K3…
Ask and you shall recieve
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w8a1n_BlLD8&p=9567250C3839B8F6&playnext=1&index=46
Your ears are good enough to tell which horn is louder? I’m just going by paperwork and specs that MP put out themselves. I’m thinking people are mistaking the difference in tone (being that a K5 is higher which the human ear is more sensitive to) and thinking they’re louder because of that.
You can definitely hear that the K3 is louder.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s5zkezwWrS0&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uxWgUt3mCSM&feature=related
I think it is really comes down to how much air you have running to them. If you run a larger line when go to a k5, then it will be louder. If you run the same 1/2" OD line, then it won’t be because 1/2" OD is not enough CFM for a k5.
Possiblility there. But did ever consider taking in that the K5 has two more bells?
Since the dB scale is logarithmic rather than linear, 2-3 dB is quite a bit louder, and, yes, it’s true. A K3 IS louder than a K5. However, since the K5 adds one or two notes that are higher than the K3’s notes, the perceived loudness to the human ear goes to the K5.
The datasheet that shows that the K3 is louder than a K5 is based on air supply conditions. Given the same pressure, the K5 requires a higher volume of air since it has two more mouths to feed. The available air is distributed over more horns. The sound pressure level vs. flow rate looks like a curve of diminishing returns–once you get up in the 110 dB region, it takes a lot more flow to gain a little more volume.K3 was louder than the K5 set up under normal conditions. It was only by about 2-3 dB though.