MusicReasonProduction, Synthesis, and Audio Math
What is this ratio in decibels?
Choose amplitude or power mode and a direction. This tool converts between a linear ratio and decibels, without equating a dB difference to how loud something actually sounds to a listener.
Answer
Want to learn more? Gain, Decibels, EQ, and Dynamics
Understand
Amplitude and power ratios use different multipliers precisely because power is proportional to amplitude squared: doubling amplitude quadruples power, which is why a doubled amplitude is about +6 dB while a doubled power is about +3 dB. Perceived loudness does not scale linearly with dB either; this tool reports the exact mathematical relationship only.
Worked examples
Doubling amplitude is about +6.0206 dB. Doubling power is about +3.0103 dB. A ratio of exactly zero is reported as negative infinity dB, an explicit state rather than an error.
Method and limitations
Amplitude mode uses dB = 20 · log10(ratio); power mode uses dB = 10 · log10(ratio). The inverse direction raises 10 to the power of dB divided by the same multiplier. This tool performs the arithmetic only; it does not model a specific device's gain staging or headroom.
Picking the right mode matters
Choosing power mode when you actually have an amplitude ratio, or the reverse, produces a value that is wrong by roughly a factor of two in dB terms, not just slightly off. Voltage meters, waveform peak readings, and most plug-in gain knobs are amplitude quantities; acoustic intensity and electrical power measurements are power quantities. When in doubt, amplitude is the far more common case in everyday mixing and mastering contexts.