Castle group Sonus Range GA116L User manual

www.castlegroup.co.uk
Castle Sonus Range
Sound Level Meter
&
Dose Meter
Operating Manual

Castle Sonus Range
Sound Level & Dose Meter Operating Manual
Published by Castle Group Ltd
Castle Group Ltd
Salter Road
Scarborough
North Yorkshire
YO11 3UZ, UK
Copyright © Castle Group Ltd 2012
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a
retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic,
mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission
of the copyright holder.
Printed in the UK
HB/0116/005/A5 Rev B

Thank you for buying a Castle product, I am sure you will find both the goods and
the service to be of the highest quality but if not, then please feel free to write to
me personally and I will ensure that your needs are dealt with immediately.
This manual is designed to show you the operation of the goods you have
purchased and a very brief insight into acoustics itself. If you would like to
become a competent person in the eyes of the law, then you may like to know
more about our Competent Persons training course for the Noise at Work
Regulations.You can visit www.castletrainingacademy.com to find out more.
Castle Group has become the leading supplier of solutions for health and safety,
environmental compliance and plant maintenance and monitoring, with an ever
expanding offer comprising equipment for sale or rent, residential or in-house
training courses, consultancy services and equipment calibration. If you would
like to know more about any of our other products and services then please visit
www.castlegroup.co.uk or telephone us on [phone].
Simon Bull
Managing Director
Note: for ‘Getting Started’ section please turn to Chapter 4

Precautions
•Only operate the instrument as described in this manual.
•These are precision instruments, protect from shocks and vibrations.
•Ambient conditions for the operation of the unit are as follows:-
Temperature: -10°C to +50°C
Relative Humidity: 25 to 90%
•Protect the unit from extremes of temperature and humidity, direct
sunlight and air with a high salt or sulphur content.
•Always turn the unit off after use. Remove the batteries from the
instrument when not in use.
•Do not use any solvents or cleaning agents on the instrument. Use only a
soft dry cloth or a soft cloth lightly moistened with water when necessary.
•Do not allow any conductive objects, such as wire or metal particles to
enter the unit.
•Do not try to disassemble the instrument or attempt any repairs as this will
invalidate your warranty. Take a note of the condition of the instrument and
contact your authorised Castle service station.
•To ensure continued precision performance of your instrument have it
checked and serviced at regular intervals.
Contacting Castle Group
This manual contains complete operating instructions for the Castle Sonus
Meter, read it carefully and you will quickly become familiar with your instrument
and its operation.
If you do encounter problems with the operation of your instrument please feel
free to contact customer support with your enquiry on: -
Telephone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
Website:
www.castlegroup.co.uk
Email: [email protected]
[e-mail]

Contents
CHAPTER 1.......................................................................................... 1
Introduction ........................................................................................................................................ 1
Sonus Variations ........................................................................................................................ 2
Sonus L...................................................................................................................................... 2
Sonus E ..................................................................................................................................... 3
Sonus I....................................................................................................................................... 3
Sonus B..................................................................................................................................... 3
CHAPTER 2.......................................................................................... 4
Microphone ........................................................................................................................................ 4
Microphone Types..................................................................................................................... 4
Free Field.................................................................................................................................. 4
Pressure................................................................................................................................... 4
Random Incidence............................................................................................................... 4
Microphone Polarisation........................................................................................................ 4
Externally Polarised............................................................................................................. 4
Pre-Polarised.......................................................................................................................... 4
Microphone Sensitivity ............................................................................................................ 5
Certifiable Calibration .............................................................................................................. 5
Removal of Microphone.......................................................................................................... 5
Pre-Amplifier Removal and Fitting........................................................................................... 6
Models GA116L, GA116E, GA116I & GA216L-P ....................................................6
Microphone Extension Cable (Models GA116L, GA116E & GA216L) .....6
CHAPTER 3.......................................................................................... 7
Measuring Sound ............................................................................................................................ 7
Sound Level – General Advice ............................................................................................. 7
Reflections..................................................................................................................................... 8
Time Weighting........................................................................................................................... 8
Slow Weighting ..................................................................................................................... 8
Fast Weighting...................................................................................................................... 8
Impulse Weighting – (Models GA116E, GA116L & GA216L Only) ...........8
Frequency Weighting Filters ................................................................................................ 9
‘A’ Weighting .......................................................................................................................... 9
‘C’ Weighting .......................................................................................................................... 9
‘Z’ Weighting (Zero) – (Models ‘E’ & ‘L’ Only) ......................................................... 9
Overload and Under Range Conditions........................................................................10
Overload Condition............................................................................................................10
Under Range Condition..................................................................................................11
Measuring Ranges.................................................................................................................12
Changing Range – All models except GA257B and GA257L ....................12
Lock Keypad – GA257B and GA257L...................................................................13
CHAPTER 4....................................................................................... 14
Getting Started ..............................................................................................................................14
Models I and B..........................................................................................................................14
Models L and E.........................................................................................................................14
All Models ................................................................................................................................... 15
Keypad Layout – GA116, GA216 All Models ...........................................................16

Keypad Layout – GA257L & GA257B.........................................................................17
Powering Your Sonus Meter.............................................................................................18
Switching Your Sonus Meter On/Off............................................................................19
CHAPTER 5....................................................................................... 20
Main Menu Navigation............................................................................................................... 20
Models GA116I, GA216I, GA116B, GA216B, GA257B ..............................21
Calibration [CAL <OK] ................................................................................................21
Exposure Time [ET <OK] ...........................................................................................23
Frequency / Time Weighting [WTG <OK].......................................................23
Exchange Rate [EXCH <OK]....................................................................................24
Criterion [CRIT <OK] ...................................................................................................25
Threshold [THR <OK] .................................................................................................26
Keypad Lock [LOCK <OK] .........................................................................................26
Display Contrast [CONT <OK]................................................................................27
Models GA116L, GA216L, GA116E, GA257L..................................................28
Calibration [CAL]..........................................................................................................28
Instrument Settings [SETUP] ................................................................................30
Frequency Weighting [FREQ WGT] ..............................................................31
Time Weighting [TIME WGT] ...........................................................................32
Recording Interval Period [INTERVAL] ........................................................34
Display Contrast [CONTRAST] ........................................................................36
Percentiles [USER Ln] .........................................................................................37
Criterion Level [CRIT] ...........................................................................................38
Threshold [THR] .....................................................................................................39
Exchange Rate [EXCH] ........................................................................................40
Record Timer [TIMER] ........................................................................................41
Current Date [DATE]............................................................................................42
Real Time Clock [TIME] .......................................................................................43
User Mode [MODE]....................................................................................................44
View Saved Logs [LOGS] ..........................................................................................45
Delete Saved Logs [DELETE]..................................................................................46
Set Instrument Defaults [DEFAULTS] ...............................................................47
Keypad Lock [LOCK]...................................................................................................48
CHAPTER 6....................................................................................... 49
Stop / Record Mode..................................................................................................................49
Model ‘I’ & ‘B’ Instruments.................................................................................................49
Model ‘L’ & ‘E’ Instruments................................................................................................50
All Models ................................................................................................................................... 51
Model ‘I’ & ‘B’ Instruments – Information Screen ............................................51
Model ‘L’ Instruments – Information Screen ......................................................52
Model ‘E’ Instruments – Information Screen......................................................53
Reset Data ........................................................................................................................... 54
Models ‘I’ & ‘B’ ..............................................................................................................54
Models ‘L’ & ‘E’..............................................................................................................54
CHAPTER 7....................................................................................... 55
Parameters..................................................................................................................................... 55
Available Parameters - Models ‘I’ & ‘B’ ........................................................................55
Available Parameters - Model ‘L’.....................................................................................57
Available Parameters - Model ‘E’.....................................................................................59
Parameter Explanations......................................................................................................61
Sound Pressure Level.....................................................................................................61

Equivalent Continuous Sound Level ..........................................................................61
Maximum Sound Pressure Level ..............................................................................62
Peak Level.............................................................................................................................62
Daily Personal Noise Exposure Level.......................................................................63
Noise Dose...........................................................................................................................64
Noise Dose per Hour ......................................................................................................65
Pascal Squared Hours ...................................................................................................65
Sound Exposure Level .....................................................................................................66
Percentiles ...........................................................................................................................66
CHAPTER 8....................................................................................... 67
Downloading Saved Recordings............................................................................................67
Models ‘L’ and ‘E’.....................................................................................................................67
CHAPTER 9....................................................................................... 68
Accessories.....................................................................................................................................68
Available Accessories ...........................................................................................................68
CHAPTER 10.................................................................................... 69
Technical Specification...............................................................................................................69
Instrument Standards..........................................................................................................69
Measurement Parameters ...............................................................................................70
Time Weighting........................................................................................................................71
Frequency Weighting............................................................................................................71
Peak Frequency Weighting................................................................................................72
Typical Electrical Self Generated Noise Level ...........................................................72
Linear Operating Range: (IEC 61672:2002)............................................................73
Model ‘L’ Instruments .....................................................................................................73
Model ‘E’ Instruments.....................................................................................................75
Model ‘I’ & ‘B’ Instruments ...........................................................................................76
Total Measuring Range .......................................................................................................77
GA116E .................................................................................................................................77
GA116L .................................................................................................................................77
GA216L .................................................................................................................................77
GA257L .................................................................................................................................77
GA116I, GA216I, GA116B, GA216B.....................................................................77
GA257B.................................................................................................................................77
Peak Operating Range @ 1kHz.........................................................................................78
GA116E .................................................................................................................................78
GA116L .................................................................................................................................78
GA216L .................................................................................................................................78
GA257L .................................................................................................................................78
GA116I, GA216I, GA116B, GA216B.....................................................................78
GA257B.................................................................................................................................78
Acoustic Frequency Range ................................................................................................79
Electrical Characteristics....................................................................................................79
Reference Points ....................................................................................................................79
Model E .................................................................................................................................. 79
Model L...................................................................................................................................79
Models I, B............................................................................................................................79
Electrical Signal Input............................................................................................................80
Maximum Peak to Peak Electrical Signal Input For No Damage.....................80
Upper Frequency for Periodic Acoustic Testing......................................................80
Windshield.................................................................................................................................. 80