Question on shooting the AR-15/AK-47

[ThatOneGuy44]

Has anyone shot both of these weapons? Which one is louder both from the shooters perspective and from afar, like which one will sound louder at a distance the sharper crack of the 5.56 fired from an AR or the boom of the 7.62x39 from an AK? And are these weapons as loud as a .308?

[ThatOneGuy44]

Eh anyone?

[Sixer]

Hard to say... I'm always wearing ear plugs when they go BOOM.

To me, the AK "feels" louder. A bit more recoil, but I'm not sure how significant the volume level is :confused:

[uncyboo]

Barrel length has alot to do with report volume. There was a thread like this not too long ago with some info that might be useful to you. These questions make me nervous as to - Why?

[chris in va]

No, they're not as 'loud' as a 308. I've shot my friend's FAL, I have an AK variant and fired the M16 in basic.

From the shooters side the M16 doesn't seem to have much noise. All you really hear is the SHING of the buttstock spring. AK is more of a SHLACK sound from the massive piston. The FAL has pretty good percussion and report. Hope that helps.

[Willie Lowman]

Decibel wise the 5.56 and the 7.62x39 are pretty close. There is a different pitch to the reports that will distinguish them.

[ostrobothnian]

Perceived muzzle report (sound) between rifles (alone) can vary. There are many factors which can affect "volume". A few are...

Load/Charge (ammo)
Barrel length
Muzzle device

What I hear between the different rounds is...

5.56x45 = snap!
7.62x39 = crack!
7.62x51 = boom!

Too bad it wasn't snap, crackle and pop. But a 9mm "pops". :)

Yes. What Willie Lowman said.

[TRguy]

hummm your 1st post......

and you choose this question as your first on the board?

sounds eerily similar to the kid on here with the screen name LeeAdama, that asked the question about noise between the two, not once but twice in two different threads

the most recent was
http://thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=396774&highlight=louder

[MTT TL]

My .308 is more like "Blam"

With ear pro in the 5.56 is slightly higher pitch I think. But I know where this is going.... Down the Gunny Highway...

http://www2.nationalreview.com/dest/2009/02/09/heartbreak.jpg

[TRguy]

And the other thread talking about NOISE

http://thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=399015&highlight=leeadama

[billfrombyron]

I just got out of the Army at the tail end of 2008 and this is my .02 your ears may be different.

The M4/AR15/M16 family has to my ears a sharp harsher report. The AK has a good report which seems to be milder to the unplugged ear at the shooters end, but when on the receiving end you can defiantly tell the difference between the two.

Having heard both simultaneously (inbound and outbound) I can tell you that the M4 makes a lot of noise without ear protection. (After about 30 rounds it sounds like everyone is talking to you from about 10 feet back and to the side, gets worse as you fire more)

The AK is a good solid crack thud and wasn't quite as harsh as the 5.56. Having not fired a 30 round mag without hearing protection through an AK I can't compare too much as I only fired about 10 rounds through it at at time for familiarity without hearing protection. It hurt, but not as bad as the 5.56mm.

To loosely quote heart break ridge, "This is the preferred weapon of your enemy, it makes a distinctive sound when being fired at you."
You have no clue how true this statement is and I pray that you never have to find out.

That being said to me and my ears the M4/16/15 family is louder from afar. At Ft Campbell we could always tell when the various units were at the range as we could hear it in the housing by gate 6 which was several miles from the range.

To my ears on the firing end, the AK is a solid thud and crack where as the M4 is more of a harsh loud bang and crack. Hope this helps.

And yes a 7.62 nato has a hell of a percussion. Its worse when being the AG on the side of a M240b then being the guy pulling the trigger.

The loudest thing I have fired in my career and this was with hearing protection(and still deafening!), was a M-134A. It doesn't even sound like a machine gun, its more of a loud soul reeving death roar at 2k rpm(low rate), and a screaming banshee at 4k rpm(high rate). The DC Dillon guns were a bit quieter to the shooter only, though its probably just my perception since they were new at the time.

I am curious as to why the noise level and how far it will carry is a concern though. Not attacking, just the genuine curious George in me.

-Byron

[Madcap_Magician]

I think the perception of the sound is subjective, with the surrounding environment being the biggest factor. I've shot M4s in shoot houses and the concussion will peel your eyelids back from the bare cinder blocks. A little .32 in a small space is really loud, a shotgun in an open field relatively less so. The more enclosed the space and the less sound-dampening the surroundings, the louder any gunshot will be.

[ThatOneGuy44]

billfrombyron: Very nice input, thanks.:)

Those M4s sound like they are pretty loud.

[MTT TL]

The loudest thing I have fired in my career and this was with hearing protection(and still deafening!), was a M-134A.

Never heard the Phalanx 1B on the CRAM eh? Now that is soil your shorts loud. Louder than MLRS even.

[stuffaknuckle]

I have both AR and a AK. The AK has more recoil and does seem a little louder. After shooting AKs all day and then shooting a AR, it seemed to me like I was shooting a .22. A noticable difference.

Then I shot a mosin. 7.62x54. All I can say is wow. I would really hate to be on the "business end" of one of those rifles!

[leadcounsel]

Neglible difference. I can't tell. Both are very managable even for relatively weak women that I've taught to shoot.

[ThatOneGuy44]

leadcounsel: I have fired 30-06s without ear plugs with no problem, did not hurt my ears that much, only a little bit of ringing. The .40 S&W on the other hand was brutal.

[ThatOneGuy44]

I know this thread is old but here is a cool youtube video comparing the AK-47 and the AR-15. At around 19:50 the guy who fires both weapons says the AR-15 is a lot louder due to the muzzle velocity.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G4OmlORv6qs

Any opinions?