Hard Data on Suppressed Barrel length & Volume (5.56/.223)

[BigWoods]

I initially posted this over on the suppressor side, but thought I'd post it here as this forum gets a lot more traffic.

Well I finally have my ab a-10 in hand for my Howa Mini in .223. As expected, with the 22" barrel it is somewhat unwieldy and front heavy. Balance point is well up the fore end of the stock. It feels awesome on my 16" 10/22.


With that, I've been intending to cut this rifle down to 16" or so. My question is, which I haven't seen any hard data on, is what measurable effect will that have on decibels at shooters ear?

The best I've seen after a fair bit of looking is a subjective "not much of a difference." This will primarily be used for training my kids and their deer hunting. The more hearing safe the better. Obviously at the range, I still intend to use plugs or muffs, but that's more impractical in our context out hunting. My understanding is that suppressed, I'll be right on that edge of hearing safe and I'd like to keep it there.

What should I know? Thanks for the help!

 

[StupidLightweight]

I can't give you hard data, but it will be slightly louder because the supersonic crack of the bullet is closer to your ears. Is it a .223 can? If not, do you have a .223 endcap? That will be more important than barrel length.

Regardless, I wouldn't worry about increased noise from a 16-inch barrel with a suppressor. I'm a nazi when it comes to hearing protection, but I don't sweat a few suppressed shots at game. Your kids will lose more hearing from loud headphones than shots in the field with a suppressed .223.