Noise weighting

In telecommunication, a noise weighting is a specific amplitude-vs.-frequency characteristic that permits a measuring set to give numerical readings that approximate the interfering effects to any listener using a particular class of telephone instrument.

Note 1: Noise weighting measurements are made in lines terminated either by the measuring set or the class of instrument.

Note 2: The most widely used noise weightings were established by agencies concerned with public telephone service, and are based on characteristics of specific commercial telephone instruments, representing successive stages of technological development. The coding of commercial apparatus appears in the nomenclature of certain weightings. The same weighting nomenclature and units are used in military versions of commercial noise measuring sets.

Source: from Federal Standard 1037C and from MIL-STD-188