ORIGINAL: transatlanticflight
Also how does the speed of the prop tips effect noise? Is there a tip speed threshold that keeps things relatively quiet? How does adding blades impact such a speed/noise ratio? Anyone...anyone...Bueller?
There is a chart out here on tip speed verses noise, but my 7 year old computer just died and took 7 years of links with it.

I think I remember you want to keep prop tip speed below 400 mph, above that the noise really goes up.