A three-dimensional time-conservative finite-volume method is employed for the numerical analysis of the compressible flow and sound generation of an open rectangular cavity with a length-to-depth (L/D) ratio of 5 and a width-to-depth (W/D) ratio of 1. A Mach number of 0.85 and a Reynolds number of 6.8 million based on the cavity length are used as flow conditions. The large-eddy simulation (LES) technique is used in order to predict the turbulent flow field and the near-field cavity noise directly. Numerical results are compared with experimental data and results of high-order numerical schemes for sound pressure level (SPL) along the cavity floor. The computed near-field results using the present second-order scheme show high accuracy and high resolution comparable to those of high-order numerical schemes. © 2010 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.