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Carbonation is a product of time, temp, and pressure. The Zahm CO2 chart is invaluable, as long as you know your pressure and temp. I tend to aim for 2.4-2.6 volumes for the most part. If your beer is at say, 36F, then you can see that it will need to be under 10 psi in order to slowly absorb enough CO2 to reach 2.47 volumes, at which point it will simply stop dissolving into solution. At 40F your pressure would need to be 12 psi for the same result. How long this takes is dependent on volume and density of solution, but the beauty of homebrew is that if it tastes good, then its good. This method removes the guess work for the most part, but certainly isn't the fastest.
Shaking the keg under higher pressure certainly works and is faster, as it increases surface area exposure to the CO2, but introduces variables that are hard to duplicate exactly, so expect some minor variance, but thats only an issue if you're aiming for a very specific number of volumes.
At my brewery I use carb stones, bubbling CO2 through my brite tanks and slowly vent pressure from the top, maintaining about 10 psi. I have the luxury of a Zahm CO2 meter, but at $1500US, its a bit of overkill for home.
Shaking the keg under higher pressure certainly works and is faster, as it increases surface area exposure to the CO2, but introduces variables that are hard to duplicate exactly, so expect some minor variance, but thats only an issue if you're aiming for a very specific number of volumes.
At my brewery I use carb stones, bubbling CO2 through my brite tanks and slowly vent pressure from the top, maintaining about 10 psi. I have the luxury of a Zahm CO2 meter, but at $1500US, its a bit of overkill for home.
