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The standard configuration of a sonic black hole (SBH) is a discrete set of rings with back cavities at a duct termination, whose inner radii decrease according to a power-law. Although several practical realizations of this type of slow-sound waveguide have been investigated, the continuous problem in which the number of ring/cavity sets goes to infinity has not been analyzed in depth. Understanding its performance is interesting in itself and could provide clues for new designs. For this purpose, we transform the generalized Webster equation for the acoustic pressure inside the ideal SBH into a spatially varying wavenumber Helmholtz equation for a new locally scaled pressure. We eliminate the singularity of the original problem at the SBH termination by considering a rigid residual surface that will be shown to play a role analogous to that of the acoustic black hole (ABH) residual thickness in beams and plates. The variational formulation of the Helmholtz equation is presented and solved by expanding the unknown scaled pressure in terms of a basis of Gaussian functions. The same framework is used to set up an eigenvalue problem that provides the SBH modes and thereby a modal decomposition for the pressure within the SBH. Once the theoretical foundations are established, the variation of the speed of sound and wavenumber in the SBH is presented. The dependence of the shape and distribution of the modes on the residual surface and damping helps to clarify the occurrence and disappearance of oscillations in the input admittance and reflection coefficient of the SBH at different frequencies. For the latter, a detailed parametric study is carried out. Alternative profiles to the power law are also investigated, some showing reflection coefficient values similar to those of the classical SBH. • Sonic black holes at the end of ducts provide minimal wave reflection. • A theoretical approach is proposed to solve the SBH governing equation. • The modal distribution in the SBH is strongly affected by the residual radius. • The modal distribution explains the oscillations in the reflection coefficient. • Alternative SBH profiles to the power law are studied. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]