Music Note Frequencies: Research & Info

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the frequencies of music notes, particularly focusing on the range of human hearing and singing capabilities. Participants explore various aspects of sound perception, including personal experiences with hearing specific frequencies and the implications of audio equipment quality on sound reproduction.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation
  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • One participant states that middle C is 261.625565 Hz and questions the range of human singing, suggesting conflicting ranges of 150 Hz to 4 kHz and 60 Hz to 2 kHz.
  • Another participant mentions the highest note on a piano, B8 at 7902 Hz, and questions whether a human can sing that note.
  • A participant shares their experience of hearing 60 Hz and 82.407 Hz tones, noting that hearing ability can vary based on individual exposure to sound and age.
  • It is suggested that the ability to hear lower frequencies may depend on the quality of headphones or speakers used, with a recommendation to use good quality headphones in a quiet environment for optimal results.
  • One participant corrects the previous mention of B8, suggesting that C8 (4186 Hz) is the highest note on a standard piano and references a specific vocalist who has sung a note above this frequency.
  • Another participant discusses the standard range of fundamental frequencies for western classical vocal music, noting that it is typically about 70 Hz to 1 kHz, and mentions a peak in the harmonic spectrum around 3 kHz.
  • Concerns are raised about the inability to hear certain low frequencies, with one participant attributing this to potential limitations of the PC's speakers and the nature of sound reproduction.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express varying opinions on the ranges of human singing and hearing capabilities, with no consensus reached on the exact frequencies or the implications of audio equipment quality. Multiple competing views remain regarding the perception of low frequencies and the definitions of "singing."

Contextual Notes

Limitations include potential variability in individual hearing ability, dependence on audio equipment quality, and the subjective nature of sound perception. The discussion does not resolve the discrepancies in frequency ranges mentioned.

btb4198
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I have been doing some research on music note frequencies.
and I am getting a lot of mix information.

ok middle C is 261.625565 hertz

Human can sing between 150Hz to 4K
Or between 60Hz to 2K ?
Also I tried this site
http://onlinetonegenerator.com/?freq=5000
and I can't hear
60Hz nor 82.407Hz
is that normal ?
 
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the highest note on a piano is B8 is 7902hz
can a human sing that?
 
btb4198 said:
and I can't hear
60Hz nor 82.407Hz
is that normal ?

Hi btb, i am also a musician and was curious to see what you were writing about.
Hearing the audio spectrum varies with each individual. It can deteriorate depending on the
intensity of sounds you have been exposed to throughout your life and also the high end tends to
deteriorate with age.

That being said, i just tried the 60 and 82.407Hz signals this frequency generator made and i can hear both tones. It sounds like the intensity (volume) is attenuating with pitch (frequency), such that a 100Hz tone sounds louder to me than the 82.407Hz which sounds louder than 60Hz.

My suggested experiment: make sure you are using headphones of some kind. I am only using inexpensive earbuds. Set the volume on your computer to low (so as not to damage your ears). Try to find the lowest frequency you can hear with this tone generator. As you continue to generate lower pitches, you may find you need to step up the volume to hear them.

On your referenced site hearing test page, they recommend you sit in a "quiet room" and use "good quality headphones". So if you use that criteria, you can optimize the results of my suggested experiment. However, for comparison, in my environment, there is ambient noise (fan inside my laptop) and i am using cheap earphones.

btb4198 said:
the highest note on a piano is B8 is 7902hz
can a human sing that?

Yes, however I suspect you meant to compare to C8 (4186Hz) the highest note on a standard 88-key piano. Adam Lopez has vocalized a pitch as high as C♯8 (4434.92Hz), a semitone above C8.
 
Last edited:
btb4198 said:
Human can sing between 150Hz to 4K
Or between 60Hz to 2K ?
It depends what you call "singing", but for western classical vocal music the standard range of fundamental frequencies is about 70Hz to 1kHz. Of course anyone person can not sing all of that range, and some people can go a bit lower or a bit higher.

There is a "peak" in the harmonic spectrum of the human voice at about 3 kHz which can be quite strong in singing, independent of the fundamental frequency. The frequency range around 3 kHz is important in speech as well, and human hearing is most sensitive at that frequency.

I can't hear 60Hz nor 82.407Hz
is that normal ?

That is not normal. The most likely reason is that your PC has poor quality loudspeakers that can't reproduce sine waves at low frequencies. The loudness of the sounds will reduce at lower frequencies so you may need to increase the volume (but be careful when you raise the frequency again!)

Most musical instruments do NOT produce pure sine waves, Low quality loudspeakers can reproduce the harmonics but not the fundamental frequency, and your brain "thinks" it can hear the fundamental frequency even when a measuring instrument says it doesn't exist. But if you play a pure sine wave from that web site, of course there are no harmonics.

FWIW with reasonably good quality speakers on my PC I can hear tones down to 30 Hz on that site without any problem.
 
Last edited:

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