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432hz [message #91908] Tue, 19 May 2020 12:35 Go to next message
Kingfish is currently offline  Kingfish
Messages: 548
Registered: November 2012
Illuminati (1st Degree)
I just found out recently that 440hz was set as the standard tuning for music, yet 432hz is the one most recognized by the musicians themselves as being superior in sound.

Without getting into the conspiracy theories right away (although it's bound to happen sooner or later) Why exactly was 440hz chosen over 432hz?

https://www.izotope.com/en/learn/tuning-standards-explained.html

That article gives the basic history lesson, but it never really says why.
Re: 432hz [message #91909 is a reply to message #91908] Tue, 19 May 2020 13:13 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Wayne Parham is currently offline  Wayne Parham
Messages: 18669
Registered: January 2001
Illuminati (33rd Degree)

440Hz is A above middle C. A musician or group can always be off a few Hertz, and as long as they're all off by the same amount, it's fine. But the standard A-note is 440Hz.

I wouldn't pay attention to tin-foil-hat wearers that discuss which single tone "sounds better" but I would encourage you to look at which scales sound better. I don't mean which of the common scales sound best, like C major or A# minor. I'm talking about scales like chromatic, octatonic, heptatonic, etc. There are lots of different scales, and they all sound a little different.
Re: 432hz [message #91913 is a reply to message #91908] Tue, 19 May 2020 13:40 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Silver is currently offline  Silver
Messages: 116
Registered: December 2013
Viscount
This is all making me want to re-learn how to write music. I did it back in junior high and remember thinking how fun and easy it is.

I can't really tell the difference between the two, but I do wonder why a standard even has to exist in the first place.
Re: 432hz [message #91994 is a reply to message #91908] Sat, 30 May 2020 19:04 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Azuri is currently offline  Azuri
Messages: 315
Registered: November 2012
Grand Master
From what I understand, different countries around the world had themselves a pow-wow and determined the 440hz standard more for the makers of the instruments than the musicians themselves. The musicians had to adapt a bit to decisions made by people who probably didn't play instruments.
Re: 432hz [message #92216 is a reply to message #91994] Wed, 26 August 2020 10:22 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Csharp is currently offline  Csharp
Messages: 86
Registered: April 2012
Viscount
Sounds reasonable, right? Rolling Eyes

On the other hand, how many people on an assembly line making cars never learned how to drive? In time, making anything turned into a matter of pure mechanics.
Re: 432hz [message #92218 is a reply to message #92216] Wed, 26 August 2020 13:22 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Wayne Parham is currently offline  Wayne Parham
Messages: 18669
Registered: January 2001
Illuminati (33rd Degree)

I don't think there is any qualitative difference in the sound of a 440Hz sine wave tone and a 432Hz sine wave tone. I think both will be equally pleasant. Both just sound like an unremarkable tone.

What I think can make a subjectively qualitative change is when you start adding sine waves to a fundamental of any frequency. These added notes can be pleasant or unpleasant, depending on their spacing, e.g. their harmonic relationship with one another. Chords and note progressions can sound better or worse depending on their harmonic arrangement too.
Re: 432hz [message #92231 is a reply to message #91908] Fri, 28 August 2020 19:41 Go to previous messageGo to next message
johnnycamp5 is currently offline  johnnycamp5
Messages: 354
Registered: June 2015
Location: NJ
Grand Master
Wayne is you last comment related to the old "even order/odd order harmonics" argument we often hear about tube vs. ss amplification?

Also, while not quite on topic-
Is loudspeaker sensitivity generally measured at 1khz?
We always see the typical 1W @ 1M but almost never which frequency, which I would imagine could have an effect on sensitivity...
Re: 432hz [message #92234 is a reply to message #92231] Sat, 29 August 2020 19:06 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Wayne Parham is currently offline  Wayne Parham
Messages: 18669
Registered: January 2001
Illuminati (33rd Degree)

Loudspeaker sensitivity is often times quoted at a specific frequency, and you're right that 1kHz is often chosen. But some manufacturers treat it as more of an averaged figure when specifying a single value and provide a response chart at 1W/1M (or 2.83v/M) to give an exact illustration of the SPL provided by the loudspeaker at all frequencies.

The odd versus even harmonics in distortion is pretty similar to what I was describing, yes. Both are a matter of dissonance. But distortion is always an anomalous unwanted artifact, and it's just that dissonant sounds are more obvious than harmonically-related ones. So a second harmonic isn't as ugly sounding as a fifth harmonic. You can tolerate a lot more second harmonic than you can fifth.

Chords and note progressions aren't distortions - they're notes played on an instrument, presumably by a musician - but they can be dissonant or harmonious. Harmonious chords sound more pleasant than dissonant ones.
Re: 432hz [message #92558 is a reply to message #91908] Wed, 04 November 2020 07:15 Go to previous message
Airforce 3 is currently offline  Airforce 3
Messages: 81
Registered: December 2013
Viscount
I have always understood sine waves to be the building blocks on which all else is built from. So the difference between 432 and 440 becomes insignificant when you start adding music from that base.
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