Sine wave frequencies - Can you hear them all?
The range of human hearing goes from 20 Hz all the way to 20,000 Hz. But can you hear all of the low frequencies and all of the high? This video will test your speakers and your hearing. How many frequencies can YOU hear?
Automated transcript
Some of my most popular videos are about sine waves so here's a video about sine waves I'm going to play you some sine waves all the way from 20 Hertz up to 20 kilohertz the question is can you hear them all
you
you
I'm guessing that you couldn't hear them all so why is this firstly let's listen to some low frequencies
you
it depends on what speakers you're using but I'm guessing you started to hear something around fifty to sixty Hertz the reason you didn't hear anything at frequencies lower than that is because your speakers can't reproduce those frequencies if you're listening on laptop speakers maybe you didn't hear anything at all but if you're listening on studio-quality headphones perhaps you heard everything lucky you but what about the high frequencies well that depends how old you are high frequency perception decreases with age when you're really young like 10 or under you can probably hear all of the frequencies all the way up to 20 kilohertz and maybe you could hear even higher than that but we normally think of 20 kilohertz as the limit of the audio band as you get into your teens and 20s your high frequency perception gets worse maybe only up to 15 kilohertz or so reach the age of 40 and perhaps you can only hear up to 12 kilohertz by the time you're 60 or so your upper limit could be somewhere around 10 kilohertz so let's listen to those high frequencies again and you can compare what you hear with your age
so if you can't hear all those frequencies don't worry it's normal and if you want reassurance perhaps you can consider consulting an audiologist so let's listen to all of those frequencies again
ah
you
I'm David Mellor course director of audio master class thank you for listening
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David Mellor
David Mellor is CEO and Course Director of Audio Masterclass. David has designed courses in audio education and training since 1986 and is the publisher and principal writer of Adventures In Audio.
@Scudmaster11 replies to @AudioMasterclass: 16 kHz I couldn't hear... thats where I ended
@64.000 replies to @AudioMasterclass: it doesnt depend on how old you are it depends on how loud your life was
@Rosegold_destiny: Iโm 53 yrs old and I heard ALL OF THEM
@iconicintuitive: I can feel them! Even the faintest one can be felt. But I can hear most of those. It actually felt nice listening to this
@hsakadales: 0:57 no need for such language
@txchh: I heard 125hz to 16khz
@alessiovespaMonteBianco: Why in this video the 64Hz (C2) had AN DOUBLE harmonic (128Hz , C3) and you Say that this sound Is pure?
And WHY the low frequencys are so LOW to volume?
@Wra8h: Okay some of them hurt tf out of my ears. Never again
@povayei: This was cool, I heard the whole sweep, but some things to note in my own experience.
I was using wireless airpods at first, so the audio cut off at 16khz. But when i got my wired pair, i heard the whole sweep. I am 22 years young.
@AudioMasterclass replies to @povayei: Well done. The variations you hear are probably due to what YouTube is serving you. But if you heard the whole sweep at least once, then your ears are, at least in this respect, in first class condition.
@Boobafandoesmibu: 1:14 8000 Hz
@FunToast19736: I could start hearing it at around 160hz.
@67TheBlue67: 1:14
@nataaraujodealmeida802g: At 80 hz i can barely hear it
@tehillah1000: I could hear them all actually
@Hi_guys1021: 1:14
@DJMustardiykyk: I don't get it, is this real? Please someone tell me. I heard everything?? I don't understand if this a joke or not.
@skylarwhitney8368: I could hear 25hz to 10khz. Iโm 31
@AudioMasterclass replies to @skylarwhitney8368: This is only a casual test and I am not an audiologist. 10 kHz is my limit at more than twice your age. It does seem to be the case however that YouTube provides different levels of audio quality to different devices, so it might not be your fault that you can't hear higher.
@Boobafandoesmibu: 1:15 SCP-4666 Phase by Slaughterhouse AKA Phase 650/484
@Boobafandoesmibu replies to @Boobafandoesmibu: My Phase 603
@diptych1: must be hearing reverb for the first five frequencies because the pitch suddenly dropped when shifting from 50 to 63.
@criotene: I could hear em all. 25, but I do have on AirPods.
@jusjohnson6410: 40Hz to 16KHz Using 20 dollar Kmart headphones. I'm 55 .
@Bouch1018: I can hear all but the final 2. 16 was my limit.
@ttmso: 16 khz barely
@AudioMasterclass replies to @ttmso: Well done. Now keep your listening level down and preserve it while you can.
@MattCairns93: Im 31 using a $25 pair of headphones from kmart all frequencies i clearly heard except 20 Khz i heard nothing
@hacadag: Thank you
@adriansanchez4875: 20hz just sounds like noise then at 25hz you hear a rumble, then at 30hz, it's the sweet spot for subwoofers (on 8 inch studio monitors)
@darijadrazovic: I didn't hear only 20KHz
@23dfg345dsfg: Huh, I managed to hear all of them.
@ThatOneUnityGamedev: I could hear all up to 16
@ThompPL1: Pretty good recording without much aliasing at highest frequencies.
@bluebutterflywellness2273: 31 to 12.5 on my $20 Sony
Headphones ๐. Update: with my eyes closed and focused I clearly heard 25 but nothing past 12.5. Also my windows are open, construction is next door and cars are driving by outside. However my cat suddenly came rushing in from outdoors and just stood there staring at me...๐
@MinhKhangฤร o-q1c: i only hear from 200 Hertz to 16Kilohertz(i'm watching this in a laptop)
@myhandlehasbeenmishandled: On headphones and speakers, how high is volume supposed to be set?
@AudioMasterclass replies to @myhandlehasbeenmishandled: This is just a rough test and you would need to visit an audiologist for a true test of your hearing. For this test, set the volume so that the lower frequencies are clearly audible and comfortable - not too loud. Don't change the volume through the test.
@myhandlehasbeenmishandled: Bose PC speakers but I am not sure about volume level, 1/4 volume knob is up. I'm 43. I could hear only starting with 63 Hz to 12.5 kHz. I have heater with a fan in background making noise.
@DaddyMakesCoffee: Actually you didn't give the volume adjustment STD for testing. Is the hearing ranges for each age at 100% volume? Or 50% etc.
POV: I tested with some cheap pioneer CL502 earphones at 50% YT volume and 100% laptop volume. I hear from 25HZ maybe 26 up to 14KHZ. Last but not least, I am 48!
@carlshenanigans: 12.5 khz max
@AudioMasterclass replies to @carlshenanigans: You're doing well. You still have better than nine out of your original ten octaves.
@OctavianXCII: i(31) couldnt hear past 16 but i turned my volume down before I got there
@braveheartbob3473: im all about the bass
my thoroughly-vetted Creative Labs speakers play even lower than 20 hz
@JustinRoby9311: Sennheiser PX-100 IIi's are a hell of a budget headphone, I have to say. Reached down to 30Hz in the bass frequencies. My ears topped out at 10KHz, though.
@acolley2891: I can hear all the way from 20 hz to 20 khz. ๐ฎ
@rizki_prime7: My jbl charge 5 only producing sound from 60 hz to 12,5 khz. ๐
@ac81017: I'm aged 47, i could hear up 12.5hz. 20hz made my subwoofer flap around. ๐
@tescoshortage: My phone has a software cutoff at 16khz. That sucks
@chrishealton3830: I could (barely) hear 25 Hz and cutting off abruptly at 16 kHz. Sennheiser HD 599 headphones. 26 years old. Probably have become a tad less sensitive being extremely careless with it as a teenager with shooting guns, very loud concerts and guitar amps, etc. those upper mid frequencies were absolutely piercing.
@SimonASimonA-j1g replies to @chrishealton3830: Creepy loser..
@viewer-of-content: this hurts my ears.
@randomlightstand: my headphones can play from 25Hz to 16KHz
@Wolfstanus: I can hear them all lmao
@MakeMisstxkes: Iโm an audio engineer and I can hear 20Hz to 16k
@Roadburner4: 31 hertz to 10 khertz
@tgc517: Bro, those 20 dollar Walmart off brand AirPods get that 25hz
@AudioMasterclass replies to @tgc517: Or you might be hearing distortion. DM
@_hyper_vazha513: Your sound is sine waves ๐คฃ
@AudioMasterclass replies to @_hyper_vazha513: Correct. DM
@LetsRideIllinois: There's no sound after 12khz. I suspect that you exported the audio at a low bitrate then uploaded it and when it transcoded it created some compound compression.
@AudioMasterclass replies to @LetsRideIllinois: The audio in the original video file is PCM, 24-bit, 48 kHz. This was encoded to AAC per YouTube's recommendation, 320 kbit/s, 48 kHz. YouTube re-encoded this to 128 kbit/s, 44.1 kHz. There is no audio above 12 kHz because the level of second harmonic in a square wave, which would be 24 kHz, is zero, and in any case 24 kHz is beyond the capability of 44.1 kHz sampling. DM
@LetsRideIllinois replies to @LetsRideIllinois: @AudioMasterclass I export all my video files with pcm encoding and just upload them that way.
@AudioMasterclass replies to @LetsRideIllinois: That's cool. YouTube will encode your audio. DM
@LetsRideIllinois replies to @LetsRideIllinois: @AudioMasterclass YouTube encodes to opus at 160k which retains all the frequencies
@AudioMasterclass replies to @LetsRideIllinois: You might take a look at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vge0GmVqUXg for which the original audio was WAV 24-bit 192 kHz and uploaded as such. As you will see from the comments, not everyone hears every frequency. When I download the file from YouTube (which again is encoded to 128 kbit/s, 44.1 kHz) both 16 kHz and 20 kHz are absent. It doesn't matter to me because I can't hear these frequencies anyway, and I suspect it matters little to the general YouTube audience. DM
@timothywalker8638: I could hear the lowest sound at about 25 Hz and the highest sound at or between 12 and 16 and Iโm over 50
@gulzarali6370: I can't hear 16 khz ๐ฃ
@danix30001: 0:22 if you just want the test
@raniwasacyborg: 160 Hz was the lowest I could hear. No idea if it's to do with my speakers or the fact that I have Mรฉniรจre's disease, which is partly characterised by some unique hearing loss in the lower frequencies!
@motherofangels1710: 80 Hz to 2.5 kHs was it for me. That's what I get for always forgetting ear plugs when I was in Army, and 1/2 the time when I go to shooting range and working at the mill.
@_hyper_vazha513: my specker 3 hz low
@ut_fan8787: BRO I HEARDALL OF THEM
I'M GOD
@Best-um3eq replies to @ut_fan8787: Meet u in hell
@TheMobiusTrap: I started hearing it at 25, and at 16k, it stopped. I'm using decent grade headphones, and am in the late 30s.
@cherryjello777: I can hear up to 20 in Bluetooth headphones on both sides.
@Ohcanada28: 12.5 is what I hear 24/7. Thankfully it does not bother me.
@realSuperRyn: 2:30 When it hit 16 kHz, I didn't hear it anymore, but i still felt it. I'm guessing it's my brain picking up vibrations or something. Same with lower frequencies.
@sodlier: i can only hear since 180hz
@Endslayerakaknightking: My ears hurt itโs loud even at the top one I can hear 90000hz at least so that hurts my ears
@mchibear3925: I could hear all of them. My ears are dead :<
@tersemath: I prefer this song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIGUxCySXbs
@_wishwadeepa_: My earphone plays 20hz extremely well... I'm impressed ..๐ฒ
@grumpent replies to @_wishwadeepa_: We found our CIA spy guys.
@iconicintuitive replies to @_wishwadeepa_: That's what I'm saying
@screenonset: 80hz - 16khz
@notgartificial8591: i started hearing at 40hz then stopped at 20khz
@GbrlPlayer: I always dislike staying near old TVs, theres always a sound that nobody hears that I can clear listen to it even from far away, did some other tests and I can listen to about 18.5khz on the left ear, and 19.1khz on the right one, 24 year sold.
@Roguhzuhguh: I heard all of them but I'm feeling sick now... I don't know why.
Edit: 10 khz, 12 khz hurt my ears and 17khz sounds so weak but It still hurts my ears and it calmed down at 20khz
@infradragon: I have Sony whxb910n and I can hear 20-16000hz, I have never been able to hear more than ~17000 hz on any headphone at age 15
@yowhatsgoood: I couldn't hear anything past 16
@gametoppler: 80 Hz to 8 kHz only
@expertssay3869: What notes are you playing?
@AudioMasterclass replies to @expertssay3869: The frequencies are given in the video. You can find the corresponding notes using the converter at https://newt.phys.unsw.edu.au/music/note/ DM
@bradlucid: Thank you for another great video Audio Masterclass
@AudioMasterclass replies to @bradlucid: You're welcome. DM
@bradlucid: The progression intervals remind me of the dragon stages ( "*"- 4 ) in 8-bit Super Mario
@psy-k-loan replies to @bradlucid: It's literally basic sine wave btw music in super Mario Bros was mostly made by square wave synthesizers
@suicidemercianery: used skullcandy earbuds, could hear all except around 20khz
@AudioMasterclass replies to @suicidemercianery: That's good going, and YouTube seems to filter out 20 kHz anyway. DM
@toosiyabrandt8676: Sine waves are harmonics like when you run your finger around the wet rim of a crystal glass.
@psy-k-loan replies to @toosiyabrandt8676: Every wave is harmonic imo from square to sine
@Straell: Used a Corsair gaming headset for this. Could barely hear at 20 Hz, but I started to hear fine at around 31 Hz. 20 kHz was also audible to me. I'm 20 years old and I feel like my hearing is complete garbage sometimes, but I don't know why.
@elimcgamerguy replies to @Straell: all same here, except I can't hear from 20 Hz, 25 Hz, and 20 kHz
@slarzyer: 63-6.3k for me...and my monitor speakers....on my headphones 25-16k ... i am 47 and i dont use "q-tips"...once every 2-3 weeks i use water pressure to clean the ear wax ....much of the "old person deaf rate" is due to over use of cotton swaps in the ear and compressing the wax rather than actually removing it ...my headphones just recorded static early and nothing later.... if speaker were better maybe i could hear more
@AudioMasterclass replies to @slarzyer: I'm not an audiologist so you can't take anything I say about hearing as accurate, but I do know something about loudspeakers and I have to wonder whether your tweeters are working. DM
@Sina_Qadri: yes 19 khz
@mythical_lobster: i got 20hz to 12.5khz at age 15, bearing in mind that i also have mild hearing loss in one ear and severe in the other ear
@Sina_Qadri replies to @mythical_lobster: me = 19khz :D
@heythere6983 replies to @mythical_lobster: Dont use headphones
@cactuskim4696: hey guys, YouTube cuts out all sounds over 16khz in the video. haha
@AudioMasterclass replies to @cactuskim4696: Which is why the test goes above 16 kHz.
@BrandonReeves: My cat does not like this game.
@acombo: 25hz-16khz (on headphones) (13yr) (20hz is really faint) [up to 19.5khz on other tests... hmm]
@AudioMasterclass replies to @acombo: Thank you for your input. If you can't hear above 16 kHz in this test it's probably YouTube that has low-pass filtered the audio, so nothing to worry about.
@ThomasKent1346: 32 Hz up to 8 KHz. My speakers are Logitech X-530 5.1 surround speakers (now discontinued, but they have newer models)
https://www.crutchfield.com/S-oIYiGv842tO/p_596X530/Logitech-X-530.html
The stated frequency response is 40 Hz to 20 KHz, but I can hear the 32 Hz waveform with them.
@AudioMasterclass replies to @ThomasKent1346: Thank you for your input. The woofer seems a bit small to produce much bass so 32 Hz is good going, unless of course what you're hearing is distortion, which is a possibility. DM
@Valientlink: 27 and can't hear 16kHz
my tinnitus rings at 12kHz, does that mean I won't be able to hear that ring when I get older lol.. that would be pretty cool
@slarzyer replies to @Valientlink: i dont think that is how tinnitus works... the deafing of getting older is caused in many circumstances due to over compression of the ear wax and many times can be fixed with a "proper" cleaning of the ears
@heythere6983 replies to @Valientlink: He said this websites cuts off 16hz actually , so itโs not your hearing . Tinnitus can be accompanied with hearing loss and can get worse over time .
Donโt blast music over 70 dbs. Donโt be really close to loud sounds. Eq stuff to be more mid and bass heavy and. Not soo much high frequencies which are piercing . Donโt be afraid to use earplugs or sleep with them if your ears are bothering you. That will give them some recovery time
@codebearer: Depends on your Headphones response..... Like..... lol
@AudioMasterclass replies to @codebearer: Not quite sure what you mean here, but for clarity I'll say that we often get responses such as 'I can't hear the bass' or 'I can't hear above 5 kHz' and then they say there's something wrong with the video. On further exploration we find they have been listening on their laptop, tablet, or even their phone, or $5 earbuds from eBay. So it's a common thing in Audio Masterclass videos to advise that listeners use studio-quality monitors or headphones. DM
@Akirilus: white shark gh-1841 lion - Stupid cheap headphones but my boys... it trades blows in clarity with my he400se planar and beats it in bass. I hear everything, 20 k tho is a bit weird, probably can't hear it fully, only partially.
@emilycampbell5798: I'm 38yo cannot hear lower register til 125hz but can here nearly all the way to the top 16khz
@AudioMasterclass replies to @emilycampbell5798: 16 kHz is good at the high end. 125 Hz at the low end is almost certainly down to your headphones or speakers. That's not really low enough for accurate monitoring although it would be useful to check the 'small speaker' sound of your mix. DM
@emilycampbell5798 replies to @emilycampbell5798: Now with Bose headphones on and could hear nearly all of it โบ๏ธ Phew I was worried I was going deaf
@Sherlock245: 31 to 8khz. ๐
@AudioMasterclass replies to @Sherlock245: 31 Hz is good at the low end, which is usually determined by the speakers or headphones. 8 kHz is a little low at the high end, but there's not much musically useful above that. An audiologist would provide a qualified opinion. DM
@Sherlock245 replies to @Sherlock245: @AudioMasterclass oh so 8khz is not low enough? Some here getting full range so back in the mud.๐
@AudioMasterclass replies to @Sherlock245: @Sherlock245 8 kHz isn't high enough to hear the full audio range which is normally considered to be up to 20 kHz, although few people can hear above 15-16 kHz or so. If you look down the comments you'll see the typical ranges others hear.
@Sherlock245 replies to @Sherlock245: @AudioMasterclass well I have to confess my range can go up too 100,000 sorry I got lost!!! Let see who can beat that!!!!!!!! ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ you cannot run away from me I track you down!!!!
But 10,000 is a range someone has. Bit short.
@oreo624: 31hz to 16khz
@AudioMasterclass replies to @oreo624: Well done - you can hear everything you could possibly need. DM
@taivis1037: speaker might not be able to play too low frequency ๐
@AudioMasterclass replies to @taivis1037: That is correct. It's part of the test. DM
@proxxonpd250e2: 40years old and i can listen until 12,5khz, bad very bad
@AzureWasTaken: i started hearing at 40 hz
@AudioMasterclass replies to @AzureWasTaken: Not bad, there isn't much below 40 Hz that's musically useful.
@haegeland replies to @AzureWasTaken: This is most likely not your hearing but rather your listening equipment. A lot of speakers/headphones can not reproduce these frequencies so you will not hear them.
@dantei.1194: All the bands from 20Hz to 16kHz for me. (From other test I know my hearing upper limit is somewhere between 16,5kHz and 17kHz) I'm 25 yrs old and for the test I've used AKG k712Pro + Sonarworks Reference 4 with average profile for my headphones.
@AudioMasterclass replies to @dantei.1194: Thank you for your input. It's very interesting to have these comparisons.
@ooxRAINB0WDASHxoo replies to @dantei.1194: Actually I believe youtube clips freq above 16k
@dantei.1194 replies to @dantei.1194: @ooxRAINB0WDASHxoo 18k
@dantei.1194 replies to @dantei.1194: @ooxRAINB0WDASHxoo It doesn't really matter though.
Remember that lossy compression algorhythm is about to wreak havoc on every single phookin' part of the tune (I mean, silences as well, especially those)
Adding obviously noise artifacts and other distortions where it previously was uninterrupted, perfect silence. It will now low level (bout -55 to -60dBFS) white noise whether you want it or not. Everywhere. On 20k, 22k and beyond. People will think they have superhuman hearning of 30k Hz xDDDDDDDDDDDDD
And it's only...
That god damned YouTube compression distortions XD
Evil...
The only way to finish is with some lethal puenta:
For all those HEARING THINGS above 30kHZ
Idk. but you guys must be liek dem bats.
With that echolocation.
Or something.
I don't know how would I explain it any other way...
:))
๐
The only think I do in ultrasounds
Is from time to time - fart.
Then it's the deadliest.
That ninja XDD
I mean.
Yeah.
All those "mehhs" are from people who know all too well what I'm on about!
๐
@dantei.1194 replies to @dantei.1194: More and more people claiming it's 16k. Damn, might be a "my bad" type of situation for me then. But knowing this fact now, I can finally rest peacefully. AND above all else, knowing this fact, now I can choose to believe my truth that it actually is 18k Hz with peace of mind. :D EMAZING!
@stenyy: Im 30 years and i could hear from 25 hz - 12.5 khz (maybe higher but to me the sound seemed to disappear at 16 khz :P (edit: on a logitech g933 gaming headset)
@AudioMasterclass replies to @stenyy: This is an interesting test but it works better with raw sine waves rather than YouTube's processed audio, so 25 Hz to 12.5 kHz should be fine although only an audiologist could confirm this individually. But you raise an interesting issue regarding gaming. What might be a good frequency response for gaming, including the chair? This - https://xrockeruk.com/products/evo-pro-led-4-1-x-rocker%C2%AE-pedestal-chair-5152601 - looks like it would be a fun experience.
@stenyy replies to @stenyy: @AudioMasterclass That chair looks really comfortable, not gonna lie :D
EDIT:
I just got my pair of Sennheiser HD-280 pro, so to correct myself I can hear 20hz - 15 Khz :D
@matthoskins7988: This was fun...
I had the benefit of trying this with with both a fairly decent "Gaming" Headphones set and some Sennheisers' which I use for my Audio/Daw stuff...
As a middle aged guy, 20Hz to 12.5 kHz for me.
@AudioMasterclass replies to @matthoskins7988: 12.5 kHz - Good going.
@mforrest85: 20Hz to 12.5kHz for me
@AudioMasterclass replies to @mforrest85: If you're listening on speakers, 20 Hz is a good result.