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What does 36 Hz sound like?
36 Hz is a sub-bass frequency. It is a very deep sub-bass tone that you feel in your chest as much as hear. Small speakers struggle to reproduce it; good headphones or a subwoofer will.
A 36 Hz sound wave completes 36 cycles every second, so one cycle lasts 27.8 ms. In air at 20 °C, where sound travels at about 343 m/s, each wave is 9.53 m (31.26 ft) long; in water it stretches to 41.14 m because sound moves about 4.3 times faster there.
Musically, 36 Hz is 34 cents below D1 (36.71 Hz) in standard A440 tuning. Doubling it to 72 Hz raises the pitch by one octave; halving it to 18 Hz lowers it by one.
Wavelength of 36 Hz in different materials
| Medium | Speed of sound | Wavelength |
|---|---|---|
| Air (20 °C) | 343 m/s | 9.53 m |
| Fresh water | 1,481 m/s | 41.14 m |
| Seawater | 1,500 m/s | 41.67 m |
| Helium | 1,007 m/s | 27.97 m |
| Steel | 5,960 m/s | 165.56 m |
| Glass | 5,640 m/s | 156.67 m |
Harmonics and octaves
Real instruments playing 36 Hz also produce harmonics at whole-number multiples of the fundamental. Their relative strength gives each instrument its timbre.
Which animals can hear 36 Hz?
Cannot hear it
Dogs, Cats, Horses, Sheep, Pigs, Goats, Rabbits, Rats, Mice, Gerbils, Guinea pigs, Hedgehogs, Raccoons, Opossums, Chinchillas, Bats, Beluga whales, Bottlenose dolphins, Chickens, Canaries, Budgerigars (parakeets), Cockatiels, Owls, Bullfrogs, Tree frogs, Catfish, Tuna, Greater wax moths
Instruments and voices that can play 36 Hz
Frequently asked questions
What does 36 Hz sound like?
It is a very deep sub-bass tone that you feel in your chest as much as hear. Small speakers struggle to reproduce it; good headphones or a subwoofer will.
Can humans hear 36 Hz?
Yes. 36 Hz is inside the typical human hearing range of 20 Hz to 20 kHz.
What musical note is 36 Hz?
36 Hz is 34 cents below D1, which is 36.71 Hz in standard A440 tuning.
What is the wavelength of 36 Hz?
About 9.53 m in air at 20 °C and 41.14 m in water.
Can dogs hear 36 Hz?
No – dogs hear roughly 67 Hz to 45,000 Hz.