3rd harmonic of a 220 Hz square
- Input
- 220 x 3
- Expected output
- 660 Hz, 1/3 (-9,5 dB)
Odd harmonics only.
Carregando ferramenta… / Loading tool…
square wave generator
The generator opens with a 220 Hz square wave. Change the waveform in the tone list to hear the same note as sine, triangle and sawtooth and notice how harmonics change the timbre without changing the pitch.
Odd harmonics only.
Amplitude falls as 1/n.
Greater than the wave peak, which is 1.
A 3 dB difference.
Falls with 1/n squared.
The sawtooth has both even and odd harmonics.
From 1 Hz to 22 kHz, limited by the Nyquist limit of your audio: half the sample rate. On a 44.1 kHz device the technical ceiling is 22.05 kHz and the tool uses 22 kHz. If your audio runs at a lower rate the frequency is reduced and a notice appears. Human hearing spans roughly 20 Hz to 20 kHz in young people, so below 20 Hz you feel vibration instead of hearing it, and above 18 to 20 kHz many people hear nothing at all.
A square wave is a pulse wave with a 50% duty cycle. Pulses with another duty cycle (25%, for example) also have even harmonics and a different timbre. This generator offers the 50% square, with the Web Audio phase, which starts at +1.
Because at the same peak the square carries more energy: RMS 1 against 0.707, 3 dB more. Its harmonics also land in parts of the spectrum where the ear is more sensitive than at the fundamental, which raises perceived loudness.
You can, at a low volume. It shows distortion and treble response better than the sine, but it does not replace measurements with a calibrated microphone. If the speaker rattles, hisses or sounds odd at low volume, stop and check the equipment.