4,000 Hz tone
Peak ear sensitivity.
Volume first: turn your device down before you press play. Tones start quiet on purpose.
Raise the volume slowly once the sound is playing. Keep headphones off your ears until you know how loud it is.
Hz
Waveform
0 dBFS is the loudest your device can play; every 20 dB lower is a tenth of the amplitude.
Space plays and stops · ↑ ↓ semitone · Shift+↑ ↓ octave
What 4,000 Hz is used for
The ear canal resonates near 3 to 4 kHz, so we are most sensitive here. It is also where noise-induced hearing loss typically first appears on an audiogram, the so-called 4 kHz notch.
| Period | 250.0 µs |
|---|---|
| Wavelength in air (20 °C) | 8.6 cm |
| One octave down / up | 2000 Hz / 8000 Hz |
The generator above starts at 4,000 Hz. You can still move the slider to any other frequency, or open the full tone generator.
Questions people ask
Why can't I hear the 4,000 Hz tone?
Check the tab is not muted and the correct output device is selected. 4,000 Hz is well within the range of nearly every speaker and headphone.
How long is one cycle of 4,000 Hz?
250.0 microseconds. In room-temperature air the wavelength is about 8.6 centimetres.
Keep testing
- Tone generatorSine, square, triangle and sawtooth from 1 Hz to 22 kHz.
- Frequency sweepLogarithmic or linear sweeps over any range and duration.
- Speaker testChannel, range and polarity checks for stereo speakers.