Start with your device volume low. Very low tones may be inaudible on phone or laptop speakers; very high tones can be uncomfortable on headphones.
What does 11 Hz sound like?
11 Hz is a infrasound frequency. It is infrasound – below the roughly 20 Hz lower limit of human pitch perception. At high levels it is felt as pressure, fluttering or vibration rather than heard as a tone, and phone or laptop speakers cannot reproduce it at all.
A 11 Hz sound wave completes 11 cycles every second, so one cycle lasts 90.9 ms. In air at 20 °C, where sound travels at about 343 m/s, each wave is 31.18 m (102.30 ft) long; in water it stretches to 134.64 m because sound moves about 4.3 times faster there.
Natural infrasound comes from earthquakes, volcanoes, ocean waves, wind and thunder; whales and elephants use it to communicate across long distances.
Wavelength of 11 Hz in different materials
| Medium | Speed of sound | Wavelength |
|---|---|---|
| Air (20 °C) | 343 m/s | 31.18 m |
| Fresh water | 1,481 m/s | 134.64 m |
| Seawater | 1,500 m/s | 136.36 m |
| Helium | 1,007 m/s | 91.55 m |
| Steel | 5,960 m/s | 541.82 m |
| Glass | 5,640 m/s | 512.73 m |
Harmonics and octaves
Real instruments playing 11 Hz also produce harmonics at whole-number multiples of the fundamental. Their relative strength gives each instrument its timbre.
Which animals can hear 11 Hz?
Can hear it
None of the animals in our list.
Cannot hear it
Humans, Dogs, Cats, Horses, Cows, Sheep, Pigs, Goats, Rabbits, Rats, Mice, Gerbils, Guinea pigs, Hedgehogs, Raccoons, Ferrets, Opossums, Chinchillas, Bats, Elephants, Beluga whales, Bottlenose dolphins, Chickens, Canaries, Budgerigars (parakeets), Cockatiels, Owls, Bullfrogs, Tree frogs, Goldfish, Catfish, Tuna, Greater wax moths
Frequently asked questions
What does 11 Hz sound like?
It is infrasound – below the roughly 20 Hz lower limit of human pitch perception. At high levels it is felt as pressure, fluttering or vibration rather than heard as a tone, and phone or laptop speakers cannot reproduce it at all.
Can humans hear 11 Hz?
No. 11 Hz is below the ~20 Hz limit of human pitch perception; very loud infrasound can be felt as vibration.
What musical note is 11 Hz?
11 Hz is 14 cents above F-1, which is 10.91 Hz in standard A440 tuning.
What is the wavelength of 11 Hz?
About 31.18 m in air at 20 °C and 134.64 m in water.
Can dogs hear 11 Hz?
No – dogs hear roughly 67 Hz to 45,000 Hz.