100 Hz tone
Where bass turns from rumble into a real note — warm, round, and revealing.
100 Hz
Stopped
Nearest note: G2 · 35 cents sharp (98 Hz)
Hearing bass become music
Something changes around 100 Hz: below it bass is mostly pressure, but here a definite pitch steps forward. The tone lands 35 cents sharp of G2 (98 Hz), giving it a slightly bright lean against a tuned guitar low string region, and on any decent speaker it sounds full and woody rather than threatening.
This is the neighborhood of kick-drum thump, the body of a bass guitar, and the warmth engineers add when a mix sounds thin. Because nearly every playback device — phones included — reproduces 100 Hz to some degree, it works as a common denominator: a level that lets earbuds and studio monitors join the same comparison, and a reference DJs check when a club system feels hollow.
A bass line you can follow
Unlike deeper test tones, 100 Hz carries enough pitch to follow as a slow bass line against music. Play it softly under a favorite track and notice how it locks with kick drums in some songs and clashes in others — an instant lesson in how key and tempo shape low-end blend that no textbook diagram delivers as directly.
Three quick checks with 100 Hz
First, test for room boom: play the tone and walk the room, and any corner that swells dramatically marks a bass buildup worth treating with placement or soft furnishings. Second, compare left and right using the pan control — bass should sit dead center with equal weight on both sides. Third, step down to the 40 Hz tone and back up, calibrating your sense of how fast audibility grows through the bass octaves.
- Room boom walk: corners that swell mark standing-wave buildup.
- Center check: panned left then right, weight should match exactly.
- Device comparison: phones, laptops, and monitors all render 100 Hz differently.
More frequencies
Frequently asked questions
Why does 100 Hz sound louder in corners?
Long bass wavelengths reflect off walls and pile up where surfaces meet, especially in corners, creating standing waves that amplify certain spots. Walk while the tone plays and the loud and quiet zones map your room modes directly — moving the speaker or adding soft furnishings usually tames the worst peaks.
What note is closest to 100 Hz?
G2 at 98 Hz is the nearest standard pitch, and 100 Hz sits 35 cents sharp of it. That is about a third of a semitone high — noticeable to a tuned ear against a guitar, but close enough that it reads unmistakably as a G.