3 ms·
You raise a good point. a second is an arbitrary length, so nothing universally significant about 439 Hz or 432 Hz or etc. However, when you are trying to buil
by gugagore 10y ago
You raise a good point. a second is an arbitrary length, so nothing universally significant about 439 Hz or 432 Hz or etc.
However, when you are trying to build a device that oscillates at x Hz, there are engineering-ly sigificant values. For example (as already mentioned) a 1kHz oscillator might be easier to come by. As an additional example, the AC power in the UK is at 50 Hz, a factor of 440 Hz. So there is a free 50 Hz reference available everywhere, that can be multiplied (with a PLL, which is more robust to, say, temperature differences, than say, building a 50 Hz or 440 Hz reference yourself).
(50 Hz is just an example. AC line frequency probably is not stable enough in the short term to be a useful pitch reference)
- fuzzfactor 10y agoAC line frequency has been recognized as a preferred reference for pitch. This is what made Hammond electric clocks the first reliable AC powered timekeepers. Later, Hammond famously produced electro-mechanical organs referenced to line frequency. Well, what do you expect from somebody simply following in the creative footsteps of Leonardo DaVinci & Thos. Edison?
- gugagore 10y agoInteresting. I don't think it's a particularly stable reference in the short term. It's true that the power companies adjust it to hit exactly the nominal frequency over a period of many hours, but not at any one instant. In fact: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utility_frequency#Time_error_correction_.28TEC.29 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utility_frequency#Time_error_c...