If I subtract a semitone (100 cents) from 1 Hz, what is its frequency in Hz after that?

Are Hz and cents/semitones readily convertible to and from each other?

Is there a formula?

17 comments

Sir, this is No Stupid Questions. You can't just ask a question so advanced that I literally have no core concept what you're even asking.
Questions for this sub are like "Should I drink bleach? Is it safe?"
The answer is no.
Your question......uhhhhhh.......
- It carried that risk in my view because i know so little about frequencies and pitch and hz and all this stuff so for all i knew, it could have been the same as the ratio of SchruteBucks to StanleyNickels
Cents are a measure of difference between two frequencies and can't be converted directly to hz on its own.
An initial frequency in hz and an offset in cents can be used to calculate a second frequency in hz, such as in your initial question. Using the formula from wikipedia f1 * 2^{(c/1200) = f2, we get 1hz * 2}(-100/1200) = .9439hz. Note that +1200 cents is double (2^{1) and -1200 cents is half (2}-1) the original frequency
Given a note, ex. A4 is 440 Hz, moving up an octave, or 12 semitones, is doubling the Hz. You can figure out the Hz from the base note by multiplying it by 2^(x/12) where x is the number of semitones you want add.
- Showerthought: What's the step between a C and the C# one octave higher? A Baker's Octave.
  I'll show myself out...
  
  Throws piano.
  
  Showerthought: mf is mezzo-forte. ff shouldn't be fortissimo, it should be fezzo-forte.
0.9438Hz, i.e. 1*(2^(-100/1200)) IIRC.
- How many semitones can you subtract till its much closer to zero?
  
  12 semitones to .5hz, 24to .25hz, 36 to .125hz
  
  *Xeno
TIL there's not a question too dumb for this sub, but there IS a question too smart.
Question is not answerable without knowing the tuning system and reference frequency for A4.

17 comments