Hello, my name is Matt. I record, edit, and mix music for a living. My profession requires an extremely discerning ear. This little listening test is to see if you can pick up subtle differences in pitch.

What I have below is a series of approximately 1khz sine waves, in sets of two. In each test I’d like you to try to discern which tone is sharper than the original tone. Pitch is measured in tones, and cents. A semi-tone is considered one pitch. Thus, A# is a semi-tone higher than A. A cent is a percent of a tone. So 50 Cents up from A would be half way between A and A#.

Supposedly, the smallest discernible difference in pitch is +/- 6 Cents. That’s a 1/16th of the way to the next semi tone. So, we’ll start off just by comparing a tone and a tone that is 50 Cents sharper. Then we’ll move down the ladder, to 25 Cents, 12 Cents, etc. Personally I find 12 Cents to be difficult to identify, and I’ll concede that it’s easier to hear pitch difference when two sounds are played simultaneously.

Have a listen, and if you can’t tell the difference, don’t guess – just answer “can’t decide.”

You should also try our popular hearing test or article on Audio Sampling Rate 88.2 vs. 44.1.