View source for Sub-bass

{{Short description|Frequency range}}
{{about|frequency range|the organ stop (also called "Soubasse")|Bourdon (organ pipe)|the type of singer|Oktavist|the object in mathematical topology|Subbase}}
[[File:(Portrait of Teddy Kaye, Vivien Garry, and Arv(in) Charles Garrison, Dixon's, New York, N.Y., ca. May 1947) (LOC) (4976467461).jpg|thumb|right|200px|[[Double bass]] player [[Vivien Garry]] playing a show in New York City in 1947. The double bass is the sub-bass instrument of the orchestral strings family, as it produces the pitches in the lowest register for this family.]]
'''Sub-bass''' sounds are the deep, low-register pitches below approximately 70&nbsp;[[Hertz|Hz]]<ref name="defn-tone">{{cite book
 |title=The Relentless Pursuit of Tone: Timbre in Popular Music
 |editor-last1= Latour |editor-first1= Melinda |editor-last2=Fink |editor-first2=Robert |editor-last3=Wallmark |editor-first3=Zachary
 |isbn=978-0199985258 |publisher= Oxford University Press |date=2018
 |chapter=Below 100 Hz: Toward a Musicology of Bass Culture
 |last=Fink |first=Robert |pages=92–93
 |quote=Many sound engineers start talking about "sub-bass" around 70 Hz, [...]; at the bottom of the sub-bass register, around 30 Hz
}}</ref> (C{{music|#}}<sub>2</sub> in [[scientific pitch notation]]) and extending downward to include the lowest frequency humans can hear, approximately 20&nbsp;Hz (E<sub>0</sub>). 

In this range, human hearing is less sensitive, so these notes tend to be felt more than heard.<ref>{{cite web|title=Interactive Frequency Chart|url=http://www.independentrecording.net/irn/resources/freqchart/main_display.htm|url-status=usurped|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130324005053/http://www.independentrecording.net/irn/resources/freqchart/main_display.htm|archive-date=24 March 2013|access-date=March 9, 2012|publisher=Independent Recording Network}}</ref> The low E-string on a [[bass guitar]] is usually tuned to 41.2&nbsp;Hz, while the lowest note on a standard [[piano]] is A at 27.5&nbsp;Hz. [[Sound reinforcement system]]s and [[PA system]]s often use one or more [[subwoofer]] loudspeakers to amplify sounds in the sub-bass range. Sounds below sub-bass are [[infrasound]].

==Hearing and usage==
20&nbsp;Hz is considered the normal low-frequency limit of human hearing. When pure sine waves are reproduced under ideal conditions and at very high [[decibel]]s, a human listener will be able to identify tones as low as 12&nbsp;Hz (G<sub>–1</sub>).<ref>{{cite book |title=Music, Physics and Engineering |last=Olson |first=Harry F. |author-link=Harry F. Olson |year= 1967|publisher=Dover Publications |isbn=0-486-21769-8 |page=[https://archive.org/details/musicphysicsengi0000olso/page/249 249] |url=https://archive.org/details/musicphysicsengi0000olso |url-access=registration }}</ref> Audio tracks known as bass tests use sub-bass frequencies which are used to test or to demonstrate the capabilities of audio equipment. High-end subwoofers can accurately reproduce sound to about 18&nbsp;Hz ±2&nbsp;dB.<ref>{{cite web|title=VTF-15H Subwoofer|url=http://www.hsuresearch.com/products/vtf-15h.html|publisher=Hsu Research|access-date=March 9, 2012}}</ref>{{what|date=May 2021}}

Sub-bass is popular in [[dance music]], where the low frequencies are produced by the [[kick drum]] (bass drum), the [[bass guitar]] and electronic [[synthesizer]]s and [[drum machine]]s. Particular genres such as [[house music]], [[drum and bass]] and [[dubstep]] often feature a [[bassline]] that consists mainly of sub-bass frequencies. Much [[experimental music]] uses sub-bass, in particular [[drone music]], where the majority of the sound can often be in the sub-bass range. Often, [[hip hop music|hip hop]] and rap songs feature prevalent sub-bass.  The [[pedal keyboard]] range on [[pipe organ]]s also often extends into the sub-bass range; the bottom note of a 16′ stop is typically tuned to 32 Hz (C<sub>1</sub>), a 32′ stop at 16 Hz (C<sub>0</sub>).

==References==
<references/>

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[[Category:Bass (sound)]]
[[Category:Pitch (music)]]