34 replies to this topic

[Koopa]

You might have heard of the "mosquito" ringtone that teachers supposedly can't hear, or the anti-teenager device of the same name that should scare teens away with an annoying high sound.

I've tried to reproduce the frequencies of those devices and made some mp3 files. How they sound for you does depend on your sound card however. (These files just play a noise at a constant frequency - the ringtone and the anti-teen siren in particular oscillate their frequencies.) You might want to experiment with several programs as they sound different for me if I play them in my browser or in a player.

14.4 KHz - the frequency of the ringtone

17 KHz - the frequency of the anti-teen device

18 KHz - about the highest I can hear (or my computer can play as mp3)

So, who can hear these? Who finds the 17 KHz one annoying and would go away if they heard it playing in public?

WANRING : I'm not sure about this, but just to be safe - don't try these if you have pets around, as it may hurt their hearing which is a lot more sensitive that ours.

[CastChaos]

I hear the 14.4 KHz one, it's exactly like earringing, so it caused me earringing, too.

I could barely hear the 17 and 18 KHz ones, they were just like wood knocking on wood.

Because or despite the above things, my ear started to ache.

[Comix]

I could hear the 17 very loudly, but the 18 was quite quiet for me. I could notice the 18 but I probably wouldn't be able to notice it if I was out in public. They are starting to put these kind of frequencies in phones for anti-teacher ringtones. Nothings worse then having your phone go off in school.

My dad was talking to me about this since he's a music engineer.

[Daniel]

Seventeen and eighteen sounded the same to me, but I was able to hear the other one good too.

[Takuya]

The 14.4 and 17 were LOUD, the 18 was kind of quiet.

[Limzo]

We have a "sound machine" or whatever you want to call it at school. Sir kept upping the frequency, and we had to put our hands up when we stopped hearing. I had especially good hearing then, and although it didn't really make much of a noise in my ears, I could still hear the machine and was the last to put my hand up. My hearing seems to have deteriated since then...

[Snarwin]

The 14.4 and 17 were LOUD, the 18 was kind of quiet.

Same for me. The first two came through loud and clear, but I could just barely hear the last one--though it did make my ears ring.

[ShadowTiger]

What the hell? 18 wasn't quiet at all... The previous two were far more quiet on the same volume setting and conditions. I hope my ears aren't bleeding. It gave me a headache. 14 was kinda louder than 17 too.

[Mitchfork]

I could hear all of them VERY clearly... does that mean I'm a mutant?

[ShadowTiger]

Yes. Yes it does. *Holds E.Z. for dear life before they are captured and taken to the facility*

... ... well that's what it feels like. ._o' Man, I wish I had a cat I could let listen to this.

[Evile]

14 made my head hurt really bad, and my ears too. I couldn't hear the others though, too much drums probably...

[soundlyParanoid]

I could hear all three frequencies just fine. My hearing's always been above average. It's rather easy for me to pick up on high frequency sounds, and I've been known to freak people out with said ability.

So yes. I'm a mutant, too.

[Mitchfork]

We should form the PZC-Men! We could fight crime with our superhuman hearing!

[Zemious]

I heard all three, they all were ear-piercing.

[Koopa]

I'm 22 and can still hear the 18 one. Where's my PZC-men application form?

Limzo, did you by any chance take note how high (in KHz) you could hear?

Man, I wish I had a cat I could let listen to this.

Unless someone can confirm that the sound won't cause intense pain to cats if they hear it, I don't suggest any experiments on animals.

Listening to 18KHz for any length of time certainly hurts my ears. 19KHz I can't hear but it does cause a headache and a sense of my head being about to burst, a feeling that stays on a bit even after I've turned it off ... I'm not doing it again.