15 Hz Wavelength

How Long Is a 15 Hz Wavelength?

A 15 Hz sound wave has a wavelength of 22.88 meters, 2288.1 cm, 75.07 feet (75 feet and 0.83 inches) or 900.83 inches when traveling in air at 20°C (68°F).

The formula for the wavelenght is λ = c/f where:

  • c is the celerity (speed) of sound = 343.21 m/s or 1126.03 ft/s in air at 20°C (68°F).
  • f is the frequency = 15 Hz
which gives a wavelength λ of 22.88 meters, or 75.07 feet.

15 Hz Wavelength Depending on Temperature

The speed of sound in air depends on temperature. Here is how the wavelenght of a 15 Hz sound wave will vary according to temperature:

Temp (°C) Temp (°F) 15 Hz wavelength (m)15 Hz wavelength (ft)
-40-4020.405566.9472
-35-3120.623167.6612
-30-2220.838568.3678
-25-1321.051769.0672
-20-421.262769.7595
-15521.471770.4451
-101421.678671.1240
-52321.883671.7965
03222.086772.4628
54122.287973.1230
105022.487373.7773
155922.685074.4259
206822.881075.0688
257723.075375.7063
308623.268076.3385
359523.459176.9654
4010423.648677.5873

15 Hz Half Wavelength and Standing Waves

The half wavelength of a 15 Hz sound wave is 11.44 meters, 1144.05 cm, 37.53 feet (37 feet and 6.41 inches) or 450.41 inches when travelling in air at 20°C (68°F).

Modes (or standing waves) will occur at 15 Hz in rooms where two opposing walls (axial mode), edges (tangential mode) or corners (oblique mode) are spaced by a distance d = nλ/2 where:

  • n is a natural (positive integer greater than or equal to 1)
  • λ is the 15 Hz wavelength = 22.88 meters, or 75.07 feet in air at 20°C (68°F).

15 Hz Standing Waves Distances

n Distance (m) Distance (ft)
111.4437.53
222.8875.07
334.32112.60
445.76150.14
557.20187.67

Given the relatively large 15 Hz half wavelength, standing waves will occur at that frequency in small listening rooms.

You can try to minimze the room modes at 15 Hz by trying different speaker positions, listening positions or by placing bass traps. These can absorb frequencies as low as 63 Hz.

How To Convert 15 Hz To ms

A Hz (Hertz) is a cycle (or period) per second.

Because a 15 Hz wave will ocillate 15 times per second, we can find the time of a single cycle (or period) with the formula p = 1/f where:

  • f is the frequency of the wave = 15 Hz

The result will be expressed in seconds, so let's multiply by 1000 to get miliseconds:

1 / 15 Hz * 1000 = 66.67 ms.