Comments on: Kids Using High-Pitched Ringtones Inaudible to Adults (What About You?)

By: Andrew

Andrew — Fri, 16 May 2008 20:55:28 +0000

Ok so the ringtone is def. real, because I have it on my phone. It is a very high pitched sound, and when I play it my dog goes nuts, so yes it is very true!

By: Barbara

Barbara — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 04:30:25 +0000

This is not a hoax. We played it for unsuspecting teenagers and kids. We even tested on a 20 yr old, who did hear it. They stated they heard a very high pitch annoying sound. I’m in my late 30’s and heard nothing.

By: Jesse Badger

Jesse Badger — Sat, 05 May 2007 16:21:39 +0000

I dont understand why it is so hard to believe. All my friends have it on our phones and play it throughout class, the teacher doesn’t hear a thing. We even played it in front of him and asked if he could hear it and he said he didn’t hear a thing. For us students however, we are going crazy. The noise is very annoying.

By: old fogey

old fogey — Thu, 02 Nov 2006 20:04:36 +0000

It is not a hoax. I know kids who have it on their phones. Problem for them is I am 33 and can hear it fine and it bites. It is truly a piercing sound.

By: akdjflkdj

akdjflkdj — Thu, 05 Oct 2006 22:55:34 +0000

heard it meself, it be true laddies, them kids got high pitch noiseys

By: widdlt

widdlt — Fri, 23 Jun 2006 08:24:57 +0000

I reckon it’s a hoax. The speakersthemselves might be able to produce a 17kHz tone but the sampling rate the sound is produced at is most likely 22kHz or less putting 17kHz tones well above the nyquist. The tones will then foldover and appear as audible aliasing noise around 5kHz.

By: Egan

Egan — Tue, 13 Jun 2006 18:47:20 +0000

It’s so funny how many people question a small speakers ability to play a 17KHz tone. The larger speakers have LOW end, in addition, often times with the same small speaker as tweeter, super tweeter, or these days with MP3, iPod speakers have one mid range and no bass!

I think Yamaha’s replacement for NS10’s, 5″ & 1″ near fields have a frequency response over 47KHz +/- 3db ( who else would measure it? )

At Berklee Music College - a mandatory class Music Technology 101 - has like 150, 18-30 year olds listen & 99% + hear 20KHz sine wave… and the girls hear a 30KHz sine ( I only know they weren’t joking because all heard and thought I was kidding…) Notable because it’s a big group of people, and done every semester, with very standard results - no testing on this, just so we know how they sound, loudness in frequency ranges, a test tone @ home doesn’t show how others hear it….

Anyway, the small speakers, can reproduce all the high end - it’s lower notes which cause trouble for tiny speakers… Cell phones are a huge variety, but most current phones can broadcast FAR above that, even on speaker phone.

Yes, not a bright idea for under 30 year old female teachers…. ( is it smaller ears that make them more high end sensitive, and not great low end? I dunno..)

Oh, I submit general hearing knowledge, undamaged, as I believe many formerly common situations of hearing damage environments are better prepared for, other concerts which caused hearing loss to all audience members are illegal…etc. as always Your Milage May Vary!

By: _object.session

_object.session — Tue, 13 Jun 2006 17:42:36 +0000

i tried out generating a 17 kHz tone and i (age 25) could definitely hear it, but i supposed that there is the factor of at what levels you could hear different frequencies.

anyway, i guess an added benefit is that higher frequencies get absorbed more easily, so that even if a teacher could hear that frequency, hearing it from across a classroom filled with kids should be tough.

lastly, the fact that ringtones are not usually in that frequency makes it less discernable as an alarm.

i think the most interesting part of the article is the original intention of the “technology”. as a crowd deterrent specifically for younger people. that’s funny.

By: Peter Kirn

Peter Kirn — Tue, 13 Jun 2006 13:46:29 +0000

It doesn’t seem to be a hoax, in that the NYT writer claims to have heard it on the cell phones. I don’t think it’s impossible that one of these devices could produce sound in that range . . . or, on the other hand, that could explain why no one can hear it. ;)

By: GaryG

GaryG — Tue, 13 Jun 2006 12:06:55 +0000

I’m skeptical, I wouldn’t have thought any mobile would have a speaker capable of reproducing a tone in that range…