Tuning systems

Just intonation vs equal temperament

Why pure ratios sound “sweet,” why equal temperament won keyboards, and how this intersects 432 debates.

Frequency tab Open free Console Atlas home
Dual lens. Science pane = measurable / historical fact pattern. Mystic pane = living myth, ritual, and cultural meaning. BBM is not a medical device.

◈ Science

Just intonation favors simple frequency ratios in a key; 12-tone equal temperament (12-TET) compromises pure intervals so all keys are usable. Neither is “more natural” in absolute physics — both are cultural technologies. Beating between slightly impure intervals is measurable and audible.

✦ Mystic / Mythos

Some healing-music schools prefer just intervals as “purer geometry.” Listeners often describe them as more restful in drones. That’s aesthetics + psychoacoustics of beating, not automatic enlightenment.

Operator tip. Headphones for binaural difference tones. Musical pitch (432 / solfeggio fundamentals) is a different control axis from beat frequency (delta→gamma). Explore freely; extraordinary healing claims need extraordinary evidence.

Related landings