BPM to ms calculator
Type a tempo and read every note length in milliseconds and in hertz, plain, dotted and triplet. Use the numbers for delay times, reverb pre-delay and decay, LFO rates and compressor release. If you do not know the tempo, the tap tempo tool finds it.
| Note | Plain, ms | Dotted, ms | Triplet, ms | Plain, Hz |
|---|
Click any number to copy it.
Use the formula
| To get | Work out | At 120 BPM |
|---|---|---|
| One beat, in ms | 60,000 divided by the BPM | 500 ms |
| A shorter note | Divide the beat: by 2 for an eighth, by 4 for a sixteenth | 250 ms, 125 ms |
| A dotted note | The plain note times 1.5 | Dotted eighth: 375 ms |
| A triplet | The plain note times two thirds | Eighth triplet: 166.7 ms |
| Beats a second, in Hz | The BPM divided by 60 | 2 Hz |
Every other note length is the beat multiplied or divided.
BPM to ms chart
| BPM | Bar of four, ms | Quarter, ms | Eighth, ms | Dotted eighth, ms | Sixteenth, ms | Eighth triplet, ms |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 60 | 4000 | 1000 | 500 | 750 | 250 | 333.3 |
| 70 | 3428.6 | 857.1 | 428.6 | 642.9 | 214.3 | 285.7 |
| 80 | 3000 | 750 | 375 | 562.5 | 187.5 | 250 |
| 90 | 2666.7 | 666.7 | 333.3 | 500 | 166.7 | 222.2 |
| 100 | 2400 | 600 | 300 | 450 | 150 | 200 |
| 110 | 2181.8 | 545.5 | 272.7 | 409.1 | 136.4 | 181.8 |
| 120 | 2000 | 500 | 250 | 375 | 125 | 166.7 |
| 128 | 1875 | 468.8 | 234.4 | 351.6 | 117.2 | 156.2 |
| 130 | 1846.2 | 461.5 | 230.8 | 346.2 | 115.4 | 153.8 |
| 140 | 1714.3 | 428.6 | 214.3 | 321.4 | 107.1 | 142.9 |
| 150 | 1600 | 400 | 200 | 300 | 100 | 133.3 |
| 160 | 1500 | 375 | 187.5 | 281.2 | 93.8 | 125 |
| 170 | 1411.8 | 352.9 | 176.5 | 264.7 | 88.2 | 117.6 |
| 174 | 1379.3 | 344.8 | 172.4 | 258.6 | 86.2 | 114.9 |
| 180 | 1333.3 | 333.3 | 166.7 | 250 | 83.3 | 111.1 |
| 200 | 1200 | 300 | 150 | 225 | 75 | 100 |
Find the tempo in the first column and read across.
Set a delay to the tempo
- Quarter note. One echo on each beat. Clear and spacious.
- Eighth note. Echoes between the beats. Fills out a sparse part.
- Dotted eighth. The echo lands off the beat and bounces against what you play.
- Sixteenth and shorter. A slap or a thickening effect more than an echo.
A delay set to a note length repeats in time, so it stays out of the way.
Set a reverb to the tempo
- Pre-delay. A sixty-fourth or thirty-second note leaves a small gap before the reverb starts, which keeps a voice or a snare clear.
- Decay. A length that ends on a beat, such as a half note or one bar, lets the tail finish before the next phrase.
These are starting points, and the ear decides. A reverb tail that ends on a beat sounds deliberate.
Turn a tempo into a rate
An LFO, a tremolo or an auto-pan set in hertz can follow the song. Take the Hz column for the note you want: at 120 BPM, a quarter note is 2 Hz and a sixteenth is 8 Hz. The same number is what a turbo or repeat rate needs to land on the grid. In InputConfig, the free Mac app I make, a game controller button with turbo set to 8 presses a second plays sixteenth notes at 120 BPM. Hertz is just beats a second, so any rate can be matched to a tempo. Macros, turbo and toggle has the setting.
Questions
How do I convert BPM to ms?
Divide 60,000 by the tempo. That is the length of one beat, a quarter note, in milliseconds. At 120 BPM a beat is 500 ms.
How many ms is a beat at 120 BPM?
500 ms. An eighth note is 250 ms, a sixteenth is 125 ms and a dotted eighth is 375 ms.
How do I convert BPM to Hz?
Divide the tempo by 60. 120 BPM is 2 Hz, two beats a second. For a faster note value, multiply: sixteenth notes at 120 BPM are 8 Hz.
What delay time matches my tempo?
Use a note length from the table. A quarter note gives an echo on each beat, an eighth doubles it, and a dotted eighth gives the bouncing echo heard on many guitar parts.
How long is a dotted note?
One and a half times the plain note. A dotted eighth at 120 BPM is 375 ms, against 250 ms for a plain eighth.
How long is a triplet?
Two thirds of the plain note, because three triplets fit where two plain notes would. An eighth triplet at 120 BPM is about 166.7 ms.
How do I set reverb to the tempo?
A common starting point is a pre-delay of a sixty-fourth or thirty-second note and a decay that ends on a beat, such as a half note or one bar. The table gives each in milliseconds.
Related
Free. macOS 14 or later. No account, nothing leaves your Mac. Open source on GitHub.
Updated