Audio delay calculator

Give the tempo and the time signature

Express the length of the delay as fractions of a bar

Musical tempo

Beats per minute
100.9BPM
Beats per bar
3 beats
Delay fraction
13/16 bar

Converted to seconds

Length of 1 beat
0.595 sec
1.682 Hz
Length of 1 bar
1.784 sec
0.561 Hz
Delay length
1.449 sec
0.69 Hz

Repeated delays

A repeated delay syncs with the beat after 16 delays = 13 bars

1 reps
13/16
1449.4 ms
2 reps
13/8
2.899 sec
3 reps
39/16
4.348 sec
4 reps
13/4
5.798 sec
5 reps
65/16
7.247 sec
6 reps
39/8
8.697 sec
7 reps
91/16
10.146 sec
8 reps
13/2
11.595 sec
9 reps
117/16
13.045 sec
10 reps
65/8
14.494 sec
11 reps
143/16
15.944 sec
12 reps
39/4
17.393 sec
13 reps
169/16
18.842 sec
14 reps
91/8
20.292 sec
15 reps
195/16
21.741 sec
16 reps
13
23.191 sec

Visualized

1 bar2 bars3 bars4 bar5 bars6 bars7 bar8 bars
♩♩♩♩♩♩♩♩
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16

How to use this page

If you have a 135 BPM song, and you want a phase modulation of 4 beats (1 bar): that is 1777.6 ms
If you have a 128 BPM song, and you want an audio delay of 2/3 of a beat: this is 312.5 ms

Music calculators & converters

Beats-per-minute
Convert BPM to Hz, bar length, fractions
Audio delay
Calculate audio delay length in msec
Music Frequency
Convert pitch to musical note and wavelength
Song length
Calculate song length from BPM
Music Scale
Generate scales with frequencies
Tap your tempo
Tap to find the BPM of a song or a heartbeat

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I calculate delay time from BPM?

For quarter note delay: 60000 ÷ BPM = ms. At 120 BPM: 60000÷120 = 500ms. For other note values: multiply by the fraction. Eighth note = 250ms, dotted eighth (3/16) = 375ms, sixteenth = 125ms.

What is a dotted delay and why use it?

A dotted note is 1.5× the original length. Dotted eighth = 3/16 bar. At 120 BPM: dotted eighth = 375ms (vs 250ms for eighth). Dotted delays create a "bouncing" feel popular in rock and pop music - the delay hits between beats.

How do I sync delay to my DAW tempo?

Most DAW delays have "sync" mode that locks to tempo. For hardware or manual setup: calculate ms using this tool and enter the value. Common musical delays: 1/4, 1/8, 1/16, dotted 1/8, or triplet variations.

What delay time for reverb pre-delay?

Pre-delay separates dry sound from reverb tail. For tempo-sync: use 1/32 or 1/64 note (15-30ms at 120 BPM). For natural sound: small rooms 1-10ms, medium rooms 10-30ms, halls 30-50ms. Too long = echo effect, too short = muddy sound.