English: Comparison of A major triad under equal temperament and just intonation.

8 seconds: A major triad, equal temperament (.25 seconds silence) 8 seconds: A major triad, just intonation (.25 seconds silence) 4 seconds: A major triad, equal temperament (click) 8 seconds: transition from equal temperament to just intonation (click) 4 seconds: A major triad, just intonation In the equal temperament triad, beats of 0.8 Hz (just under one per second) and 4.4 Hz can be heard. The representing the difference between the equal and just intonation of the 5th of the triad (329.6 Hz vs 330 Hz) and the 3rd of the triad (275 Hz vs 277.2 Hz). The beats sound at twice the frequency of the pitch difference, so a pitch difference of 0.4 Hz leads to a beat of 0.8 Hz and a pitch difference of 2.2 Hz leads to a beat rate of 4.4 Hz. In the just intonation triad, these beats are not present, resulting in a noticeably different sound quality.

A major triad with equal temperament: 220 Hz, 277.2 Hz, 329.6 Hz

A major triad with just intonation: 220 Hz, 275 Hz, 330 Hz

Sound used is a square waveform.

File created by Brent Hugh using Audacity software.