Quick summary - Yes, they work if you follow the instructions. And some work better than others. They can also be improved.
Why Do Schumann Resonators Work?
Schumann Resonators are little boxes you plug into the wall that produce electromagnetic radiation tuned to 7.83 Hz. This is the frequency that the earth/atmosphere system “rings” at when the Earth is struck by lightning. It is also a common frequency your brain “ticks” at.
When employed in the listening room, many people claim it makes their audio sound better. If this is true, then what is the mechanism of action?
-Is it a matter of the resonator producing a more relaxed mental state?
-Does it help block or alter electromagnetic interference?
-Does it add its own electromagnetic interference to your system that just so happens to be pleasing?
I experimented with one recently and what I noticed is that it seemed to remove some of the high frequency nasties or what some might call “digital glare” (although digital glare can also show up in analog systems). When I made this observation, the resonator was placed right next to my power strip that my CD player, preamp and some other devices are plugged into.
My “proof” of the effect is that I could turn the volume up louder than usual without it sounding “too loud.” The sound levels of the system weren’t any quieter, it’s just that the digital glare was reduced so that I could go louder before thinking “this is too loud,” which usually isn’t a sound level thing per se but the point as which some frequency (often the highs) become irritating.
So who here has experience with these devices? Do you like them? Does anyone know why they work?
When employed in the listening room, many people claim it makes their audio sound better. If this is true, then what is the mechanism of action?
-Is it a matter of the resonator producing a more relaxed mental state?
-Does it help block or alter electromagnetic interference?
-Does it add its own electromagnetic interference to your system that just so happens to be pleasing?
I experimented with one recently and what I noticed is that it seemed to remove some of the high frequency nasties or what some might call “digital glare” (although digital glare can also show up in analog systems). When I made this observation, the resonator was placed right next to my power strip that my CD player, preamp and some other devices are plugged into.
My “proof” of the effect is that I could turn the volume up louder than usual without it sounding “too loud.” The sound levels of the system weren’t any quieter, it’s just that the digital glare was reduced so that I could go louder before thinking “this is too loud,” which usually isn’t a sound level thing per se but the point as which some frequency (often the highs) become irritating.
So who here has experience with these devices? Do you like them? Does anyone know why they work?
Showing 50 responses by geoffkait
LOL 😂 You’re putting words in my mouth. I said no such thing, in fact I’ve been saying the opposite. Put on your listening ears. The sub is not (rpt not) capable of transmitting at ELF frequency. Even if it had a transmitter, which it doesn’t. It would require a *very large* antenna at ELF frequency. And a lot (rpt lot) of transmit power. Not only that but the land-based system is not (rpt not) equipped with a RECEIVER. It only has a TRANSMITTER. Hel-loo! Earth to audiozenology! Come in! 👨🚀The way the ELF system actually works is much more logical than you’re wild imagination. The submerged sub RECEIVES the ELF message, Then it nearly surfaces to have two-way communications on VLF frequency. 3-30 kHz. But even the sub’s VLF antenna is very long. Hel-loo! Do the math! So, to have only one-way communication on ELF frequency of 76 Hz a huge antenna and enormous transmit power plus a super-sensitive receiver on the sub is required. 84 miles and 1 Million watts. That’s just for one-way communication. Follow? See, that wasn’t so difficult, was it? Of course this is all moot since the ELF system was dismantled so time ago in 2004. Wiki quick study, ELF radio waves are generated by lightning and natural disturbances in Earth’s magnetic field, so they are a subject of research by atmospheric scientists. Because of the difficulty of building antennas that can radiate such long waves, ELF frequencies have been used in only a very few man-made communication systems. ELF waves can penetrate seawater, which makes them useful in communication with submarines, and a few nations have built military ELF transmitters to transmit signals to their submerged submarines, consisting of huge grounded wire antennas (ground dipoles) 15 - 60 km long driven by transmitters producing megawatts of power. The US, Russia, India, and China are the only nations known to have constructed these ELF communication facilities.[6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13] The U.S. facilities were used between 1985 and 2004 but are now decommissioned.[9] |
I know enough to know when you’re lying. When ever you open your mouth. you said, “The sub based antenna "could" transmit, but the amount of RF power that could be generated would be low.” No shirt, Sherlock. That’s why the system was designed to be a one-way system. The sub has no transmitter. There is no need for two way communication. You’ve been flapping your gums instead of paying attention. |
He who laughs last laughs best. So far you’ve proved you don’t know much about anything. I used to work in the radio room, as it were. The sub can’t transmit at ELF frequency. It was explained earlier, which you would have read if you weren’t so busy flapping your gums. It can only receive. What about the word receiver don’t you understand? And the land based ELF antenna can only transmit. God gave you two ears and one mouth for a reason. |
I wonder if you have a screw loose. That makes us even. You’re just another screwball in a series of screwballs this year. The ELF antenna must be long even when two separate antenna arrays are connected to generate the difference signal. The total length is 84 miles. In the case of the Schumann frequency a single antenna would have to be 25,000 miles long. Were you in a bad motorcycle accident or something? |
Nurse! Man down! Thorazine! The more energetic the EM wave the shorter the wavelength. That’s why very short wavelength EM like gamma rays and x-rays are bad gnus. 🐃 🐃 🐃 I thought everyone gnu 🐃 that. Generally speaking, the shorter the communications EM wavelength the smaller/shorter the antenna, and vice versa. Some EM is visible, some not. There are three differences right there. Hel-loo! I said this would be fun but I didn’t say for whom. |
I won’t mention any names but somebody is either pretending to be dense or really is dense. If he’s pretending he’s doing a very good job. We happen to be talking about ELF signals which are receive only and Schumann generators which are transmit only. The boats have receivers, not transceivers. Try to focus. 👀 |
You loose again. Try to keep up with the discussion. The only reason ELF works is because the boat receive antenna is receive only. Ditto satellite TV antennas. Better luck next time, flyboy. Stick around, you might learn something, although I doubt you are capable. The only one here with a big T on his forehead is you, flyboy. |
Receiving is a different game than transmitting. That’s why some satcom receive dishes are only a few inches across. And why HF radio receive antennae are usually relatively small whereas the transmit antennae are very large. Your cellphone antenna is another obvious example. Hel-loo! It’s a link power budget issue. The Schumann frequency doohickey is a transmitter. |
audiozenology Either way ... Mahgister, I am not a Schumann resonator advocate, but I expect that the accuracy is sufficient to be within the range of the typical resonance. >>>>That’s so funny! You say that without any evidence at all. You obviously don’t know the first thing about it. |
Jupiter and beyond, NASA and Schumann resonance. Excerpt from NASA report on human performance issues for manned space missions: NASA Contractor Report 33-42 1986 Human Performance Issues Arising From Manned Space Station Missions 10. One contact believes that the 🔜 absence of low-frequency radiation🔚 can have some physiological consequences. He said that this radiation is commonly referred to as Schumann resonance. Speaking to this subject he said: "Within the ionosphere-Earth surface cavity there is, I think, about an 8-Hz to 32-Hz oscillating field with a series of peaks in that field that is generated by lightning storms on Earth, but the net result of all that electromagnetic activity is that we’re exposed from conception to death to this oscillating field, and there is some evidence that if you play with that field here on Earth, particularly by superimposing a 5-Hz, 4-Hz, or 3-Hz field on what is already there (and it is very difficult to isolate the individual from it unless you go underground) and you get some neurological problems. It does affect people, and it is probably related to what happens to you when you get a relatively low-frequency strobe light flashing at you. A lot of people feel very very uncomfortable neurologically when that happens. In space, of course, it’s absent. Once you get above the ionosphere that field is absent, and there is some concern among physicists who have a background in neurophysiology that there might be an instantaneous effect contributing to the Space Adaptation Syndrome, but they are more concerned about what the long-term effect may be if the brain actually uses that frquency on occasion or continuously to reset it’s own timing signals in it’s central processor. So, I would FLAG that as an unknown.” |
mijostyn The original theory behind Schumann resonators was that if you created an electromagnetic pulse at 7.83 Hz (the loudest Schumann resonance point. I think there are 8 total up to 45 Hz) you will overwhelm all the man made electromagnetic pollution and create a more healthy environment. It is a hard argument to make because in this environment we live much longer due to a multitude of reasons. >>>>No, the reason the theory that the Schumann frequency is overwhelmed by modern electromagnetic waves like radio, TV and microwaves doesn’t make sense is because all of those types of waves can and do coexist without interfering or canceling each other. They are at the opposite ends of the spectrum.🔚🔜 Hel-loo! Even satellite uplink and downlink signals of many GHz won’t interfere if they are offset just a couple MHz. Duh! |
mijostyn Do Schumann resonators make Hi Fi’s sound better. If anything they would make them sound worse. Suppose your turntables resonance was set at a nice 8 Hz. Creating a strong 7.83 Hz electromagnetic pulse near the turntable could theoretically get the tonearm bouncing at 8 Hz. >>>>>So, you think electromagnetic waves are mechanical waves? I suggest you don’t quit your day job. |
zardozmike What generator are you using and what is recommended. >>>>I’m still thinking about the question. 😲 |
Hi, thanks for playing, but let me remind you “that project” in Wisconsin transmitted a wave of about 76 Hz which required 84 miles of above ground antennae. The original system would have had 6,000 miles of buried antennae. So, to transmit 7.83 Hz wave the antenna size would have to be much much longer, no? I was on the project circa 1980-82, right after they had a big problem when capacitors the size of VWs in the 1M Watts Class A amplifier kept exploding. |
Correction, maybe. Acoustic Revive states their Schumann resonators must be at least 1m50cm above the floor for best results and not right next to any electronics. That’s about 60 inches. The height of my USB resonators is 65 inches. Why this height is critical, who knows? Do all Schumann resonators follow that rule? You decide. The Schumann wavelength of 25,000 miles is going to have some difficulty fitting in the room anyway. |
jerrybj Will try Mahgister’s idea of Shungite on a Schumann Resonator. Just have to find that post. >>>>>>Was that Mahgister’s idea or mine? It sure is getting confusing. 😲 Squeeze🔜🔚 the photons! 🤗 |
Care and feeding of Schumann frequency devices. I am currently using two BLACK USB little finger size devices from Hong Kong, supposedly much more accurate than their BLUE USB device. So like any thinking lemming I bought the BLACK ones. $50 bucks each vs $25 for the BLUE. Height above the floor should be at least 1.5 meter. Who knows why? In this I am like a lemming, following blindly what many have said over the years. This particular USB device needs to be plugged into a 2 amp cellphone wall adaptor using a 2 meter USB cable to achieve proper height. I use a small flexible rubber band to connect the SCHUMANN device to a clip on the wall, thus isolating the device and the cable. I use PPT Graphene contact enhancer on all electrical contacts - two for the USB cable and two for each wall plug. The finger size USB SCHUMANN devices themselves have a shungite plate stuck to either side, each plate has got one of my Flying Saucer copper foils. These shungite plates (I am pretty sure) confine the Schumann signal and prevent it from radiating in two dimensions, thus increasing signal power in the remaining directions. But I’m not married to that theory. A Mini Brilliant Pebbles tops off each wall adaptor. Better safe than sorry. |
Description[edit] This global electromagnetic resonance phenomenon is named after physicist Winfried Otto Schumann who predicted it mathematically in 1952. Schumann resonances occur because the space between the surface of the Earth and the conductive ionosphere acts as a closed waveguide. The limited dimensions of the Earth cause this waveguide to act as a resonant cavity for electromagnetic wavesin the ELF band. The cavity is naturally excited by electric currents in lightning. Schumann resonances are the principal background in the part of the electromagnetic spectrum[2] from 3 Hz through 60 Hz,[3] and appear as distinct peaks at extremely low frequencies (ELF) around 7.83 Hz (fundamental),[4] 14.3, 20.8, 27.3 and 33.8 Hz.[5] In the normal mode descriptions of Schumann resonances, the fundamental modeis a standing wave in the Earth–ionosphere cavity with a wavelength equal to the circumference of the Earth. This lowest-frequency (and highest-intensity) mode of the Schumann resonance occurs at a frequency of approximately 4.11 Hz, but this frequency can vary slightly from a variety of factors, such as solar-induced perturbations to the ionosphere, which compresses the upper wall of the closed cavity.[citation needed] The higher resonance modes are spaced at approximately 6.5 Hz intervals,[citation needed] a characteristic attributed to the atmosphere’s spherical geometry. The peaks exhibit a spectral width of approximately 20% on account of the damping of the respective modes in the dissipative cavity. The 8th partial lies at approximately 60 Hz.[citation needed] >>>>>>Translation: The Schumann resonance is not a range of frequencies, it’s a set of frequencies. The Schumann fundamental is 7.83 Hz and associated harmonic peaks. So, if a device can’t produce the 7.83 Hz fundamental accurately the “peaks” will not be produced accurately either. |
Isn’t it the Government that never purchases a product from the lowest bidder? For any audio product you can think of there is always someone who will sell it at the lowest possible price. That’s just the way the market works. The caveate is obviously that you usually get what you pay for. Metaphors be with you! |
It’s true there are a number of very low frequency electromagnetic waves related to human brain function such as Alpha and Theta waves in the general vicinity of 4-12 Hz. As far as I know the Schumann frequency is the only one that improves the sound but I’m not 100%. The more expensive a Schumann device the more accurate the 7.83 Hz signal, I’m not 100% on that either. Maybe only 90%. On the other hand the ones I’m using are only 50 duckaleros. |
Nothing. The reason audiophile Schumann frequency generators work is because the natural one is too low in amplitude. So no, they wouldn’t cancel. What you should have asked is, if you have two Schumann frequency generators would they cancel each other? Or would they reinforce each other? Do you have to synchronize them? For further study: how does a 25,000 mile wavelength signal fit into a room? Prize for first correct answer. |
mitch2 Is this common for the other on-line units discussed here? Does the $300 Acoustic Revive unit provide a greater area of influence? Could this limited affected area account for some here not noticing the effects of these units? Would I need four units to cover a 20 x 19 room or would one unit near the listening chair be sufficient? >>>>>Uh, noone here has reported he couldn’t hear the effects of the Schumann units. As far as I know there are only two of us who have them. Best strategy for success. Start with one SR device and set it up optimally. Go from there. Your own results are the only ones that matter. The original Acoustic Revive device might have been $300 but the latest version is $700. Ouch! By contrast, my black usb doodads are $50 each. You can go crazy on a budget. 🤪 |
A gold star for best question of the week. ⭐️ I’ve always wondered about that myself. I don’t know the answer but I do it anyway. Is that wrong? I also read the SR resonance devices sound better when they are physically isolated. And I do that too, isolate them down to about 1 Hz. Yet I’ve never really done an AB test. Am I just a lost sheep following other lost sheep? 🐑 🐑 🐑 🐑 At the same time it’s relatively easy to see how extremely low seismic vibrations in the range 0-20 Hz almost certainly would have an effect on something that operates at 7.83 Hz. Since everything sounds fabulous I assume I’m on the right choo choo train 🚂 But it does raise the issue of how can physical vibrations affect an electronic signal - I.e., electromagnetic wave. 🤔 |
Uh, there is such a thing as being overly suspicious. Give us a break, you were never going to invest in Schumann frequency generators anyway. It’s not like some huge decision, for crying out loud. The ones I bought, the super-accurate Black USB doodad from Hong Kong is only 50 bucks. The Blue one is only $25. Cut me some slack, Jack It takes a worried mind to sing a worried song I’m worried now but I won’t be worried long. Faint heart ne’er won fair maiden. 💃 |
wlutke geoffkait, I understand. My point being broadcast electromagnet spectrum vs that which requires a conductor to propagate (DC to sub radio.) Yes, electromagnetic audio frequencies can be transmitted through wire but there is no wave transmitted, only current through, and a field about, a wire. How can a 7.83 Hz signal be broadcast into a room without a carrier wave? >>>>You’re losing me, not all EM waves require a conductor. Look not further than cell phones, TV signals, NASA transmission through free space to the Moon or to command Voyager, Mars Lander, etc. and the ELF transmissions. It’s the same with the natural Schumann EM wave and the artificial one, they’re both transmission through free space and air. Just like microwaves. As for the current and the wave - the current is the wave. Wave hello! 🤗 The audio waveform is not traveling down the wire, only the current and voltage. The audio frequencies - the audio waveform - the speakers generate in the room is determined by how fast the alternating current (EM wave) alternates on the two wires + and -. |
wlutke geoffkait "Acoustic waves are on a different spectrum." That’s the root of my question. Below radio frequencies is the ultrasonic, sonic and subsonic, none of which can be broadcast without an electromagnetic carrier frequency. Does that not preclude a subsonic electromagnetic wave? >>>>>The “electromagnetic spectrum” goes from DC 0 Hz to visible light and beyond, with increasingly more energetic photons as the particle involved. That’s why I used the ELF as an example of extremely low frequency EM radiation/wave. ELF is a radio program/transmitter, thus the ELF Signal is a radio frequency. I realize we usually think of “radio frequencies” as very high frequencies, like microwave. The Schumann frequency - both the natural one and the one generated by all these various devices - except the CD - is an electromagnetic radiation/wave. And obeys the laws of such waves, I.e., Maxwell equations, speed of light in a vacuum, etc. The CD generates an acoustic wave of frequency 7.83 Hz. |