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BPM to Delay & Reverb Time Calculator

Convert BPM into delay and reverb times in milliseconds for every note value, plus straight, dotted, triplet and LFO Hz rates.

Times are for one-beat = quarter note. Use the 1/16 or 1/32 value as a reverb pre-delay.

About this tool

Turn a song's tempo into tempo-synced delay and reverb times right in your browser. Enter the BPM and it returns delay times in milliseconds for whole, half, quarter, eighth, sixteenth and thirty-second notes, each in straight, dotted and triplet feel, plus the matching LFO frequency. Nothing is uploaded; every value is computed locally.

The math starts from the quarter-note length: quarter-note ms = 60000 / BPM. Every other note value scales from there — a whole note is ×4, a half ×2, an eighth ×0.5, a sixteenth ×0.25 and a thirty-second ×0.125. Dotted notes multiply the straight time by 1.5 and triplets by 2/3. The LFO frequency in hertz for any of these is simply 1000 / (delay time in ms).

Use the quarter-note delay for classic rhythmic echoes, a dotted-eighth for the well-known "The Edge" guitar sound, and set a reverb pre-delay to a 1/16 or 1/32 note so the reverb tail sits just behind the beat. At 120 BPM the quarter note is 500 ms and the eighth is 250 ms.

Frequently asked questions

How is the delay time calculated?
The quarter-note time in milliseconds is 60000 divided by the BPM. Other note values scale from it (whole ×4, eighth ×0.5, and so on), dotted notes are ×1.5 and triplets are ×2/3.
What is the difference between dotted and triplet?
A dotted note lasts 1.5× its straight value, giving a longer, syncopated bounce, while a triplet lasts 2/3 of the straight value for three-in-the-space-of-two subdivisions.
What should I use for reverb pre-delay?
A 1/16 or 1/32 note pre-delay is a good starting point — it keeps the dry signal clear before the reverb tail enters in time with the track.
What is the LFO Hz column for?
It is the modulation rate that matches each delay time, useful for tempo-syncing tremolo, auto-pan or filter LFOs. It equals 1000 divided by the delay time in milliseconds.

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