1. The basic illusion
With headphones on, if your left ear hears one pure tone (for example 220 Hz) and your right
ear hears a slightly different tone (for example 226 Hz), your brain can merge them into a
third “pulsing” sensation at the difference between them – in this case 6 Hz. That pulsing
is called a binaural beat.
2. Brainwave ranges people talk about
- Delta (~0.5–4 Hz) – very slow; deep non‑REM sleep.
- Theta (~4–8 Hz) – dreamy, meditative, hypnagogic states.
- Alpha (~8–12 Hz) – relaxed but awake, often eyes closed.
- Beta (~13–30 Hz) – active thinking, focus, busyness.
- Gamma (>30 Hz) – very fast activity in some tasks.
This app lets you set the beat difference to sit in one of these ranges
while keeping the actual audible tones comfortable (around a few hundred Hz).
3. What research suggests (so far)
- Small studies report short‑term changes in mood, attention or perceived relaxation.
- Other studies find weak or inconsistent effects across people.
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Overall, evidence is mixed. Think of binaural beats as an experiment or
relaxation aid, not a guaranteed brain‑hack or treatment.
4. Safety tips
- Keep the volume modest – your ears do the rest of the work.
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If you have epilepsy, seizures or serious neurological issues, check with a professional
before using strong repetitive audio stimulation.
- If you feel dizzy, tense or weird, stop and take a break in silence.
This is a simplified overview and not medical advice. If you go deeper, look up peer‑reviewed
research on auditory beat stimulation and brainwave entrainment.