What Does Morse Code Sound Like?

Morse code sounds like one steady tone switched on and off: short beeps called "dits" and long beeps called "dahs," with silence in between. On a radio the pitch is usually somewhere around 500 to 800 Hz, a clean mid-range whistle. Hear it right now in the audio translator.

Dits, dahs and the gaps

The timing is fixed by the international standard, ITU-R M.1677:

Part	Length
Dit	1 unit
Dah	3 units
Gap inside a letter	1 unit
Gap between letters	3 units
Gap between words	7 units

The silences matter as much as the beeps. They're what turn a stream of tones into letters and words.

What pitch?

There's no official pitch. Your receiver turns the radio signal into a tone, and you pick what's comfortable. When the CWops newsletter surveyed members about their preferred pitch, the average came out around 525 Hz. Lower tones are easier on the ears over a long session.

The rhythm of SOS

SOS is three short, three long, three short: ... --- .... It's usually sent as one unbroken unit, with no letter gaps. Out loud it's di-di-dit dah-dah-dah di-di-dit. Once you've heard it, you'll recognize it anywhere. Play it on the SOS page.

At higher speeds, letters stop sounding like separate beeps and start sounding like short musical shapes. That's how experienced operators hear Morse, and it's why saying it as dits and dahs helps you learn it.