Science Buddies: "Ask an Expert"

I wanted to do a profect on the characteristics of sound
such as the difference between a wah and a wooh sound.
I thought that both sounds can have the same pitch but different sounds, so i was wondering what determines this and where to research.

ps i plan to use a wah pedal and an electric guitar for my experiment

Hi!
A quick google search should yield some helpful information-check out these links:
http://www.phys.unsw.edu.au/jw/sound.spectrum.html
Hope it helps, good luck!

Since sound is a wave, one idea that comes to mind is to use an oscilloscope to compare the wave forms of the wooh and wah sounds. This could allow you to quantify to differences between the sounds more easily. I'm not an engineer, so I can't give you specifics about how to hook a microphone or other device to the oscilloscope, but we've got lots of engineers on the forums who might chime in and help you figure out the logistics of the setup.

Thanks for the help guy but i'm going to have a hard time finding oscilli...
whatever lol

Do you have a PC with sound capture capabilities? There are some interesting software tools for analyzing captured wave files, some of which are public domain or shareware ask for donation.

That's right - at the basic level, "Voice (or Sound) Recorder" in Windows ("Start-Programs-Accessories-") has this ability I think. All you would need is an input device such as a microphone.
Also, as Terek suggested, using an oscilloscope (pronounced as oscillo-scope) would help you observe the "sound waves" as you play them. Also, you can see for yourself the changes in the wave shape as you change the pitch or level. But it would require access to an Engineering lab though.
Have fun with different pitches and sounds!!

Hey!

Here are some informative websites on the nature of sound.

[url]http://www.physicsclassroom.com/Class/s ... ndtoc.html

[url]http://www.physics.usu.edu/classes/4020 ... /sound.htm

Good luck and hope I helped!