English
Suomi
Green noise has no technical definition. It usually means a noise that favours the middle of the hearing range, or a softened white noise said to sound like the outdoors. Two sounds sold as green noise can sound quite different, so listening tells you more than the label.
Where the name comes from
The colour names borrow from light. White light holds every colour, so white noise holds every frequency at equal power. Pink and brown move the balance towards low frequencies, the way pink and red light sit at the long end of the spectrum. Green is in the middle of the visible spectrum, which is why the name gets attached to noise centred on middle frequencies.
With no standard behind it, two sounds sold as green noise can sound quite different. Green noise for sleep covers using it at night.
How Hush's Green static measures
Hush files Green static with its white noises. Between 2 and 12 kHz, Green static falls 3.2 dB per octave, where White static rises 1.6 dB per octave and Velvet noise, Hush's pink noise, stays about level.
That puts it between the two: the even spread of white noise, with some of the hiss taken off the top.
Band by band, in numbers
| Band | Green static | White static | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 kHz | −5.2 dB | −7.8 dB | −2.6 dB |
| 2.5 kHz | −6.0 dB | −7.2 dB | −1.2 dB |
| 3 kHz | −6.8 dB | −6.6 dB | +0.2 dB |
| 4 kHz | −8.0 dB | −5.7 dB | +2.3 dB |
| 5 kHz | −8.9 dB | −4.8 dB | +4.1 dB |
| 6 kHz | −9.7 dB | −4.2 dB | +5.5 dB |
| 8 kHz | −11.1 dB | −3.5 dB | +7.6 dB |
| 10 kHz | −12.4 dB | −3.8 dB | +8.6 dB |
| 12 kHz | −13.6 dB | −4.6 dB | +9.0 dB |
When to try it
Try it if white noise feels too sharp and pink noise too muffled. Play it quietly for a few minutes before deciding, because most sounds become easier to ignore after a short while.
