A BPM to ms calculator for delay, reverb and modulation
This BPM to ms calculator turns a song’s tempo into the delay times you type into an echo pedal, a plug-in or a hardware unit without tap sync. Enter the BPM — or tap it in — and you get every note value from a whole note down to a 1/64, each as a straight, dotted and triplet time in milliseconds and in hertz, plus the length of one, two and four bars in your time signature.
Below the table are delay and reverb starting points: a quarter-note echo, the dotted-eighth rhythmic delay, a slapback value close to 100 ms, reverb pre-delay options, and reverb decay times that end in time with the beat. A small ms to BPM converter works the other way round. Everything is calculated instantly in your browser.
How to use the BPM to ms Calculator
- Type the tempo in Tempo (decimals such as 128.5 are fine) or press Tap tempo at least four times along with the music.
- Pick the Time signature if you need bar lengths, and the number of Decimals your gear accepts.
- Read the table: straight, dotted and triplet times with their rates in Hz. Tap any value to copy it.
- Use Delay starting points and the reverb table as a first setting, then adjust by ear.
- Press Copy table or Download CSV to keep the numbers with your session notes.
BPM to ms Calculator features
BPM to ms delay for every note
Whole, half, quarter, eighth, sixteenth, 32nd and 64th notes, each straight, dotted and triplet.
Milliseconds and hertz
Hz = 1000 ÷ ms, the repeat rate you need for a tremolo, auto-pan, filter LFO or chorus synced to the song.
Bars in any common metre
4/4, 3/4, 2/4, 5/4, 6/8, 7/8 and 12/8, for long delays, reverb tails and fade lengths.
Reverb pre-delay and decay
Pre-delay options at 1/128, 1/64 and 1/32 notes, and decay times for a total of a quarter note, a half note, one bar or two bars.
Tap tempo and ms to BPM
Tap along to find a tempo, or turn a delay time you like back into the BPM it matches.
The formula: BPM to milliseconds
A minute has 60,000 milliseconds, and the BPM counts quarter-note beats per minute, so quarter note (ms) = 60,000 ÷ BPM. Every other value scales from it: a half note is twice as long, an eighth note half as long. A dotted note lasts one and a half times its plain value, and a triplet fits three notes into the time of two, so it lasts two-thirds as long. One bar is the number of beats in the time signature × the beat length (in 6/8, six eighth notes).
Worked example at 120 BPM: 60,000 ÷ 120 = 500 ms per quarter note. An eighth note is 250 ms, a dotted eighth 375 ms and an eighth-note triplet 166.67 ms. As frequencies these are 2 Hz, 4 Hz, 2.67 Hz and 6 Hz.
| Tempo | 1/4 | 1/8 | 1/8 dotted | 1/8 triplet | 1/16 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 80 BPM | 750 | 375 | 562.5 | 250 | 187.5 |
| 90 BPM | 666.67 | 333.33 | 500 | 222.22 | 166.67 |
| 100 BPM | 600 | 300 | 450 | 200 | 150 |
| 120 BPM | 500 | 250 | 375 | 166.67 | 125 |
| 128 BPM | 468.75 | 234.38 | 351.56 | 156.25 | 117.19 |
| 140 BPM | 428.57 | 214.29 | 321.43 | 142.86 | 107.14 |
Delay and reverb starting points
Tempo-synced settings are a place to start, not rules. Many engineers nudge a delay a few milliseconds early or late so the repeats sit around the snare instead of on top of it. For reverb, one common approach treats the whole effect as a note length: total = pre-delay + decay. Pick the total (a quarter note for a tight room, a bar for a hall), choose a short pre-delay such as a 1/64 note so the dry attack stays clear, and set the decay to the remainder. This page uses that method; reverbs measure decay differently (RT60 and other definitions), so listen and adjust.
Sources: the 60,000 ÷ BPM rule and the tip about off-grid repeats follow Sage Audio’s guide “Timing effects like a pro” (sageaudio.com, checked October 2026); dotted and triplet lengths follow standard music notation. The formula is plain arithmetic and does not change.
Limits
- Times are exact for a steady tempo. Songs that speed up or use tempo maps need the delay synced inside your DAW instead.
- Tap tempo averages your last taps; for a precise figure tap 8–16 times, or use the dedicated BPM tapper or the audio BPM detector.
- Some pedals accept only whole milliseconds — set Decimals to 0.
BPM to ms Calculator FAQ
How do I convert BPM to ms?
Divide 60,000 by the BPM to get one quarter note in milliseconds. At 120 BPM that is 500 ms; halve it for an eighth note (250 ms) or double it for a half note (1,000 ms).
What is a dotted eighth delay at 120 BPM?
375 ms: an eighth note is 250 ms and a dotted note is 1.5 times as long. The table shows the dotted value of every note at your tempo.
How do I calculate triplet delay times?
Multiply the plain note value by two-thirds. At 120 BPM an eighth-note triplet is 250 × ⅔ = 166.67 ms.
What reverb pre-delay should I use?
Try a short tempo-synced value — a 1/64 or 1/32 note, about 25–95 ms at tempos between 80 and 160 BPM — so the attack of the voice or snare is heard before the reverb. Longer pre-delay separates the reverb more; shorter blends it.
How do I convert ms to BPM?
Use the ms to BPM box: BPM = 60,000 × beats ÷ ms. A 375 ms dotted eighth (0.75 of a beat) gives 60,000 × 0.75 ÷ 375 = 120 BPM.
Why does the delay sound out of time?
Check that the delay is in milliseconds, not samples, that tap sync is off, and that the song’s tempo is what you entered — tap it in to confirm.