Generate a triangle wave
Download a WAV file holding a 1 kHz triangle wave at -6 dBFS. A triangle carries odd harmonics like a square, but they die away much faster, which puts it between a sine and a square in both spectrum and character.
Harmonics falling as 1/n squared
A square’s odd harmonics fall as 1/n. A triangle’s fall as 1/n². The third harmonic of a triangle sits about 19 dB below the fundamental where a square’s sits about 9.5 dB below, and the gap widens with every step up the series.
By the time you reach the ninth harmonic the triangle has almost nothing left, which is why it sounds close to a sine with a slight edge rather than the buzz of a square.
What it suits
- Listening to a filter without the fatigue of a square wave.
- Driving a saturation or wavefolder stage with mild harmonic content.
- Testing a converter where a square’s ringing would confuse the reading.
Clean edges
Because the series falls so steeply, very little energy sits near the 24 kHz Nyquist limit at 48 kHz. Band-limiting therefore causes almost no overshoot, and the shape stays close to a true triangle on a scope.
Level
The level is peak, not RMS. A triangle’s RMS sits about 4.8 dB below its peak, lower than both a sine and a square, so it measures quieter than either at the same peak setting.
Other shapes
For a stronger harmonic set use the square or sawtooth generator, or the sine for a single frequency. To set frequency, level, or duration yourself, use the full Tone Generator.