Time Signature Converter
Enter two time signatures and a tempo. You get each meter's type and felt beat (6/8 = 2 dotted-quarter beats), how many target bars equal one source bar, and the target tempo that keeps the same eighth notes, the same bar length or the same pulse.
Use the Time Signature Converter
Time Signature Converter
Common time signatures
| Meter | Type | Beats | Beat note | Grouping | Typical use |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2/4 | Simple duple | 2 | Quarter | 2 × ♩ | Marches, polkas |
| 3/4 | Simple triple | 3 | Quarter | 3 × ♩ | Waltzes, minuets |
| 4/4 | Simple quadruple | 4 | Quarter | 4 × ♩ | Most pop, rock and jazz ("common time", C) |
| 2/2 | Simple duple | 2 | Half | 2 halves | Cut time (¢), fast marches |
| 3/8 | Simple triple | 3 | Eighth | 3 × ♪ | Fast one-in-a-bar movements |
| 6/8 | Compound duple | 2 | Dotted quarter | 3+3 eighths | Jigs, barcarolles, ballads |
| 9/8 | Compound triple | 3 | Dotted quarter | 3+3+3 | Slip jigs |
| 12/8 | Compound quadruple | 4 | Dotted quarter | 3+3+3+3 | Slow blues, shuffles, doo-wop |
| 6/4 | Compound duple | 2 | Dotted half | 3+3 quarters | Slow two-beat pieces; contrast with 3/2 |
| 5/4 | Irregular (quintuple) | 5 | Quarter | 3+2 or 2+3 | Brubeck's "Take Five" |
| 5/8 | Irregular | 2 | Uneven (♩. + ♩) | 3+2 or 2+3 | Fast asymmetric dance rhythms |
| 7/8 | Irregular | 3 | Uneven | 2+2+3 or 3+2+2 | Balkan dances (rachenitsa) |
| 11/8 | Irregular | 5 | Uneven | 2+2+3+2+2 (varies) | Balkan dances (kopanitsa) |
Summary
A time signature says how many notes of a given value fill a bar, but the beat you tap depends on how they are grouped. In simple meters (2/4, 3/4, 4/4) each beat divides in two; in compound meters (6/8, 9/8, 12/8) the top number is a multiple of 3 and each beat is a dotted note divided in three; irregular meters (5/8, 7/8) mix groups of 2 and 3. The converter works out both meters' felt beats, compares bar lengths in quarter notes and gives three tempo equivalents: keep every note value at the same speed, keep bars the same length (bar for bar), or keep the same pulse.
How it works
- Pick the source and target time signatures and a tempo. Say which note the tempo counts: the felt beat (dotted quarter in 6/8, quarter in 3/4, eighth in 7/8), or a fixed quarter, eighth, dotted quarter or half note.
- Bar length is measured in quarter notes: numerator × 4 ÷ denominator. 6/8 = 3 quarters, 4/4 = 4, so one 4/4 bar equals 4/3 bars of 6/8.
- Compound meters (top number 6, 9, 12…) are counted in dotted beats: 6/8 has 2 beats, 9/8 has 3, 12/8 has 4. Irregular meters are grouped in 2s and 3s (7/8 = 3+2+2 or 2+2+3).
- The tempo panel gives the target tempo that keeps note values constant, keeps bar lengths equal (as in a metric modulation where bars line up), or keeps the same pulse.
- Durations use quarter note = 60,000 ms ÷ quarter-note BPM, scaled by each note's length.
Use cases
- Rewrite a 6/8 passage in 2/4 with triplets while keeping the same groove.
- Set a DAW or click track correctly for 6/8 or 12/8 when the chart gives a dotted-quarter tempo.
- Work out how many 7/8 bars fit a 4/4 loop and where the downbeats realign.
- Plan a metric modulation from 4/4 to 12/8 at the same pulse.
- Explain simple, compound and irregular meters to students with a beat grid.