How to use it
- Choose a time signature, the note values, a tempo and how strict the tolerance should be.
- Press Start 8-bar session. One bar of clicks counts you in.
- Tap the big button, or press the space bar, on every note of the rhythm shown. The current bar is outlined.
- At the end, read the results and the strip that shows each note as early, late, on time or missed.
- Start again for a new rhythm. Slow the tempo if you miss many notes.
What the numbers mean
| Result | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Offset | Your tap time minus the ideal time, in milliseconds. Negative is early, positive is late. |
| Average absolute error | The mean size of the offsets, ignoring early or late. Lower is better. |
| Standard deviation | How much the offsets spread around their own average. Low means steady. |
| Consistency score | 100 for perfectly even offsets, falling to 0 at a 100 ms spread. |
| Tendency | The average signed offset. Negative means you tend to rush, positive means you tend to drag. |
Consistency and accuracy are different. A player who is always 30 ms late is very consistent but not accurate. That is easy to fix by listening to the click more closely.
How the timing is measured
The click and the ideal note times are scheduled on the audio clock of your browser, which is far steadier than a page timer. Each tap is stamped when it happens and converted to the same audio clock, and the device output delay is added to the ideal times. Even so, touch screens and Bluetooth speakers add delay of their own, so use the numbers to compare one session with the next on the same device.
Time signatures
In 4/4 and 3/4 the click falls on each quarter note. In 6/8 it falls on each dotted quarter, two clicks per bar, so the eighth notes divide each click into three.
Common questions
Why do I always seem early or late?
Many players rush when nervous and drag when reading something new. A steady offset can also come from screen or speaker delay. Check the tendency figure over several sessions.
What tolerance should I pick?
Start at 80 ms while learning a rhythm. Move to 50 ms once most taps land, and 30 ms for demanding practice. Experienced players often land within a few tens of milliseconds of a click.
Does a missed note count against me?
A note without a tap near it is marked missed and is left out of the error figures, but it lowers the on time percentage. Extra taps are counted separately.
Should I tap or play the piano?
Tapping isolates timing from fingering. Once a rhythm feels steady here, clap or play it on one key, then add the notes.
Related practice
To hear a rhythm and pick the notation, use the rhythm dictation trainer. To find your tempo, use the tap tempo tool.
Sources
- Simple meter and time signatures, Open Music Theory
- Time signature: 4/4, 3/4 and 6/8 explained
- AudioContext.getOutputTimestamp() on MDN: Relating page time to audio time