# Laurel or Yanny **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 15, 2018, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/laurel-or-yanny/814250 "2018-05-15T23:29:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![WolfpackJeep](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpackjeep/32/2921_2.png) [@WolfpackJeep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WolfpackJeep)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2018, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/laurel-or-yanny/814250/41 "2018-05-16T13:30:00Z")
I very distinctly hear “yammy” when listening on my phone (Google Pixel XL), and “Laurel” when it’s on the radio in my Jeep. I really want to listen to it on my desktop while playing with the levels. ---
**Author:** ![The\_wind\_of\_my\_soul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecc23a/32.png) [@The\_wind\_of\_my\_soul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_wind_of_my_soul)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2018, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/laurel-or-yanny/814250/42 "2018-05-16T13:34:48Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > Yanny, but I thought the dress was white and gold. This. ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2018, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/laurel-or-yanny/814250/43 "2018-05-16T13:37:40Z")
I hear both. “Laurel” is in a low-pitched vocalization and “Yanny” is in a far more treble register, and they are superimposed. It’s not so much like the famous dress; it’s more like that [optical ilusion](http://apps.usd.edu/coglab/multiscale.html) where it can look like the face is scowling or smiling depending on how close you get to it. ETA: or the one linked to by **CalMeacham** ---
**Author:** ![Slash1972](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slash1972/32/6461_2.png) [@Slash1972](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slash1972)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2018, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/laurel-or-yanny/814250/44 "2018-05-16T13:41:30Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > Yanny, but I thought the dress was white and gold. Same for both for me. Plus anyone who thought the gold in that dress was black is crazy. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![MEBuckner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mebuckner/32/2896_2.png) [@MEBuckner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MEBuckner)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2018, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/laurel-or-yanny/814250/45 "2018-05-16T13:48:11Z")
Yanny. Definitely Yanny. Apparently [all of you aliens from outer space](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=18167436&postcount=115) can’t hear right either. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2018, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/laurel-or-yanny/814250/46 "2018-05-16T13:50:28Z")
> [@MichaelEmouse](#): > > I’m the exact opposite. > > How to hear both: [https://www.spin.com/2018/05/how-to-hear-yanny-laurel/](https://www.spin.com/2018/05/how-to-hear-yanny-laurel/) > > It apparently has to do with the frequencies you can hear. “Yanni” is transmitted at the upper range of human-audible frequencies around 20kHz while “Laurel” is transmitted at lower freqs. I’m surprised a man in his mid-30s like myself can still hear around 20kHz. > > It might have been interesting to split the poll along gender and age lines. Perhaps posters could mention that along with what they hear. Can’t hear Yanni on either of those, but I have high freq loss. I hear “yorrel” on the first iteration, then “laurel” from there forward. ---
**Author:** ![Sir\_T-Cups](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ed655f/32.png) [@Sir\_T-Cups](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_T-Cups)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2018, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/laurel-or-yanny/814250/47 "2018-05-16T14:10:33Z")
Count me as a Laurel. Even the “you can hear both!” is Laurel to me. ---
**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2018, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/laurel-or-yanny/814250/48 "2018-05-16T14:20:47Z")
All I can hear is “laurel”, loud and clear. This is on different devices, with and without earbuds. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2018, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/laurel-or-yanny/814250/49 "2018-05-16T14:34:36Z")
I’m hearing [this](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BNi9fOjXx-Y). ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2018, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/laurel-or-yanny/814250/50 "2018-05-16T14:37:47Z")
I’m hearing “yammy”. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2018, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/laurel-or-yanny/814250/51 "2018-05-16T14:46:02Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > I’m hearing impaired and do not have my hearing aid in right now. I’ll just agree with whatever closed captioning says. OK, with my hearing aid in I listened on my phone. I hear “Terry”. ---
**Author:** ![Mijin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mijin/32/9369_2.png) [@Mijin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mijin)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2018, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/laurel-or-yanny/814250/52 "2018-05-16T15:16:14Z")
It 100% switched for me: I heard “Laurel” clear as day, tried a different video, where it was saying “Yanny” and then went back to the original which was now saying “Yanny” too. To me it seems like a prank; the two sounds are so different. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2018, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/laurel-or-yanny/814250/53 "2018-05-16T15:21:46Z")
I didn’t open this thread until just now. Earlier, the morning news had this thing. Since I’m working, I was not paying attention. The first time they played it, I heard ‘yanny’. The second time, I heard ‘laurel’. ---
**Author:** ![Mijin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mijin/32/9369_2.png) [@Mijin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mijin)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2018, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/laurel-or-yanny/814250/54 "2018-05-16T15:24:54Z")
I can switch at will now. Just by speaking out loud “laurel” or “yanny” in the correct pitch over the recording. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2018, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/laurel-or-yanny/814250/55 "2018-05-16T15:28:28Z")
To me, the first consonant is unclear, but could go either eay. But the rest of it is clearly ‘orel’ to my ear, so if I have to choose between ‘Laurel’ and ‘Yanny,’ it’s Laurel, easily. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2018, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/laurel-or-yanny/814250/56 "2018-05-16T15:53:30Z")
I tried it yesterday on my desktop and heard “Yanny” (with a very clear N sound, almost like ñ really). I tried it again today just to see if I could catch myself off guard and hear it differently but no, still “Yanny.” Tried it on my phone just now and heard “Yanny.” If I think REALLY hard about “Laurel” while listening I can see where it comes in in the lower register, but I have yet to hear it while casually listening. 39 female with some slight hearing issues. ETA: I just had my best friend try it, 39-male with some hearing issues. He also heard “Yanny” without a doubt. ---
**Author:** ![Novelty\_Bobble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Novelty\_Bobble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Novelty_Bobble)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2018, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/laurel-or-yanny/814250/57 "2018-05-16T16:00:28Z")
> [@erysichthon](#): > > They’re both there. The “Laurel” is a deep, adult male voice; “Yanny” is higher, nasal, and chipmunk-ish. This…I heard “yanny” when it was played on the radio but when I’ve clicked on an online link I can hear both at the same time. It sounds like two idiots talking over each other. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2018, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/laurel-or-yanny/814250/58 "2018-05-16T18:04:02Z")
I even followed the advice and cranked up the treble as best I could, but I could never get it to sound like Yanny. Both today and Yesterday, I could hear a high pitched Y when I first clicked it, but not Yanny. That said, I’ve also never been able to hear overtones as clear pitches, even in choirs. And my hearing is even worse now that my ears ring all the time (I use pseudo white noise [fans] to mask it, but mostly just ignore it.) So it doesn’t surprise me that I can’t hear something that is only in the upper frequencies. Unlike the blue and black dress, this isn’t a natural situation you would find yourself naturally, but a deliberately manufactured sound. It’s closer to those pics where you see one person’s face when you are up close but another face from a distance. ---
**Author:** ![Rhodes](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rhodes/32/273_2.png) [@Rhodes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhodes)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2018, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/laurel-or-yanny/814250/59 "2018-05-16T18:43:49Z")
Yanny. I was certain. I strained to hear Laurel, and couldn’t find it. 39-ish male on an iPhone speaker. Then I read the thread with various mentions of a deep Laurel vs a nasal Yanny. I turned up the volume and focused on lower sounds. Another 2 minutes of Yanny, and then suddenly Laurel, crystal clear. Now I can sometimes barely hear Yanny, but it’s superimposed over a Laurel that I can’t unhear. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2018, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/laurel-or-yanny/814250/60 "2018-05-16T18:51:47Z")
The only way I could hear “laurel” was through the NY Times interactive tool. > **[We Made a Tool So You Can Hear Both Yanny and Laurel (Published 2018)](https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/05/16/upshot/audio-clip-yanny-laurel-debate.html)** > > How far do you have to move our slider to hear one name or the other? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/laurel-or-yanny/814250.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/laurel-or-yanny/814250.md?page=4)