Dotted Notes: The 1.5x Rule With BPM Examples

What does a dot after a note mean?

The dot lengthens the note by half of its own value. A half note of two beats becomes three beats; a quarter note of one beat becomes one and a half beats. The same rule applies to rests: a dotted quarter rest is silent for 1.5 beats.

dotted note = note value × 1.5

The dot sits just to the right of the note head. On a note head that sits on a staff line, the dot moves up into the space above so it stays visible. A dot above or below the head is a different sign, staccato, and does not change the written length.

Dotted note values in beats and milliseconds

Each dotted value equals three of the next-smaller note. A dotted half equals three quarters, a dotted quarter three eighths and a dotted eighth three sixteenths. The table converts each one at 90 and 120 BPM.

At 90 BPM the dotted values land on round numbers: a quarter note lasts 666.67 ms, and 1.5 times that is exactly 1,000 ms. Plain values for comparison are listed in the note value chart.

How do double-dotted notes work?

A second dot adds half of the first dot’s value, so a double-dotted note lasts 1.75 times its plain value. A double-dotted quarter lasts 1 + ½ + ¼ = 1.75 beats.

double-dotted note = note value × 1.75

A double-dotted quarter is usually followed by a sixteenth note, which fills the missing quarter of a beat to complete two beats. A third dot, rare in practice, brings the total to 1.875 times the plain value.

What is a dotted-eighth delay at common tempos?

A dotted-eighth delay equals three-quarters of a beat: 0.75 × 60,000 ÷ BPM. The repeats fall between the straight eighth and quarter notes and turn straight eighth notes played into the delay into a rolling sixteenth-note pattern.

Worked example at 128 BPM: the quarter note is 60,000 ÷ 128 = 468.75 ms, the eighth is 234.38 ms, and the dotted eighth is 468.75 × 0.75 = 351.56 ms. Enter any tempo in the tempo-synced delay calculator for the full list of straight, dotted and triplet times, or follow the setup steps in how to set delay time to tempo.

Why dotted notes carry the beat in compound meter

In compound meters such as 6/8, 9/8 and 12/8, the beat is a dotted quarter note. Each beat divides into three eighth notes, and only a dotted value holds three eighths.

A 6/8 bar has two dotted-quarter beats. Written as ♩. = 80, each beat lasts 750 ms and the bar lasts 1,500 ms; on this site’s quarter-note convention that is 120 BPM. A dotted half fills a whole 6/8 bar.

How compound meters group and count their beats is explained in simple vs compound meter.

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