How to Shatter Glass With Your Voice (With the Help of Gadgets)

Ten years of vocal training is a high price to pay just to carry out the party trick of being able to shatter a glass with your yelps, but what if we told you that you could do the same thing with a gadget? All you have to do is take a glass, set it in front of an amp+mic system, and manage to match your singing to the resonance frequency of the glass. Once you do, you'll be out $1.95 and your friends will be briefly amused. Of course, if you wanted to do it the old-fashioned way, it'll be even more impressive. [Wikihow via Make - Image]

4:39 PM on Wed Mar 12 2008
By Jason Chen
6,948 views
29 comments

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Sheemo44 at 04:44 PM on 03/12/08
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didnt they do this on mythbusters?
stonefry at 04:46 PM on 03/12/08
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Yes they did.

[www.wikihow.com]

Have Fun y'all
DeCerbo at 04:48 PM on 03/12/08
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Maud'dib. *Shatter!*
felipekk at 04:50 PM on 03/12/08
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Do it the easy way: wait for your girlfriend to grab a glass of water and sneak behind her screaming.
flyboy at 04:51 PM on 03/12/08
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what about someone's spectacles - in the Mac shop?
huk at 04:52 PM on 03/12/08
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"Drop hammer!"
It's my voice. Helped by a friend.
workingonyourinvoice at 04:52 PM on 03/12/08
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@DeCerbo: Wonderful reference.
Jason Chen at 04:53 PM on 03/12/08
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@felipekk: Hahahah.
MastaFalse at 04:54 PM on 03/12/08
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Damnit, Giz! Stop logging me off! And they did this on Mythbusters YEARS ago, and it was easy ... 'cept when they tried to do it with their voice alone ... some singer guy. Did it, after a million tries and finding just the right glass! Still, pretty cool.
BlairArvina at 04:55 PM on 03/12/08
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@Sheemo44: Comment on How to Shatter Glass With Your Voice (With the Help of Gadgets) Yes, they did do it on Mythbusters. On the show they used high quality crystal. A vocalist broke it the first time, but it took him a while. He finally broke it by screaming at 105 dB using the resonance frequency. It was great.
SigmundTheSeaMonster at 04:57 PM on 03/12/08
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@flyboy: Good luck finding out they are wearing polycarbonate lenses!
tinshaker at 05:00 PM on 03/12/08
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Yes, they did this on Mythbusters ages ago, but I don't really get why anyone would want to break a glass, the mess is a pain to clean up. Of course, I'm biased, being a Bartender. (Poor glass...sniff)
Out2gtcha at 05:00 PM on 03/12/08
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@Sheemo44:
I dont remember the glass breaking, but I do remember them testing the good ol "brown note"

Fail

I was really looking forward to a Jackass style episode of Mythbusters.

Im not that attached to the show, but ever since that FHM spread came out on Kari Byron I have to admit waching it a tad more than before.

Experience however, has taught me that red-heads are insane. (No offence intended if there are any of the afore mentioned women out there reading this).
92BuickLeSabre at 05:01 PM on 03/12/08
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And yet when I accomplish the same result by throwing a glass at the wall, my friends are not amused at all.
innout3x3 at 05:01 PM on 03/12/08
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@MastaFalse: I saw that episode. The vocalist screamed at the glass at 105 dB using the resonance frequency. And it did take him forever.
stonefry at 05:12 PM on 03/12/08
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He did it on his 20th try. You can watch it on Youtube. He is better at it now though.
myneid at 05:18 PM on 03/12/08
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i could swear though on mythbusters they had to have a straw in the glass in order to break it.
Rell at 05:20 PM on 03/12/08
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@DeCerbo: _rofl_ Dune ftw
flyboy at 05:20 PM on 03/12/08
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@Out2gtcha: I thought you said red neck there, woah
berribrand at 05:55 PM on 03/12/08
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My physics professor did this back in college. The glass actually oscillates (yes, the glass bends and moves) prior to reaching shattering amplitude.
Amiash is not allowed at 06:05 PM on 03/12/08
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@92BuickLeSabre: *grin*
johnnyabnormal at 06:22 PM on 03/12/08
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I'd like to see an episode of Myth Busters that exposes the urban legend that every Giz reader watches their show.
Paradise at 06:35 PM on 03/12/08
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@myneid: i think the straw was just there to show you that the glass was moving.

@johnnyabnormal: that would be confirmed though.
friendorfaux.vox.com at 07:47 PM on 03/12/08
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Ok, they did it on Mythbusters. We get it. Who gives a shit? It's still cool.
ashwinmudigonda at 08:03 PM on 03/12/08
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How do you 'manage'?
Beelzeboss at 12:53 AM on 03/13/08
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I wonder how easy this would be with an electric guitar and a slide.
x23 at 01:15 AM on 03/13/08
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i came here to see a Dune reference. i was not disappointed.

thank you internet.
JAV at 01:18 AM on 03/13/08
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Heck. I don't need all this to break glasses. I have been dropping them on floors for years! The scream is an effect of my being barefoot at the time not the cause.
celloids at 08:54 AM on 03/13/08
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You mean the will it blend folks cannot blend this glass?