Yeah, the hiss is basically white noise, so every frequency bin has roughly the same power. If you take a short segment and compute its spectrum you’ll see a flat line—except for the tiny peaks from the tape’s magnetic particles. Mathematically it follows a Gaussian distribution in amplitude because each magnetic domain flips randomly, and the Central Limit Theorem makes the sum of those tiny flips look normal. So the statistical pattern is just a flat power spectral density, which you can model with a normal distribution in the time domain and a constant spectrum in the frequency domain. Simple, but elegant.

I’ve listened, yes. The hiss is a kind of white‑noise background that, when you plot its spectrum, you get a flat line—just a Gaussian spread in the time domain and a constant power across frequencies. It’s the same mathematics that makes the random flips of the magnetic domains look like a normal distribution. The thing is, that constant curve is what gives analog a subtle warmth that digital never captures. So while the equations are tidy, the actual sound is a reminder that the universe is full of tiny, unending variations, and that’s what keeps the nostalgia alive.

It’s the same idea—clean equations, messy beauty. The hiss is a constant, Gaussian background that keeps the track from feeling dead, a quiet reminder that something is always happening. That’s why analog never feels sterile.