What's the most basic setup for tuning pipes?

This a more or less theoretical question:

Given some pipes freely hanging from a wire?,fishing line? or ...?, what could be the most elementary set up to measure their natural frequency when hit with a solid object?

I am talking about pipes open at both ends. I am basically aware that dimensions and resonant frequency ar closely related but I am not so familiar with common terms like "overtones" and the like.

My interest is focused on the setup to measure the resonant frequency or whatever is the name you give to that.

A small mike connected to an oscilloscope (not a DSO!) could help, I think, but since vibration is attenuated so quickly (for small pipes) how could I measure it reliably?

My bench is not fitted with sophisticated equipment, just a 10 MHz dual input scope.

Thanks for any reply.

Agustín Tomás

The overtones are different than harmonics but close. Due to the effects of the ends, the higher resonances are not exactly integer multiples of the lowest one. In your case one end is damped by the string it is hanging from so the measured value of the fundamental will be slightly different. You should strike the pipes in the location where the resonance you want to stimulate has a maximum amplitude of vibration. In your case the lower end will be such a location.

Since you do not have a DSO, you can turn the room lights out to see the scope trace better. After a few tries you will get the sweep and trigger set to show two cycles across the screen. Put tape on the screen where two zero crossings occur and the turn the room lights back on and graphically determine the time interval from the number of screen divisions between them and the sweep factor.