Runoff
A runoff scale [idiosyncratic term ] is a scale where as many of its individual intervals as possible occur inside the valleys of the harmonic entropy graph, and avoid the hills. And where the same is also true for all of the scale's rotations.
A runoff EDO [idiosyncratic term ] is an edo that meets those criteria, a runoff EDT [idiosyncratic term ] is an edt that meets them, and so on.
A scale being a runoff scale does not necessarily mean it has low total harmonic entropy. Total entropy is determined by finding the mean entropy of all intervals from all a scale's rotations. But runoff scales are determined by median, not mean. So it is quite possible for a runoff scale to still have high harmonic entropy overall.
Runoff scales might be a useful concept because they are effectively scales with as few wolf intervals as possible. This means they are as safe as possible to noodle around on, to take random or arbitrary subsets of, and to explore with reckless abandon, with lessened risk of hitting an unusually sour note compared to other similar sized scales.
Runoff scales could be considered a type of omniconsonant scale, or at least a distant cousin to omniconsonant scales.
List of runoff EDOs
Above about 80edo, runoff EDOs cease to be meaningful as a concept, because with step sizes so small, every feature of the harmonic entropy graph is carpeted by notes, and the median entropy becomes about the same for every EDO.
- EDOS 1-19
- EDOS 20-39
22, 23, 25, 28, 30, 32, 33, 35, 36, 37.
- EDOS 40-59
- EDOS 60-100
77.
Heavy runoff EDOs
Heavy runoff EDOs [idiosyncratic term ] are those runoff EDOs which avoid entropy hills especially strongly, making them especially free of wolf intervals relative to other EDOs their size.
- EDOS 1-19
- EDOS 20-39
- EDOS 40-59
46.
- EDOS 60-100
(None.)
List of other runoff scales
- Carlos Beta
- All phoenix tunings (16ed9/5, 30edt, 11edf, and others)
- AFDOs: 2, 3, 4, 5, & 6
- IFDOs: 2, 3, 4, & 5
- Most equipentatonic scales including slendro