Men hoping to sound more alluring may want to think twice before dropping their voice an octave.

New research has revealed a 'sweet spot' when it comes to the vocal pitch that women find sexy.

Voices that are too high or too low lose their appeal, according to the researchers.

But those with a moderate pitch of 95Hz – a similar level to that of Barack Obama, Gerard Butler, and Jason Momoa – are the most attractive.

'Men's voices have a big impact on how they're perceived,' the team, from Durham University, said.

'The videos manipulated to 95 Hz were preferred over all their counterparts.'

For the study, the researchers recruited 1,466 people from the US to rate videos of 17 men speaking.

The volunteers watched clips in which the men's voices had been digitally altered to different pitches and then judged them on traits including attractiveness and dominance.

At the lower end of the scale was a 75Hz voice, similar in depth to that of Fast & Furious actor Vin Diesel.

Higher–pitched options included a voice at 115Hz and 135Hz, similar to that of comedian Kevin Hart.

The findings, published in the journal Royal Society Open Science, revealed the higher–pitched voices were rated by both men and women as less attractive and less dominant.

But the deepest voice of all, at 75Hz, was also less appealing.

The researchers said 95Hz was universally voted the best because it appeared to strike the ideal balance between sounding masculine without becoming excessively deep.

While women preferred the 95Hz voices over all the other versions, there was little evidence they favoured extremely deep voices, with attractiveness falling once pitch dropped below this level.

Other famous men with a vocal frequency in this range include Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson, who is also thought to have a speaking pitch close to 100Hz.

The researchers said higher–pitched voices may be less appealing because they sound less masculine and less dominant, with participants consistently associating deeper voices with greater strength, fighting ability and influence.

However, they say the overall preference for vocal masculinity was driven more by an aversion to the most feminine–sounding voices than by a strong preference for extremely masculine ones.

This could explain the 'sweet spot' that is neither too high–pitched nor too deep.

The findings suggest the classic 'deeper is better' theory may be oversimplified.

While a low voice still conveyed strength and authority, women appeared to favour a tone that sounded masculine without tipping into an ultra–deep Vin Diesel–style rumble.

Last month, scientists issued an urgent warning over a 'voicemaxxing' trend in which men perform 'neck crunches' to deepen their voices.

@nickfraserr shared his 'guide to voicemaxxing' on TikTok, claiming: 'Having a deeper voice is going to make you more attractive.'

@kiernansheridan added: 'Having a clear tone when you're speaking is really important to produce confidence and to persuade other people that you know what you're talking about.'

Proponents have put forward a range of wacky methods, including humming exercises, breathing techniques and even 'neck crunches'.

However, scientists warn that participating in voicemaxxing can do more harm than good.

'Habitually speaking at an artificially low pitch contributes to muscle tension dysphonia,' said Australian scientists Samuel Cornell, Krista Fisher, and Rob Brooks, in an article for The Conversation.

'This is voice strain caused by squeezing the muscles around the voice box. It leaves your voice sounding rough, tight or breathy, and can cut out mid–sentence.'