# The role of amplitude, frequency, and intensity in mechanical vs. EM waves

As far as I know (correct me if I’m wrong), for a mechanical wave (e.g. sound), the frequency determines the pitch, the amplitude determines the loudness, and the amplitude is proportional to the intensity, which represents the energy the wave carries.

In an EM wave like light, the frequency determines color and energy, the amplitude is simply the amplitude of the E and B fields, while it is the intensity that determines brightness.

Why are the roles of the same factors different in these two waves? Why does the frequency in light influence energy but not in mechanical waves? Does frequency or intensity determine energy in a light wave?

However in the light wave the energy is quantised in units of $h\nu$ i.e. the energy can't take just any value, it has to be a multiple (normally a very large multiple) of $h\nu$. The frequency, $\nu$, determines the energy of a single photon, but not of the overall light wave.