Sound is generated in a reference cell and a measuring cell. An eluted component passing through the measuring cell changes the velocity of sound in the cell. This change is detected by a phase shift of acoustic signals between the two cells. This detector is usually employed for inorganic gases in the region where thermal conductivity detectors are not sufficiently sensitive. The detection threshold is of the order of 0.1 ppmv. The linear dynamic range is of the order of 10E3.