diff --git a/akka-cluster/src/main/resources/reference.conf b/akka-cluster/src/main/resources/reference.conf
index fa6860a1a8..e2fe6cc8d1 100644
--- a/akka-cluster/src/main/resources/reference.conf
+++ b/akka-cluster/src/main/resources/reference.conf
@@ -36,9 +36,6 @@ akka {
     # how often should the node send out gossip information?
     gossip-interval = 1s
 
-    # how often should the node send out heartbeats?
-    heartbeat-interval = 1s
-
     # how often should the leader perform maintenance tasks?
     leader-actions-interval = 1s
 
@@ -76,6 +73,9 @@ akka {
       # akka.cluster.ClusterSettings parameters
       implementation-class = "akka.cluster.AccrualFailureDetector"
 
+      # how often should the node send out heartbeats?
+      heartbeat-interval = 1s
+
       # defines the failure detector threshold
       #     A low threshold is prone to generate many wrong suspicions but ensures
       #     a quick detection in the event of a real crash. Conversely, a high
diff --git a/akka-cluster/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/ClusterSettings.scala b/akka-cluster/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/ClusterSettings.scala
index 4212e59c1c..3c7baa4f76 100644
--- a/akka-cluster/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/ClusterSettings.scala
+++ b/akka-cluster/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/ClusterSettings.scala
@@ -23,6 +23,7 @@ class ClusterSettings(val config: Config, val systemName: String) {
     Duration(getMilliseconds("akka.cluster.failure-detector.min-std-deviation"), MILLISECONDS)
   final val FailureDetectorAcceptableHeartbeatPause: FiniteDuration =
     Duration(getMilliseconds("akka.cluster.failure-detector.acceptable-heartbeat-pause"), MILLISECONDS)
+  final val HeartbeatInterval: FiniteDuration = Duration(getMilliseconds("akka.cluster.failure-detector.heartbeat-interval"), MILLISECONDS)
 
   final val SeedNodes: IndexedSeq[Address] = getStringList("akka.cluster.seed-nodes").asScala.map {
     case AddressFromURIString(addr) ⇒ addr
@@ -30,7 +31,6 @@ class ClusterSettings(val config: Config, val systemName: String) {
   final val SeedNodeTimeout: FiniteDuration = Duration(getMilliseconds("akka.cluster.seed-node-timeout"), MILLISECONDS)
   final val PeriodicTasksInitialDelay: FiniteDuration = Duration(getMilliseconds("akka.cluster.periodic-tasks-initial-delay"), MILLISECONDS)
   final val GossipInterval: FiniteDuration = Duration(getMilliseconds("akka.cluster.gossip-interval"), MILLISECONDS)
-  final val HeartbeatInterval: FiniteDuration = Duration(getMilliseconds("akka.cluster.heartbeat-interval"), MILLISECONDS)
   final val LeaderActionsInterval: FiniteDuration = Duration(getMilliseconds("akka.cluster.leader-actions-interval"), MILLISECONDS)
   final val UnreachableNodesReaperInterval: FiniteDuration = Duration(getMilliseconds("akka.cluster.unreachable-nodes-reaper-interval"), MILLISECONDS)
   final val PublishStatsInterval: FiniteDuration = Duration(getMilliseconds("akka.cluster.publish-stats-interval"), MILLISECONDS)
diff --git a/akka-cluster/src/multi-jvm/scala/akka/cluster/MultiNodeClusterSpec.scala b/akka-cluster/src/multi-jvm/scala/akka/cluster/MultiNodeClusterSpec.scala
index f38d80ace5..68ed7d91e7 100644
--- a/akka-cluster/src/multi-jvm/scala/akka/cluster/MultiNodeClusterSpec.scala
+++ b/akka-cluster/src/multi-jvm/scala/akka/cluster/MultiNodeClusterSpec.scala
@@ -8,7 +8,7 @@ import com.typesafe.config.Config
 import com.typesafe.config.ConfigFactory
 import akka.actor.{ Address, ExtendedActorSystem }
 import akka.remote.testconductor.RoleName
-import akka.remote.testkit.{STMultiNodeSpec, MultiNodeSpec}
+import akka.remote.testkit.{ STMultiNodeSpec, MultiNodeSpec }
 import akka.testkit._
 import scala.concurrent.util.duration._
 import scala.concurrent.util.Duration
@@ -31,15 +31,15 @@ object MultiNodeClusterSpec {
   def clusterConfig: Config = ConfigFactory.parseString("""
     akka.actor.provider = akka.cluster.ClusterActorRefProvider
     akka.cluster {
-      auto-join                         = on
-      auto-down                         = off
-      jmx.enabled                       = off
-      gossip-interval                   = 200 ms
-      heartbeat-interval                = 400 ms
-      leader-actions-interval           = 200 ms
-      unreachable-nodes-reaper-interval = 200 ms
-      periodic-tasks-initial-delay      = 300 ms
-      publish-stats-interval            = 0 s # always, when it happens
+      auto-join                           = on
+      auto-down                           = off
+      jmx.enabled                         = off
+      gossip-interval                     = 200 ms
+      leader-actions-interval             = 200 ms
+      unreachable-nodes-reaper-interval   = 200 ms
+      periodic-tasks-initial-delay        = 300 ms
+      publish-stats-interval              = 0 s # always, when it happens
+      failure-detector.heartbeat-interval = 400 ms
     }
     akka.remote.log-remote-lifecycle-events = off
     akka.test {