Skip to content

Waveform Loop Player

Waveform Loop Player

☕ Coffee Break: Creating a "Microscope Slide" for Sound

In science class, you placed what you wanted to see on a glass slide to look at it under a microscope, right? This tool does exactly that! From a long recording, you cut out just the specific moment you want (like a drum kick or a sudden noise) and play it back repeatedly (loop it) over and over. By doing this, you can take your time and carefully observe that fleeting moment of sound using other "microscopes" like the Oscilloscope or Spectrum Analyzer.

Overview

A tool that allows you to load an audio file, inspect its waveform, and loop a selected region. It is highly useful when you want to repeatedly play back a specific audio signal or a transient waveform and observe it in detail using an oscilloscope or a spectrum analyzer.

Operations

Waveform Display & Region Selection

The waveform is displayed on the graph. You can use the mouse to change the playback position and set the loop region.

  • Seeking: Click anywhere on the waveform to move the playback cursor (yellow vertical line) to that position.
  • Setting the Loop Region: Drag the left and right edges of the highlighted area (blue region) on the waveform to intuitively set the region for looping.

Playback Controls

  • Load Audio: Opens an audio file (WAV, MP3, FLAC, OGG, etc.). If the file's sample rate differs from the engine's, you will be prompted to resample.
  • Play / Pause: Starts or pauses playback.
  • Stop: Stops playback and resets the cursor position to the start of the selected loop region.
  • Loop Selection: When checked, the selected region plays repeatedly. If unchecked, playback stops when reaching the end of the region.
  • Zoom to Selection: Zooms the waveform display to fit the currently selected loop region.
  • Fit All: Resets the waveform zoom to display the entire file.

Settings

  • Start (s) / End (s): Directly input the start and end positions of the loop region in seconds. This is synchronized with the drag operations on the waveform.
  • Output Mode:
    • Stereo: Outputs the file's L/R channels as-is.
    • Left: Outputs only the left channel.
    • Right: Outputs only the right channel.
    • Mono: If the file is stereo, it mixes the left and right channels to mono.
  • Playback Gain: Adjusts playback volume digitally (-60dB to +12dB).

Usage Examples

Repeated Observation of Transient Responses

Load an audio file containing a single transient hit, such as a kick drum with a strong attack, and select only the region immediately around the hit to loop. This allows you to repeatedly and stably observe the transient response while triggering it in other measurement widgets.

Analyzing Specific Phrases

Select a specific part of a song (for example, the exact moment a specific chord is played or where a noise artifact is present) and use it in conjunction with a spectrum analyzer to analyze the frequency components in detail.