Registry / http-networking / web-audio-api

web-audio-api

library0.5.0jsnpmunverified

The `web-audio-api` package provides a 100% compliant, portable implementation of the W3C Web Audio API specification for Node.js environments. It currently stands at version 1.3.3 and aims for a stable, consistent release cadence, often aligning with updates to its underlying digital signal processing dependencies. Key differentiators include its complete WPT (Web Platform Tests) conformance, enabling server-side audio generation, CI/CD audio testing without requiring physical speakers, and the ability to run existing Web Audio API libraries like Tone.js directly in Node.js. It supports all 26 audio node types, sample-accurate scheduling, AudioWorklets, and full AudioParam automation. It can output in real-time via the `speaker` package or render to `Float32Array` buffers for offline processing.

http-networking web-framework serialization

npm install web-audio-api

github ↗package ↗

INSTALL

IMPORT

SIG · WEB-AUDIO-API

web-audio-api

http-networkingjavascriptv0.5.0

Install

—

Import

—

Disk

—

Pass rate

0/ 6

Env Coverage0 / 6

glibc

18–22

musl

18–22

Install & Compatibility

Where this runs

tested against v? · npm install

Install × environment matrix

Each cell = how many times install + import succeeded across repeated harness runs. Partial = flaky.
glibc = Debian/Ubuntu slim · musl = Alpine Linux

musl

node 18–226 runs

build_error

glibc

node 18–226 runs

build_error

Code

Verified usage

Verified import paths — ran on the pinned version, not inferred.

AudioContext

✓ import { AudioContext } from 'web-audio-api'

✗ const { AudioContext } = require('web-audio-api')

ESM-only since v1.0.0. Use `import` statement for Node.js modules.

OfflineAudioContext

✓ import { OfflineAudioContext } from 'web-audio-api'

✗ const OfflineAudioContext = require('web-audio-api').OfflineAudioContext

ESM-only. Used for rendering audio to a buffer without real-time output.

Polyfill

✓ import 'web-audio-api/polyfill'

✗ require('web-audio-api/polyfill')

This import extends the global `AudioContext` and `OfflineAudioContext` for browser environments. Not typically needed for Node.js usage.

Demonstrates creating an AudioContext, an oscillator, connecting it to the destination via a gain node, playing a tone, and stopping it, closing the context cleanly.

import { AudioContext } from 'web-audio-api'; const ctx = new AudioContext(); // Ensure the context is running; important for some environments. // In a browser environment, this might be triggered by user interaction. // In Node.js, we explicitly resume. await ctx.resume(); const osc = ctx.createOscillator(); osc.type = 'sine'; // Default is 'sine', but good to be explicit osc.frequency.value = 440; // A4 note const gainNode = ctx.createGain(); gainNode.gain.value = 0.5; // Half volume osc.connect(gainNode); gainNode.connect(ctx.destination); osc.start(); console.log('Playing A440 for 2 seconds...'); // Stop after 2 seconds setTimeout(() => { osc.stop(); ctx.close(); // Important to release resources, especially in Node.js console.log('Audio stopped and context closed.'); }, 2000);

Debug

Known issues

breakingThe package moved to be ESM-only for its main entry point, requiring `import` statements instead of `require()`. This was a major shift for Node.js users.

fix

Migrate CommonJS `require()` calls to ES module `import` statements. Ensure your Node.js project is configured for ESM (e.g., `"type": "module"` in `package.json` or using `.mjs` file extensions).

affects: >=1.0.0

gotchaThe `AudioContext` in Node.js requires an explicit `ctx.resume()` call to start processing audio, similar to how browsers often gate audio playback on user interaction. Failing to call `resume()` will result in no sound.

fix

Always include `await ctx.resume()` after creating a new `AudioContext` instance to ensure audio processing begins.

affects: >=1.0.0

gotchaFor real-time audio output, `web-audio-api` automatically detects and uses the `speaker` package. If `speaker` is not installed, it will fall back to other output mechanisms or fail to produce real-time sound.

fix

If you intend to use real-time audio output, ensure `audio-speaker` is installed as a dependency: `npm install audio-speaker`.

affects: >=1.0.0

breakingInternal DSP implementations for `BiquadFilterNode`, `PeriodicWave`, and `WaveShaperNode` were refactored to delegate coefficient math and wavetable synthesis to external `digital-filter` and `periodic-function` libraries.

fix

This is primarily an internal change and generally not breaking for users consuming the public API. However, if you were relying on specific internal implementation details (which is not recommended), you might need to adjust. Ensure `digital-filter` and `periodic-function` are installed if not already (they are listed as dependencies).

affects: >=1.3.0

Errors

Common errors & fixes

Error [ERR_REQUIRE_ESM]: require() of ES Module ...web-audio-api/index.js from ... not supported.

Attempting to `require()` the `web-audio-api` package in a CommonJS module context, but the package is now ESM-only.

fix

Change your import statement from `const { AudioContext } = require('web-audio-api')` to `import { AudioContext } from 'web-audio-api'`. Ensure your Node.js project is configured for ESM (e.g., add `"type": "module"` to your `package.json` or rename files to `.mjs`).

AudioContext.destination.connect: The destination is not yet initialized or ready.

The `AudioContext` was created but `ctx.resume()` was not called, preventing the audio graph from starting.

fix

Add `await ctx.resume()` immediately after creating your `AudioContext` instance: `const ctx = new AudioContext(); await ctx.resume();`

TypeError: Cannot read properties of undefined (reading 'connect')

Often happens when an `AudioNode` is not correctly connected or if `ctx.destination` is not available, which can be an symptom of the `AudioContext` not being resumed.

fix

Verify that `await ctx.resume()` has been called on the `AudioContext` and that all `AudioNode` connections are correctly chained, e.g., `osc.connect(gainNode); gainNode.connect(ctx.destination);`

Upgrade

Version history

0.5.0latest on npm

Audit

Dependencies

audio-speakeroptionalProvides real-time audio output functionality for `AudioContext`. Automatically detected if present.

digital-filterrequiredUsed for biquad filter coefficients and half-band FIR derivation.

periodic-functionrequiredUsed for wavetable synthesis in `PeriodicWave`.

Agent activity

14 hits · last 30 days

node

OpenAI (training)

Resources

githubhttps://github.com/audiojs/web-audio-api ↗

packagehttps://www.npmjs.com/package/web-audio-api ↗