AnalyserNode.minDecibels

The minDecibels property of the AnalyserNode interface is a double value representing the minimum power value in the scaling range for the FFT analysis data, for conversion to unsigned byte/float values — basically, this specifies the minimum value for the range of results when using getFloatFrequencyData() or getByteFrequencyData().

Syntax

var curValue = analyserNode.minDecibels;
analyserNode.minDecibels = newValue;

Value

A double, representing the minimum decibel value for scaling the FFT analysis data, where 0 dB is the loudest possible sound, -10 dB is a 10th of that, etc. The default value is -100 dB.

When getting data from getFloatFrequencyData() or getByteFrequencyData(), any frequencies with an amplitude of minDecibels or lower will be returned as 0.0 or 0, respectively.

Note: If a value greater than AnalyserNode.maxDecibels is set, an INDEX_SIZE_ERR exception is thrown.

Example

The following example shows basic usage of an AudioContext to create an AnalyserNode, then requestAnimationFrame and <canvas> to collect frequency data repeatedly and draw a "winamp bargraph style" output of the current audio input. For more complete applied examples/information, check out our Voice-change-O-matic demo (see app.js lines 128–205 for relevant code).

var audioCtx = new (window.AudioContext || window.webkitAudioContext)();
var analyser = audioCtx.createAnalyser();
analyser.minDecibels = -90;
analyser.maxDecibels = -10;

  ...

analyser.fftSize = 256;
var bufferLength = analyser.frequencyBinCount;
console.log(bufferLength);
var dataArray = new Uint8Array(bufferLength);

canvasCtx.clearRect(0, 0, WIDTH, HEIGHT);

function draw() {
  drawVisual = requestAnimationFrame(draw);

  analyser.getByteFrequencyData(dataArray);

  canvasCtx.fillStyle = 'rgb(0, 0, 0)';
  canvasCtx.fillRect(0, 0, WIDTH, HEIGHT);

  var barWidth = (WIDTH / bufferLength) * 2.5;
  var barHeight;
  var x = 0;

  for(var i = 0; i < bufferLength; i++) {
    barHeight = dataArray[i];

    canvasCtx.fillStyle = 'rgb(' + (barHeight+100) + ',50,50)';
    canvasCtx.fillRect(x,HEIGHT-barHeight/2,barWidth,barHeight/2);

    x += barWidth + 1;
  }
};

draw();

Specifications

Specification Status Comment
Web Audio API
The definition of 'minDecibels' in that specification.
Working Draft

Browser compatibility

DesktopMobile
ChromeEdgeFirefoxInternet ExplorerOperaSafariAndroid webviewChrome for AndroidFirefox for AndroidOpera for AndroidSafari on iOSSamsung Internet
minDecibelsChrome Full support 14Edge Full support 12Firefox Full support 25IE No support NoOpera Full support 15Safari Full support 6WebView Android Full support YesChrome Android Full support 18Firefox Android Full support 26Opera Android Full support 14Safari iOS Full support 6Samsung Internet Android Full support 1.0

Legend

Full support
Full support
No support
No support

See also