PannerNode.coneOuterGain

The coneOuterGain property of the PannerNode interface is a double value, describing the amount of volume reduction outside the cone, defined by the coneOuterAngle attribute.

The coneOuterGain property's default value is 0, meaning that no sound can be heard outside the cone.

Syntax

var audioCtx = new AudioContext();
var panner = audioCtx.createPanner();
panner.coneOuterGain = 0;

Value

A double. The default is 0, and its value can be in the range 0–1.

Exceptions

InvalidStateError
The property has been given a value outside the accepted range (0–1).

Example

In this example, we'll demonstrate how changing the orientation parameters of a PannerNode in combination with coneInnerAngle and coneOuterAngle affects volume. To help us visualise how the orientation vector affects, we can use the Right-hand rule:

This chart visualises how the PannerNode orientation vectors affect the direction of the sound cone.

First, let's start by writing a utility function to figure out our orientation vector. The X and Z components are always at a 90° to each other, so we can use the sine and cosine functions, which are offset by the same amount in radians. However, normally this would mean the PannerNode points to the left of the listener at 0° rotation – since `x = cos(0) = 1` and `z = sin(0) = 0`. It's more useful to offset the angle by -90°, which means the PannerNode will point directly at the listener at 0° rotation.

// this utility converts amount of rotation around the Y axis
// (i.e. rotation in the 'horizontal plane') to an orientation vector
const yRotationToVector = degrees => {
  // convert degrees to radians and offset the angle so 0 points towards the listener
  const radians = (degrees - 90) * (Math.PI / 180);
  // using cosine and sine here ensures the output values are always normalised
  // i.e. they range between -1 and 1
  const x = Math.cos(radians);
  const z = Math.sin(radians);

  // we hard-code the Y component to 0, as Y is the axis of rotation
  return [x, 0, z];
};

Now we can create our AudioContext, an oscillator and a PannerNode:

const context = new AudioContext();

const osc = new OscillatorNode(context);
osc.type = 'sawtooth';

const panner = new PannerNode(context);
panner.panningModel = 'HRTF';

Next, we set up the cone of our spatialised sound, determining the area in which it can be heard:

// this value determines the size of the area in which the sound volume is constant
// if coneInnerAngle == 30, it means that when the sound is rotated
// by at most 15 (30/2) degrees either direction, the volume won't change
panner.coneInnerAngle = 30;
// this value determines the size of the area in which the sound volume decreases gradually
// if coneOuterAngle == 45 and coneInnerAngle == 30, it means that when the sound is rotated
// by between 15 (30/2) and 22.5 (45/2) degrees either direction,
// the volume will decrease gradually
panner.coneOuterAngle = 45;
// this value determines the volume of the sound outside of both inner and outer cone
// setting it to 0 means there is no sound, so we can clearly hear when we leave the cone
// 0 is also the default
panner.coneOuterGain = 0;
// increase the Z position to ensure the cone has an effect
// (otherwise the sound is located at the same position as the listener)
panner.positionZ.setValueAtTime(1, context.currentTime);

Having set up the PannerNode, we can now schedule some updates to its Y-axis rotation:

// calculate the vector for no rotation
// this means the sound will play at full volume
const [x1, y1, z1] = yRotationToVector(0);
// schedule the no-rotation vector immediately
panner.orientationX.setValueAtTime(x1, context.currentTime);
panner.orientationY.setValueAtTime(y1, context.currentTime);
panner.orientationZ.setValueAtTime(z1, context.currentTime);

// calculate the vector for -22.4 degrees
// since our coneOuterAngle is 45, this will just about make the sound audible
// if we set it to +/-22.5, the sound volume will be 0, as the threshold is exclusive
const [x2, y2, z2] = yRotationToVector(-22.4);
panner.orientationX.setValueAtTime(x2, context.currentTime + 2);
panner.orientationY.setValueAtTime(y2, context.currentTime + 2);
panner.orientationZ.setValueAtTime(z2, context.currentTime + 2);

Finally, let's connect all our nodes and start the oscillator!

osc.connect(panner)
   .connect(context.destination);

osc.start(0);

Specifications

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

Browser compatibility

DesktopMobile
ChromeEdgeFirefoxInternet ExplorerOperaSafariAndroid webviewChrome for AndroidFirefox for AndroidOpera for AndroidSafari on iOSSamsung Internet
coneOuterGainChrome 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 ? Samsung Internet Android Full support 1.0

Legend

Full support
Full support
No support
No support
Compatibility unknown
Compatibility unknown

See also