Basic HTML5 Audio Manipulation

・2 min read

Using JavaScript, we can create an audio object and manipulate it very easily. Below is some code (gist) to help you get started. You can play, stop, pause, and loop the audio.

<!-- Audio Control Buttons -->
<button id="play-button">Play</button>
<button id="stop-button">Stop</button>
<button id="pause-button">Pause</button>
<button id="loop-button">Loop</button>
// Basic HTML5 audio manipulation
(function () {

	'use strict';

	// Set namespace.
	var NS = {};

	// Control buttons.
	NS.playButton = document.getElementById('play-button');
	NS.stopButton = document.getElementById('stop-button');
	NS.pauseButton = document.getElementById('pause-button');
	NS.loopButton = document.getElementById('loop-button');

	// State variables.
	NS.looping = false;
	NS.paused = false;

	// Check for audio support.
	if ('Audio' in window) {

		// Create new audio object.
		NS.audio = new Audio();

		// Check for ogg support.
		if (!!(NS.audio.canPlayType && NS.audio.canPlayType('audio/ogg; codecs="vorbis"').replace(/no/, ''))) {
			NS.audio.src = 'media/rimshot.ogg';

		// Check for mp3 support.
		} else if (!!(NS.audio.canPlayType && NS.audio.canPlayType('audio/mpeg;').replace(/no/, ''))) {
			NS.audio.src = 'media/rimshot.mp3';

		// Check for mp4 support.
		} else if (!!(NS.audio.canPlayType && NS.audio.canPlayType('audio/mp4; codecs="mp4a.40.2"').replace(/no/, ''))) {
			NS.audio.src = 'media/rimshot.m4a';

		// Set default source to mp3.
		} else {
			NS.audio.src = 'media/rimshot.mp3';
		}

		// Reset audio to beginning.
		NS.resetAudio = function () {
			NS.audio.pause();
			NS.audio.currentTime = 0;
		};

		// Play button click listener.
		NS.playButton.onclick = function (e) {
			e.preventDefault();

			// Reset audio and play.
			NS.resetAudio();
			NS.audio.play();
		};

		// Stop button click listener.
		NS.stopButton.onclick = function (e) {
			e.preventDefault();

			// Reset audio.
			NS.resetAudio();
		};

		// Pause button click listener.
		NS.pauseButton.onclick = function (e) {
			e.preventDefault();

			// Toggle off paused state and play audio.
			if (NS.paused) {
				NS.audio.play();
				NS.paused = false;
				this.innerText = 'Pause';

			// Toggle on paused state and pause audio.
			} else {
				NS.audio.pause();
				NS.paused = true;
				this.innerText = 'Resume';
			}
		};

		// Loop button click listener.
		NS.loopButton.onclick = function (e) {
			e.preventDefault();

			// Toggle off looping stated and reset audio.
			if (NS.looping) {
				NS.resetAudio();
				NS.looping = false;
				this.innerText = 'Loop';

			// Toggle on looping state and play audio.
			} else {
				NS.resetAudio();
				NS.audio.play();
				NS.looping = true;
				this.innerText = 'Stop Looping';
			}

		};

		// Audio ended event listener.
		NS.audio.addEventListener('ended', function() {
			// Reset after audio has ended.
			NS.resetAudio();
			NS.pauseButton.innerText = 'Pause';

			// If looping, replay audio after it has ended.
			if (NS.looping) {
				this.play();
			}
		}, false);


	// No audio support.
	} else {
		alert('Your browser does not support the audio element.');
	}

})();

Check out the simple demo.

View the demo »

HTML5 Doctor has a great article on HTML5 audio. I recommend you check it out for more detailed information.

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