Web/API/AnalyserNode/getFloatFrequencyData

The getFloatFrequencyData() method of the AnalyserNode Interface copies the current frequency data into a Float32Array array passed into it.

Each item in the array represents the decibel value for a specific frequency. The frequencies are spread linearly from 0 to 1/2 of the sample rate. For example, for 48000 sample rate, the last item of the array will represent the decibel value for 24000 Hz.

If you need higher performance and don't care about precision, you can use AnalyserNode.getByteFrequencyData() instead, which works on a Uint8Array.

Syntax

var audioCtx = new AudioContext();
var analyser = audioCtx.createAnalyser();
var dataArray = new Float32Array(analyser.frequencyBinCount); // Float32Array should be the same length as the frequencyBinCount

void analyser.getFloatFrequencyData(dataArray); // fill the Float32Array with data returned from getFloatFrequencyData()

Parameters

array: The Float32Array that the frequency domain data will be copied to. For any sample which is silent, the value is -Infinity. If the array has fewer elements than the AnalyserNode.frequencyBinCount, excess elements are dropped. If it has more elements than needed, excess elements are ignored.

Return value

None.

Example

const audioCtx = new AudioContext();
const analyser = audioCtx.createAnalyser();
// Float32Array should be the same length as the frequencyBinCount
const myDataArray = new Float32Array(analyser.frequencyBinCount); 
// fill the Float32Array with data returned from getFloatFrequencyData()
analyser.getFloatFrequencyData(myDataArray);

Drawing a spectrum

The following example shows basic usage of an AudioContext to connect a MediaElementAudioSourceNode to an AnalyserNode. While the audio is playing, we collect the frequency data repeatedly with requestAnimationFrame() and draw a "winamp bargraph style" to a <canvas> element.

For more complete applied examples/information, check out our [[../../../../../../../mdn.github.io/voice-change-o-matic-float-data/index|Voice-change-O-matic-float-data]] demo (see the source code too).

<!doctype html>
<body>
<script>
const audioCtx = new AudioContext();

//Create audio source
//Here, we use an audio file, but this could also be e.g. microphone input
const audioEle = new Audio();
audioEle.src = 'my-audio.mp3';//insert file name here
audioEle.autoplay = true;
audioEle.preload = 'auto';
const audioSourceNode = audioCtx.createMediaElementSource(audioEle);

//Create analyser node
const analyserNode = audioCtx.createAnalyser();
analyserNode.fftSize = 256;
const bufferLength = analyserNode.frequencyBinCount;
const dataArray = new Float32Array(bufferLength);

//Set up audio node network
audioSourceNode.connect(analyserNode);
analyserNode.connect(audioCtx.destination);

//Create 2D canvas
const canvas = document.createElement('canvas');
canvas.style.position = 'absolute';
canvas.style.top = 0;
canvas.style.left = 0;
canvas.width = window.innerWidth;
canvas.height = window.innerHeight;
document.body.appendChild(canvas);
const canvasCtx = canvas.getContext('2d');
canvasCtx.clearRect(0, 0, canvas.width, canvas.height);


function draw() {
  //Schedule next redraw
  requestAnimationFrame(draw);

  //Get spectrum data
  analyserNode.getFloatFrequencyData(dataArray);

  //Draw black background
  canvasCtx.fillStyle = 'rgb(0, 0, 0)';
  canvasCtx.fillRect(0, 0, canvas.width, canvas.height);

  //Draw spectrum
  const barWidth = (canvas.width / bufferLength) * 2.5;
  let posX = 0;
  for (let i = 0; i < bufferLength; i++) {
    const barHeight = (dataArray[i] + 140) * 2;
    canvasCtx.fillStyle = 'rgb(' + Math.floor(barHeight + 100) + ', 50, 50)';
    canvasCtx.fillRect(posX, canvas.height - barHeight / 2, barWidth, barHeight / 2);
    posX += barWidth + 1;
  }
};

draw();
</script>
</body>

Specifications

Specification	Status	Comment
Web Audio APIThe definition of 'getFloatFrequencyData()' in that specification.	Working Draft

Browser compatibility

Update compatibility data on GitHub

	Desktop						Mobile
	Chrome	Edge	Firefox	Internet Explorer	Opera	Safari	Android webview	Chrome for Android	Firefox for Android	Opera for Android	Safari on iOS	Samsung Internet
`getFloatFrequencyData`	Chrome Full support 14	Edge Full support 12	Firefox Full support 25	IE No support No	Opera Full support 15	Safari Full support 6	WebView Android Full support Yes	Chrome Android Full support 18	Firefox Android Full support 26	Opera Android Full support 14	Safari iOS Full support 6	Samsung Internet Android Full support 1.0

Legend

Full support: Full support
No support: No support