Web/API/DynamicsCompressorNode/knee

The knee property of the DynamicsCompressorNode interface is a k-rate AudioParam containing a decibel value representing the range above the threshold where the curve smoothly transitions to the compressed portion.

The knee property's default value is 30 and it can be set between 0 and 40.

[[File:../../../../../../media.prod.mdn.mozit.cloud/attachments/2013/04/09/5113/ca494f962a6f25a63ef795ea6d3e8d7e/WebAudioKnee.png|Describes the effect of a knee, showing two curves one for a hard knee, the other for a soft knee.]]

Syntax

var audioCtx = new AudioContext();
var compressor = audioCtx.createDynamicsCompressor();
compressor.knee.value = 40;

Value

An AudioParam.

Note: Though the AudioParam returned is read-only, the value it represents is not.

Example

The below code demonstrates a simple usage of createDynamicsCompressor() to add compression to an audio track. For a more complete example, have a look at our [[../../../../../../../mdn.github.io/webaudio-examples/compressor-example/index|basic Compressor example]] (view the source code).

// Create a MediaElementAudioSourceNode
// Feed the HTMLMediaElement into it
var source = audioCtx.createMediaElementSource(myAudio);

// Create a compressor node
var compressor = audioCtx.createDynamicsCompressor();
compressor.threshold.setValueAtTime(-50, audioCtx.currentTime);
compressor.knee.setValueAtTime(40, audioCtx.currentTime);
compressor.ratio.setValueAtTime(12, audioCtx.currentTime);
compressor.attack.setValueAtTime(0, audioCtx.currentTime);
compressor.release.setValueAtTime(0.25, audioCtx.currentTime);

// connect the AudioBufferSourceNode to the destination
source.connect(audioCtx.destination);

button.onclick = function() {
  var active = button.getAttribute('data-active');
  if(active == 'false') {
    button.setAttribute('data-active', 'true');
    button.innerHTML = 'Remove compression';

    source.disconnect(audioCtx.destination);
    source.connect(compressor);
    compressor.connect(audioCtx.destination);
  } else if(active == 'true') {
    button.setAttribute('data-active', 'false');
    button.innerHTML = 'Add compression';

    source.disconnect(compressor);
    compressor.disconnect(audioCtx.destination);
    source.connect(audioCtx.destination);
  }
}

Specifications

Specification	Status	Comment
Web Audio APIThe definition of 'knee' 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
`knee`	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 Yes	Samsung Internet Android Full support 1.0

Legend

Full support: Full support
No support: No support