Class AudioSystem

java.lang.Object
javax.sound.sampled.AudioSystem
public class AudioSystem extends Object
The AudioSystem class acts as the entry point to the sampled-audio system resources. This class lets you query and access the mixers that are installed on the system. AudioSystem includes a number of methods for converting audio data between different formats, and for translating between audio files and streams. It also provides a method for obtaining a Line directly from the AudioSystem without dealing explicitly with mixers.

Properties can be used to specify the default mixer for specific line types. Both system properties and a properties file are considered. The "sound.properties" properties file is read from an implementation-specific location (typically it is the conf directory in the Java installation directory). The optional "javax.sound.config.file" system property can be used to specify the properties file that will be read as the initial configuration. If a property exists both as a system property and in the properties file, the system property takes precedence. If none is specified, a suitable default is chosen among the available devices. The syntax of the properties file is specified in Properties.load. The following table lists the available property keys and which methods consider them:

Audio System Property Keys
Property Key Interface Affected Method(s)
javax.sound.sampled.Clip Clip getLine(javax.sound.sampled.Line.Info), getClip()
javax.sound.sampled.Port Port getLine(javax.sound.sampled.Line.Info)
javax.sound.sampled.SourceDataLine SourceDataLine getLine(javax.sound.sampled.Line.Info), getSourceDataLine(javax.sound.sampled.AudioFormat)
javax.sound.sampled.TargetDataLine TargetDataLine getLine(javax.sound.sampled.Line.Info), getTargetDataLine(javax.sound.sampled.AudioFormat)
The property value consists of the provider class name and the mixer name, separated by the hash mark ("#"). The provider class name is the fully-qualified name of a concrete mixer provider class. The mixer name is matched against the String returned by the getName method of Mixer.Info. Either the class name, or the mixer name may be omitted. If only the class name is specified, the trailing hash mark is optional.

If the provider class is specified, and it can be successfully retrieved from the installed providers, the list of Mixer.Info objects is retrieved from the provider. Otherwise, or when these mixers do not provide a subsequent match, the list is retrieved from getMixerInfo() to contain all available Mixer.Info objects.

If a mixer name is specified, the resulting list of Mixer.Info objects is searched: the first one with a matching name, and whose Mixer provides the respective line interface, will be returned. If no matching Mixer.Info object is found, or the mixer name is not specified, the first mixer from the resulting list, which provides the respective line interface, will be returned.

For example, the property javax.sound.sampled.Clip with a value "com.sun.media.sound.MixerProvider#SunClip" will have the following consequences when getLine is called requesting a Clip instance: if the class com.sun.media.sound.MixerProvider exists in the list of installed mixer providers, the first Clip from the first mixer with name "SunClip" will be returned. If it cannot be found, the first Clip from the first mixer of the specified provider will be returned, regardless of name. If there is none, the first Clip from the first Mixer with name "SunClip" in the list of all mixers (as returned by getMixerInfo) will be returned, or, if not found, the first Clip of the first Mixer that can be found in the list of all mixers is returned. If that fails, too, an IllegalArgumentException is thrown.

Since:
1.3
See Also:

  • Field Details

    • NOT_SPECIFIED

      public static final int NOT_SPECIFIED
      An integer that stands for an unknown numeric value. This value is appropriate only for signed quantities that do not normally take negative values. Examples include file sizes, frame sizes, buffer sizes, and sample rates. A number of Java Sound constructors accept a value of NOT_SPECIFIED for such parameters. Other methods may also accept or return this value, as documented.
      See Also:

  • Method Details

    • getMixerInfo

      public static Mixer.Info[] getMixerInfo()
      Obtains an array of mixer info objects that represents the set of audio mixers that are currently installed on the system.
      Returns:
      an array of info objects for the currently installed mixers. If no mixers are available on the system, an array of length 0 is returned.
      See Also:

    • getMixer

      public static Mixer getMixer(Mixer.Info info)
      Obtains the requested audio mixer.
      Parameters:
      info - a Mixer.Info object representing the desired mixer, or null for the system default mixer
      Returns:
      the requested mixer
      Throws:
      IllegalArgumentException - if the info object does not represent a mixer installed on the system
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    • getSourceLineInfo

      public static Line.Info[] getSourceLineInfo(Line.Info info)
      Obtains information about all source lines of a particular type that are supported by the installed mixers.
      Parameters:
      info - a Line.Info object that specifies the kind of lines about which information is requested
      Returns:
      an array of Line.Info objects describing source lines matching the type requested. If no matching source lines are supported, an array of length 0 is returned.
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    • getTargetLineInfo

      public static Line.Info[] getTargetLineInfo(Line.Info info)
      Obtains information about all target lines of a particular type that are supported by the installed mixers.
      Parameters:
      info - a Line.Info object that specifies the kind of lines about which information is requested
      Returns:
      an array of Line.Info objects describing target lines matching the type requested. If no matching target lines are supported, an array of length 0 is returned.
      See Also:

    • isLineSupported

      public static boolean isLineSupported(Line.Info info)
      Indicates whether the system supports any lines that match the specified Line.Info object. A line is supported if any installed mixer supports it.
      Parameters:
      info - a Line.Info object describing the line for which support is queried
      Returns:
      true if at least one matching line is supported, otherwise false
      See Also:

    • getLine

      public static Line getLine(Line.Info info) throws LineUnavailableException
      Obtains a line that matches the description in the specified Line.Info object.

      If a DataLine is requested, and info is an instance of DataLine.Info specifying at least one fully qualified audio format, the last one will be used as the default format of the returned DataLine.

      If system properties javax.sound.sampled.Clip, javax.sound.sampled.Port, javax.sound.sampled.SourceDataLine and javax.sound.sampled.TargetDataLine are defined or they are defined in the file "sound.properties", they are used to retrieve default lines. For details, refer to the class description. If the respective property is not set, or the mixer requested in the property is not installed or does not provide the requested line, all installed mixers are queried for the requested line type. A Line will be returned from the first mixer providing the requested line type.

      Parameters:
      info - a Line.Info object describing the desired kind of line
      Returns:
      a line of the requested kind
      Throws:
      LineUnavailableException - if a matching line is not available due to resource restrictions
      IllegalArgumentException - if the system does not support at least one line matching the specified Line.Info object through any installed mixer

    • getClip

      public static Clip getClip() throws LineUnavailableException
      Obtains a clip that can be used for playing back an audio file or an audio stream. The returned clip will be provided by the default system mixer, or, if not possible, by any other mixer installed in the system that supports a Clip object.

      The returned clip must be opened with the open(AudioFormat) or open(AudioInputStream) method.

      This is a high-level method that uses getMixer and getLine internally.

      If the system property javax.sound.sampled.Clip is defined or it is defined in the file "sound.properties", it is used to retrieve the default clip. For details, refer to the class description.

      Returns:
      the desired clip object
      Throws:
      LineUnavailableException - if a clip object is not available due to resource restrictions
      IllegalArgumentException - if the system does not support at least one clip instance through any installed mixer
      Since:
      1.5
      See Also:

    • getClip

      public static Clip getClip(Mixer.Info mixerInfo) throws LineUnavailableException
      Obtains a clip from the specified mixer that can be used for playing back an audio file or an audio stream.

      The returned clip must be opened with the open(AudioFormat) or open(AudioInputStream) method.

      This is a high-level method that uses getMixer and getLine internally.

      Parameters:
      mixerInfo - a Mixer.Info object representing the desired mixer, or null for the system default mixer
      Returns:
      a clip object from the specified mixer
      Throws:
      LineUnavailableException - if a clip is not available from this mixer due to resource restrictions
      IllegalArgumentException - if the system does not support at least one clip through the specified mixer
      Since:
      1.5
      See Also:

    • getSourceDataLine

      public static SourceDataLine getSourceDataLine(AudioFormat format) throws LineUnavailableException
      Obtains a source data line that can be used for playing back audio data in the format specified by the AudioFormat object. The returned line will be provided by the default system mixer, or, if not possible, by any other mixer installed in the system that supports a matching SourceDataLine object.

      The returned line should be opened with the open(AudioFormat) or open(AudioFormat, int) method.

      This is a high-level method that uses getMixer and getLine internally.

      The returned SourceDataLine's default audio format will be initialized with format.

      If the system property javax.sound.sampled.SourceDataLine is defined or it is defined in the file "sound.properties", it is used to retrieve the default source data line. For details, refer to the class description.

      Parameters:
      format - an AudioFormat object specifying the supported audio format of the returned line, or null for any audio format
      Returns:
      the desired SourceDataLine object
      Throws:
      LineUnavailableException - if a matching source data line is not available due to resource restrictions
      IllegalArgumentException - if the system does not support at least one source data line supporting the specified audio format through any installed mixer
      Since:
      1.5
      See Also:

    • getSourceDataLine

      public static SourceDataLine getSourceDataLine(AudioFormat format, Mixer.Info mixerinfo) throws LineUnavailableException
      Obtains a source data line that can be used for playing back audio data in the format specified by the AudioFormat object, provided by the mixer specified by the Mixer.Info object.

      The returned line should be opened with the open(AudioFormat) or open(AudioFormat, int) method.

      This is a high-level method that uses getMixer and getLine internally.

      The returned SourceDataLine's default audio format will be initialized with format.

      Parameters:
      format - an AudioFormat object specifying the supported audio format of the returned line, or null for any audio format
      mixerinfo - a Mixer.Info object representing the desired mixer, or null for the system default mixer
      Returns:
      the desired SourceDataLine object
      Throws:
      LineUnavailableException - if a matching source data line is not available from the specified mixer due to resource restrictions
      IllegalArgumentException - if the specified mixer does not support at least one source data line supporting the specified audio format
      Since:
      1.5
      See Also:

    • getTargetDataLine

      public static TargetDataLine getTargetDataLine(AudioFormat format) throws LineUnavailableException
      Obtains a target data line that can be used for recording audio data in the format specified by the AudioFormat object. The returned line will be provided by the default system mixer, or, if not possible, by any other mixer installed in the system that supports a matching TargetDataLine object.

      The returned line should be opened with the open(AudioFormat) or open(AudioFormat, int) method.

      This is a high-level method that uses getMixer and getLine internally.

      The returned TargetDataLine's default audio format will be initialized with format.

      If the system property javax.sound.sampled.TargetDataLine is defined or it is defined in the file "sound.properties", it is used to retrieve the default target data line. For details, refer to the class description.

      Parameters:
      format - an AudioFormat object specifying the supported audio format of the returned line, or null for any audio format
      Returns:
      the desired TargetDataLine object
      Throws:
      LineUnavailableException - if a matching target data line is not available due to resource restrictions
      IllegalArgumentException - if the system does not support at least one target data line supporting the specified audio format through any installed mixer
      Since:
      1.5
      See Also:

    • getTargetDataLine

      public static TargetDataLine getTargetDataLine(AudioFormat format, Mixer.Info mixerinfo) throws LineUnavailableException
      Obtains a target data line that can be used for recording audio data in the format specified by the AudioFormat object, provided by the mixer specified by the Mixer.Info object.

      The returned line should be opened with the open(AudioFormat) or open(AudioFormat, int) method.

      This is a high-level method that uses getMixer and getLine internally.

      The returned TargetDataLine's default audio format will be initialized with format.

      Parameters:
      format - an AudioFormat object specifying the supported audio format of the returned line, or null for any audio format
      mixerinfo - a Mixer.Info object representing the desired mixer, or null for the system default mixer
      Returns:
      the desired TargetDataLine object
      Throws:
      LineUnavailableException - if a matching target data line is not available from the specified mixer due to resource restrictions
      IllegalArgumentException - if the specified mixer does not support at least one target data line supporting the specified audio format
      Since:
      1.5
      See Also:

    • getTargetEncodings

      public static AudioFormat.Encoding[] getTargetEncodings(AudioFormat.Encoding sourceEncoding)
      Obtains the encodings that the system can obtain from an audio input stream with the specified encoding using the set of installed format converters.
      Parameters:
      sourceEncoding - the encoding for which conversion support is queried
      Returns:
      array of encodings. If sourceEncoding is not supported, an array of length 0 is returned. Otherwise, the array will have a length of at least 1, representing sourceEncoding (no conversion).
      Throws:
      NullPointerException - if sourceEncoding is null

    • getTargetEncodings

      public static AudioFormat.Encoding[] getTargetEncodings(AudioFormat sourceFormat)
      Obtains the encodings that the system can obtain from an audio input stream with the specified format using the set of installed format converters.
      Parameters:
      sourceFormat - the audio format for which conversion is queried
      Returns:
      array of encodings. If sourceFormatis not supported, an array of length 0 is returned. Otherwise, the array will have a length of at least 1, representing the encoding of sourceFormat (no conversion).
      Throws:
      NullPointerException - if sourceFormat is null

    • isConversionSupported

      public static boolean isConversionSupported(AudioFormat.Encoding targetEncoding, AudioFormat sourceFormat)
      Indicates whether an audio input stream of the specified encoding can be obtained from an audio input stream that has the specified format.
      Parameters:
      targetEncoding - the desired encoding after conversion
      sourceFormat - the audio format before conversion
      Returns:
      true if the conversion is supported, otherwise false
      Throws:
      NullPointerException - if targetEncoding or sourceFormat are null

    • getAudioInputStream

      public static AudioInputStream getAudioInputStream(AudioFormat.Encoding targetEncoding, AudioInputStream sourceStream)
      Obtains an audio input stream of the indicated encoding, by converting the provided audio input stream.
      Parameters:
      targetEncoding - the desired encoding after conversion
      sourceStream - the stream to be converted
      Returns:
      an audio input stream of the indicated encoding
      Throws:
      IllegalArgumentException - if the conversion is not supported
      NullPointerException - if targetEncoding or sourceStream are null
      See Also:

    • getTargetFormats

      public static AudioFormat[] getTargetFormats(AudioFormat.Encoding targetEncoding, AudioFormat sourceFormat)
      Obtains the formats that have a particular encoding and that the system can obtain from a stream of the specified format using the set of installed format converters.
      Parameters:
      targetEncoding - the desired encoding after conversion
      sourceFormat - the audio format before conversion
      Returns:
      array of formats. If no formats of the specified encoding are supported, an array of length 0 is returned.
      Throws:
      NullPointerException - if targetEncoding or sourceFormat are null

    • isConversionSupported

      public static boolean isConversionSupported(AudioFormat targetFormat, AudioFormat sourceFormat)
      Indicates whether an audio input stream of a specified format can be obtained from an audio input stream of another specified format.
      Parameters:
      targetFormat - the desired audio format after conversion
      sourceFormat - the audio format before conversion
      Returns:
      true if the conversion is supported, otherwise false
      Throws:
      NullPointerException - if targetFormat or sourceFormat are null

    • getAudioInputStream

      public static AudioInputStream getAudioInputStream(AudioFormat targetFormat, AudioInputStream sourceStream)
      Obtains an audio input stream of the indicated format, by converting the provided audio input stream.
      Parameters:
      targetFormat - the desired audio format after conversion
      sourceStream - the stream to be converted
      Returns:
      an audio input stream of the indicated format
      Throws:
      IllegalArgumentException - if the conversion is not supported
      NullPointerException - if targetFormat or sourceStream are null
      See Also:

    • getAudioFileFormat

      public static AudioFileFormat getAudioFileFormat(InputStream stream) throws UnsupportedAudioFileException, IOException
      Obtains the audio file format of the provided input stream. The stream must point to valid audio file data. The implementation of this method may require multiple parsers to examine the stream to determine whether they support it. These parsers must be able to mark the stream, read enough data to determine whether they support the stream, and reset the stream's read pointer to its original position. If the input stream does not support these operations, this method may fail with an IOException.
      Parameters:
      stream - the input stream from which file format information should be extracted
      Returns:
      an AudioFileFormat object describing the stream's audio file format
      Throws:
      UnsupportedAudioFileException - if the stream does not point to valid audio file data recognized by the system
      IOException - if an input/output exception occurs
      NullPointerException - if stream is null
      See Also:

    • getAudioFileFormat

      public static AudioFileFormat getAudioFileFormat(URL url) throws UnsupportedAudioFileException, IOException
      Obtains the audio file format of the specified URL. The URL must point to valid audio file data.
      Parameters:
      url - the URL from which file format information should be extracted
      Returns:
      an AudioFileFormat object describing the audio file format
      Throws:
      UnsupportedAudioFileException - if the URL does not point to valid audio file data recognized by the system
      IOException - if an input/output exception occurs
      NullPointerException - if url is null

    • getAudioFileFormat

      public static AudioFileFormat getAudioFileFormat(File file) throws UnsupportedAudioFileException, IOException
      Obtains the audio file format of the specified File. The File must point to valid audio file data.
      Parameters:
      file - the File from which file format information should be extracted
      Returns:
      an AudioFileFormat object describing the audio file format
      Throws:
      UnsupportedAudioFileException - if the File does not point to valid audio file data recognized by the system
      IOException - if an I/O exception occurs
      NullPointerException - if file is null

    • getAudioInputStream

      public static AudioInputStream getAudioInputStream(InputStream stream) throws UnsupportedAudioFileException, IOException
      Obtains an audio input stream from the provided input stream. The stream must point to valid audio file data. The implementation of this method may require multiple parsers to examine the stream to determine whether they support it. These parsers must be able to mark the stream, read enough data to determine whether they support the stream, and reset the stream's read pointer to its original position. If the input stream does not support these operation, this method may fail with an IOException.
      Parameters:
      stream - the input stream from which the AudioInputStream should be constructed
      Returns:
      an AudioInputStream object based on the audio file data contained in the input stream
      Throws:
      UnsupportedAudioFileException - if the stream does not point to valid audio file data recognized by the system
      IOException - if an I/O exception occurs
      NullPointerException - if stream is null
      See Also:

    • getAudioInputStream

      public static AudioInputStream getAudioInputStream(URL url) throws UnsupportedAudioFileException, IOException
      Obtains an audio input stream from the URL provided. The URL must point to valid audio file data.
      Parameters:
      url - the URL for which the AudioInputStream should be constructed
      Returns:
      an AudioInputStream object based on the audio file data pointed to by the URL
      Throws:
      UnsupportedAudioFileException - if the URL does not point to valid audio file data recognized by the system
      IOException - if an I/O exception occurs
      NullPointerException - if url is null

    • getAudioInputStream

      public static AudioInputStream getAudioInputStream(File file) throws UnsupportedAudioFileException, IOException
      Obtains an audio input stream from the provided File. The File must point to valid audio file data.
      Parameters:
      file - the File for which the AudioInputStream should be constructed
      Returns:
      an AudioInputStream object based on the audio file data pointed to by the File
      Throws:
      UnsupportedAudioFileException - if the File does not point to valid audio file data recognized by the system
      IOException - if an I/O exception occurs
      NullPointerException - if file is null

    • getAudioFileTypes

      public static AudioFileFormat.Type[] getAudioFileTypes()
      Obtains the file types for which file writing support is provided by the system.
      Returns:
      array of unique file types. If no file types are supported, an array of length 0 is returned.

    • isFileTypeSupported

      public static boolean isFileTypeSupported(AudioFileFormat.Type fileType)
      Indicates whether file writing support for the specified file type is provided by the system.
      Parameters:
      fileType - the file type for which write capabilities are queried
      Returns:
      true if the file type is supported, otherwise false
      Throws:
      NullPointerException - if fileType is null

    • getAudioFileTypes

      public static AudioFileFormat.Type[] getAudioFileTypes(AudioInputStream stream)
      Obtains the file types that the system can write from the audio input stream specified.
      Parameters:
      stream - the audio input stream for which audio file type support is queried
      Returns:
      array of file types. If no file types are supported, an array of length 0 is returned.
      Throws:
      NullPointerException - if stream is null

    • isFileTypeSupported

      public static boolean isFileTypeSupported(AudioFileFormat.Type fileType, AudioInputStream stream)
      Indicates whether an audio file of the specified file type can be written from the indicated audio input stream.
      Parameters:
      fileType - the file type for which write capabilities are queried
      stream - the stream for which file-writing support is queried
      Returns:
      true if the file type is supported for this audio input stream, otherwise false
      Throws:
      NullPointerException - if fileType or stream are null

    • write

      public static int write(AudioInputStream stream, AudioFileFormat.Type fileType, OutputStream out) throws IOException
      Writes a stream of bytes representing an audio file of the specified file type to the output stream provided. Some file types require that the length be written into the file header; such files cannot be written from start to finish unless the length is known in advance. An attempt to write a file of such a type will fail with an IOException if the length in the audio file type is AudioSystem.NOT_SPECIFIED.
      Parameters:
      stream - the audio input stream containing audio data to be written to the file
      fileType - the kind of audio file to write
      out - the stream to which the file data should be written
      Returns:
      the number of bytes written to the output stream
      Throws:
      IOException - if an input/output exception occurs
      IllegalArgumentException - if the file type is not supported by the system
      NullPointerException - if stream or fileType or out are null
      See Also:

    • write

      public static int write(AudioInputStream stream, AudioFileFormat.Type fileType, File out) throws IOException
      Writes a stream of bytes representing an audio file of the specified file type to the external file provided.
      Parameters:
      stream - the audio input stream containing audio data to be written to the file
      fileType - the kind of audio file to write
      out - the external file to which the file data should be written
      Returns:
      the number of bytes written to the file
      Throws:
      IOException - if an I/O exception occurs
      IllegalArgumentException - if the file type is not supported by the system
      NullPointerException - if stream or fileType or out are null
      See Also: