OneTaskBy Tim King · Updated
Audio Player With Speed Control
0.25× to 4× Without Changing Pitch
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How the Audio Player with Speed Control works
This audio player with speed control plays any file from a quarter speed up to four times faster. By default it keeps the pitch natural, so a lecture at 2× still sounds like the speaker and a song at 0.7× stays in tune. The panel shows how long the rest of the file will take at the chosen speed. Files are played in your browser and never uploaded.
Changing playback speed without changing pitch is called time stretching. Browsers do it natively for audio elements, which is how video sites offer 1.5× playback, and this player uses the same built-in engine.
How the audio player with speed control works
Drop a file and press Play. Move the speed slider while it plays and the change is immediate. With Keep pitch selected, the browser time-stretches the sound: it cuts the audio into short overlapping pieces and spaces them closer together or further apart, so tempo changes and pitch does not. With Shift with speed it plays the samples faster or slower instead, like a tape or record, so 2× is an octave up and 0.5× an octave down.
Speeds that work well. For speech, 1.25× to 2× is where most people listen to podcasts and lectures without losing comprehension; above about 2.5× only practised listeners keep up. For music practice, 0.5× to 0.8× lets you hear fast passages note by note while staying in the original key. Very slow speeds with pitch kept can sound watery, because time stretching has to invent more joins between the pieces.
Time saved. The panel shows the full length and the time left at the current speed. A one-hour episode at 1.5× takes 40 minutes; at 2×, 30 minutes.
Start position. Enter a number of seconds in Start at to jump into the file, then press Play. Changing it while playing jumps to the new point.
Exporting. This page is a player. To save a faster or slower copy of the file, use the audio speed changer, which renders a new WAV or MP3.
FAQ
Does speeding up audio change the pitch?
Not with Keep pitch selected. The browser's time stretching changes tempo while leaving pitch where it was. Choose Shift with speed if you want the classic sped-up tape sound, where voices go higher as they get faster.
What is the best speed for listening to podcasts?
Many listeners settle between 1.3× and 1.7×. Clear, slow speakers stand 2× easily; fast talkers or dense material are better at 1.2×. Try a few minutes at each and pick the fastest speed at which you are not rewinding.
Can I save the file at the new speed?
Not from this player, which only plays. The audio speed changer renders a new file at the speed you choose and lets you download it as WAV or MP3, still entirely in your browser.
See also: all Audio tools, Images, Video & Screen, PDF, SVG, Simulations & Screensavers, Generative Art, Chart Makers, 3D Model Viewers, Drawing Pads, Mockups & 3D Making, Diagram Makers, 3D Science, Tracker Music.
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