OneTaskBy Tim King · Updated
Sleep Timer Player
Play Audio That Fades Out and Stops
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If this tool saved you time, a coffee helps keep new ones coming.
How the Sleep Timer Player works
Drop in rain sounds, a meditation or an audiobook chapter, choose how many minutes to play, and this sleep timer player loops it, fades it out gently over the final minutes and stops by itself. The panel shows the clock time it will stop. Everything plays in your browser; the file is never uploaded.
Falling asleep to sound is common, but audio that keeps playing all night can wake you later, and a sudden stop can be just as jarring. A timer with a long fade solves both: the sound tapers off slowly enough that you do not notice it leaving.
How the sleep timer player works
Press Play and the countdown begins. With Loop until the timer ends, short files such as a ten-minute rain recording repeat seamlessly for as long as the timer runs. With Play once, the file plays through a single time and stops at its end or at the timer, whichever comes first — useful for an audiobook chapter.
The fade. For the last few minutes the volume falls in a straight line to silence. Five minutes is gentle; ten or fifteen is almost imperceptible. Set fade to 0 for a hard stop. If the fade is longer than the whole timer, it simply starts straight away.
Changing the timer while it plays. Edit the minutes or the fade and the stop time is recalculated from when you pressed Play; you do not have to restart. The panel shows the remaining time, when the fade starts, and the clock time it will stop.
Keeping it running. Browsers keep playing audio in a background tab, but phones may pause it when the screen locks, depending on the device and battery settings. Leave the page open in the foreground on a phone, or check your battery saver if playback stops early.
Good sleep sounds. Steady, broadband sounds — rain, fans, surf, brown noise — mask sudden noises well. Music with a strong beat or lyrics tends to keep the mind busy. Keep volume low: continuous sound all night at high level is not good for hearing.
FAQ
Will it keep playing if I lock my phone?
On most desktops, yes. On phones it depends on the browser and power settings; some pause web audio when the screen turns off. If it stops early, keep the screen on at minimum brightness or turn off battery saver for the browser.
Can I use it with a playlist?
It plays one file at a time. For several tracks, join them into one file first with the audio joiner, then load that here. Looping a single long file also avoids any gap between tracks.
What happens when the timer ends?
The volume reaches zero at the end of the fade, playback stops, and the page shows that the timer has finished. Nothing else happens, so you can press Play again to restart it with the same settings.
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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