vplay(1)
vplay, vrec --
audio playback/recording utility
Synopsis
vplay [-qS] [-t secs]
[filename1 ...]
vrec [-qvwrS] [-t secs]
[-s Hz] [-b 8|12|16]
[filename1 ...]
Description
vplay and vrec provide command line audio
playback and recording capabilities, respectively. They both
accept the same options (although some apply only to recording)
and they run from the same binary.
These programs can be used for recording and playing:
-
Creative Labs® VOC files
-
Microsoft® WAVE files
-
raw audio data
For a graphical playback and record utility, see
scosound(X1).
vplay and vrec support:
-
the full Creative Labs VOC structure, including
silence, repeat loops (on seekable input), stereo, ASCII
blocks, and blocks with different sampling rate
-
non-stereo cards (SB 1.0 and 2.0); 8-bit stereo files will
be played as mono (the first channel is used)
-
non-16-bit cards; 16-bit WAVE files will be played as 8
bit (you can play a 16-bit stereo WAVE file, on an SB 1.0)
vplay and vrec do not support:
-
packed VOC files
-
multi-block WAVE files
-
WAVE files not coded to PCM (Pulse Code Modulation)
-
multi-channel WAVE files
Options
If no filenames are given, vplay uses stdin and
vrec uses stdout.
-q-
quiet mode, console messages are not displayed
-s speed-
sets the sampling rate in Hz; the default is 8000. If a rate
less than 300 is entered, it will be multiplied by 1000.
-v-
record a Creative Labs VOC file; this is the default.
-w-
record a Microsoft WAVE file
-r-
record raw data without header
-S-
stereo; the default is mono.
-t seconds-
sets the playback or recording time in seconds; the default is
no time limit.
-b bits-
sets sample size (bits per sample). Available values are
8, 12, and 16; the default is 8.
The options for speed, time, and sample size are only valid for
raw data files. VOC and WAVE files include this information in
their headers/internal structure.
The -t parameter applies to each file. For example:
vrec -r -t 1 a b c
records one second of audio data to each of the files a, b,
and c
vplay -t 1 a b c
plays the first second of each of the files a, b and c (if
they are raw audio).
Usage
Before playing or recording sound samples, you must:
-
physically install the audio adapter, speaker system, and
any input devices, following the instructions in the
hardware documentation
-
configure the audio adapter according to the instructions in
``Configuring audio adapters'' in the UnixWare 7 System Handbook
-
set volume levels and input/out channels using
mixer(1)
Playing sound files
To play existing sound files,
enter vplay file_name, with any desired
options. The -s, -v, -w,
-r, and -b options have no effect on
playback; the -S option has no effect if your hardware
does not support stereo of the sample is mono.
Recording sound samples
To record sound samples:
-
Ensure that an input device (such as a microphone or
CD-player) is connected to your audio adapter's
input jack.
-
Enter vrec file_name with appropriate
options.
-
Start the sound input (for example, start talking or play the
CD).
-
Stop the sound input and recording utility when complete.
NOTE:
A ``recording overrun'' can result if the sound source
generates data faster than the computer can process it.
This generally happens when the -s (sample rate)
and/or -b (sample size) options are set too high.
If this happens, you might experience audio driver buffer
overflows and missing audio sections in the recorded file.
These error conditions are not usually detected by the audio
driver, although you might see console error messages.
Consult your sound card documentation for more information about
your hardware's limits.
References
mixer(1),
scosound(X1)
``Configuring audio adapters'' in the UnixWare 7 System Handbook
© 2004 The SCO Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
UnixWare 7 Release 7.1.4 - 25 April 2004