WAV Files

WAV is a data directory which contains examples of WAV files. The WAV format is one of the simplest for storing audio information. The data is stored "in the raw" with no preprocessing. The WAV format is a Microsoft proprietary format, and is a special case of the RIFF (Resource Interchange File Format) format.

A WAV file contains three chunks of information:

• the RIFF chunk (12 bytes) identifies the file as a WAV file.
• the FORMAT chunk (24 bytes) identifies parameters such as the sample rate.
• the DATA chunk contains the actual samples.

WAV File characteristics:

• binary

Licensing:

The computer code and data files described and made available on this web page are distributed under the GNU LGPL license.

Reference:

1. Gunter Born,
   The File Formats Handbook,
   ITP, 1995.
2. Tim Kientzle,
   Internet File Formats,
   Coriolus Group Books, 1995.

Sample Files:

• thermo.wav, Homer Simpson declares that "In this house, we obey the laws of thermodynamics!";
• woman.wav, the opening bars of "American Woman" by The Guess Who;

You can go up one level to the DATA page.