BaseAudioContext.state

The state read-only property of the BaseAudioContext interface returns the current state of the AudioContext.

Syntax

baseAudioContext.state;

Value

A DOMString. Possible values are:

• suspended: The audio context has been suspended (with the AudioContext.suspend() method.)
• running: The audio context is running normally.
• closed: The audio context has been closed (with the AudioContext.close() method.)

Examples

Handling state changes

The following snippet is taken from our AudioContext states demo (see it running live.) The AudioContext.onstatechange handler is used to log the current state to the console every time it changes.

audioCtx.onstatechange = function() {
  console.log(audioCtx.state);
}

Resuming interrupted play states in iOS Safari

In iOS Safari, when a user leaves the page (e.g. switches tabs, minimizes the browser, or turns off the screen) the audio context's state changes to "interrupted" and needs to be resumed. For example:

function play() {
  if (audioCtx.state === 'interrupted') {
    audioCtx.resume().then(() => play());
    return;
  }
  // ... rest of the play() function
}

Specifications

Browser compatibility

See also

• Using the Web Audio API