Read on your own device · nothing uploaded
Sound wave poster maker
Record a few words, or drop in a song, and watch its sound wave draw itself as a poster: bars, a line or a circle, with the words you choose under it. Pick a size and download a print-ready PDF for US$9.99. The sound never leaves your device.
A small preview. The files are full size, 300 dpi.
US$9.99 one-off · download
- Your own sound, drawn in a minute, on your device: bars, a line or a circle, light or dark.
- Five print sizes: 18 × 24, 24 × 36, 16 × 20 and 11 × 14 inches, and A2 (which also prints well at A3 and A4), as PDFs and a 300 dpi picture, portrait or landscape.
- A scan-to-listen code if you give a link, and a phone picture. Change the words any time: the download page keeps working.
You pay on Stripe’s secure page; any sales tax is shown there. Refunds: 30 days, no questions asked. The sound stays on this device: the payment page gets only the product.
What the wave shows
A sound wave poster draws how loud a recording is from its first moment to its last. Each bar, or each point on the line, is a slice of time; a tall bar is a loud moment, a gap is a pause for breath. That is why two people saying the same words make two different posters, and why a child’s first word, a wedding vow or the chorus of a song each have a shape of their own.
Recording well
Hold the phone a hand’s width from the mouth, in a quiet room, and leave a short silence before and after: the maker trims silence at both ends by itself. A file from a voice-note app works just as well as recording here. For a song, use the file you own; the maker reads it on your device and keeps nothing of it.
The code that plays it
The poster can carry a small square code that opens a web address when a phone camera is pointed at it: a shared voice note, a song page, a video. Type the address in the link box and the code appears in the corner of the preview. We never host or fetch the sound; if the address stops working, the code does too, so pick one you control. The code is drawn in the files at full size and scans when you hold a phone close to it.
What you get
After paying you make the files on your own device: a PDF in the size you chose, a PDF holding all five sizes (18 × 24, 24 × 36, 16 × 20 and 11 × 14 inches, and A2 (which also prints well at A3 and A4)), a 300 dpi picture of the chosen size, and a tall picture for a phone screen. The PDFs are true vector files and print sharp at any size.
The poster costs US$9.99, once. Everything on this page before the buy button is free to try, with a preview watermark. Looking for a family tree poster instead? That maker is on the home page.
Questions about the sound wave poster
What sound can I use?
Anything your phone or computer can play: a voice note, a child saying a word, a laugh, a vow, a song you have the file for. Record it here, or choose a file. From half a second to ten minutes; a long song is simply drawn more compressed.
Does my recording get uploaded?
No. Your browser reads the sound and turns it into a few hundred loudness numbers, which are what the poster draws. The recording itself is never sent to us or kept by the site, and a voice cannot be rebuilt from those numbers.
What is the scan-to-listen code?
If you give a web address where the sound can be played (a shared voice note, a song page, a video), the poster carries a small square code that opens it when scanned with a phone camera. We do not host the sound; the link is yours. Anyone who can see the poster can open it, and the site behind the link sees each visit, so choose a link you are happy to share. Leave the box empty for no code.
Which shape should I pick?
Bars suit short, spoken things: each bar is a moment. The line suits songs. The circle suits a single word or a heartbeat-like sound, and sits well on a square or portrait frame. Try all three: the preview changes as you click.
What do I get, and how do I print it?
A PDF in the size you chose and a PDF with all five sizes, a 300 dpi picture of the chosen size, and a phone picture. Print the PDF at 100% at home, or upload it to any print shop; the sizes are the common frame sizes.
Can I change the words after paying?
Yes. The download page holds the same boxes. Change the title or the look and make the files again, as often as you like. Bookmark the page: its link keeps working.
Can I get my money back?
Refunds: 30 days, no questions asked. Email us within 30 days of buying and we refund you in full.