NAudio.SoundFile 3.3.0

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dotnet add package NAudio.SoundFile --version 3.3.0

NuGet\Install-Package NAudio.SoundFile -Version 3.3.0

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<PackageReference Include="NAudio.SoundFile" Version="3.3.0" />

For projects that support PackageReference, copy this XML node into the project file to reference the package.

<PackageVersion Include="NAudio.SoundFile" Version="3.3.0" />
                    

                            Directory.Packages.props

<PackageReference Include="NAudio.SoundFile" />
                    

                            Project file

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paket add NAudio.SoundFile --version 3.3.0

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#r "nuget: NAudio.SoundFile, 3.3.0"

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#:package NAudio.SoundFile@3.3.0

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#addin nuget:?package=NAudio.SoundFile&version=3.3.0
                    

                            Install as a Cake Addin

#tool nuget:?package=NAudio.SoundFile&version=3.3.0
                    

                            Install as a Cake Tool

The NuGet Team does not provide support for this client. Please contact its maintainers for support.

NAudio.SoundFile

Cross-platform audio file reading and writing for NAudio, backed by libsndfile.

Type	Role
`SoundFileReader`	`WaveStream` + `ISampleProvider` — decode WAV/AIFF/FLAC/Ogg/Opus/MP3
`SoundFileWriter`	`Stream` sink — encode WAV/AIFF/FLAC/Ogg-Vorbis/Opus/MP3
`SoundFileCapabilities`	query which codecs the installed libsndfile supports
`SoundFileException`	thrown on libsndfile errors (exposes `ErrorCode`)

This is the first cross-platform FLAC/Vorbis/Opus encoder in NAudio, and on Linux/macOS the first general-purpose decoder (there is no Media Foundation off Windows).

Platform

Truly cross-platform — net9.0, no [SupportedOSPlatform]. It P/Invokes a system libsndfile, resolved automatically per OS (libsndfile.so.1 / libsndfile.1.dylib / sndfile.dll / libsndfile-1.dll). You must provide it:

sudo apt install libsndfile1     # Debian/Ubuntu
brew install libsndfile          # macOS
vcpkg install libsndfile         # Windows (or the official binaries)

Not pulled in by the NAudio meta-package — reference it explicitly:

dotnet add package NAudio.SoundFile

Supported formats

Format	Read	Write	Requires
WAV, AIFF, AU, CAF, W64, RAW	✅	✅	always
FLAC	✅	✅	libsndfile built with libFLAC (typical)
Ogg/Vorbis	✅	✅	libvorbis (typical)
Ogg/Opus	✅	✅	libsndfile ≥ 1.0.29 + libopus
MP3	✅	✅	libsndfile ≥ 1.1.0

Codec availability depends on how libsndfile was built — query it:

foreach (var f in SoundFileCapabilities.GetSupportedMajorFormats())
    Console.WriteLine(f);
bool canFlac = SoundFileCapabilities.IsFormatSupported(SoundFileMajorFormat.Flac);

AAC / M4A / ALAC / WMA are out of scope (the MPEG-4 family is FFmpeg territory).

Read any file

SoundFileReader decodes to 32-bit float, so it is both a WaveStream and an ISampleProvider:

using NAudio.SoundFile;
using NAudio.Wave;

using var reader = new SoundFileReader("song.flac");
Console.WriteLine($"{reader.WaveFormat} {reader.TotalTime}");
// feed it into any NAudio output, mixer or sample pipeline

Write FLAC / Ogg / Opus

using (var source = new SoundFileReader("in.wav"))
    SoundFileWriter.CreateSoundFile("out.flac", source,
        SoundFileMajorFormat.Flac,
        new SoundFileWriterOptions { CompressionLevel = 0.8 });

// Ogg Vorbis at VBR quality 0.6, with tags
using (var source = new SoundFileReader("in.wav"))
    SoundFileWriter.CreateSoundFile("out.ogg", source,
        SoundFileMajorFormat.OggVorbis,
        new SoundFileWriterOptions
        {
            VbrQuality = 0.6,
            Tags = new SoundFileTags { Title = "Demo", Artist = "NAudio" }
        });

Read embedded metadata back:

using var reader = new SoundFileReader("song.flac");
Console.WriteLine($"{reader.Tags.Artist} – {reader.Tags.Title}");
Console.WriteLine(SoundFileCapabilities.LibraryVersion);

The output format is also inferred from the extension:

SoundFileWriter.CreateSoundFile("out.flac", source); // → FLAC

Streams

Both ends work over a System.IO.Stream (via libsndfile virtual I/O):

using var ms = new MemoryStream();
SoundFileWriter.WriteSoundFileToStream(ms, source, SoundFileMajorFormat.OggVorbis, null);
ms.Position = 0;
using var reader = new SoundFileReader(ms);   // stream not disposed by the reader

FLAC/Ogg/Opus/MP3 stream fine to a forward-only target; WAV/AIFF back-patch their header at close and require a seekable stream (the writer throws early if you pair a non-seekable stream with such a format).

Notes

The writer accepts 16-bit PCM or 32-bit IEEE float input — the two container types NAudio pipelines naturally produce. Convert other formats with SampleToWaveProvider16 or .ToSampleProvider() first.
AOT-compatible: source-generated [LibraryImport], SafeHandle lifetime, and [UnmanagedCallersOnly] virtual-I/O callbacks.
The wrapper is MIT; libsndfile itself is LGPL-2.1+ and supplied by the user as a system library (no binary is shipped) — the same model as NAudio.Alsa.

Tutorial

For a worked walkthrough (reading, encoding, format conversion, streams, tags, capability detection) see Cross-platform audio file reading and writing with NAudio.SoundFile.

Documentation

See the NAudio documentation site for tutorials and the full API reference, or the GitHub repository for source, issues and demos.

License

MIT.

Product	Compatible and additional computed target framework versions.
.NET	net9.0 is compatible. net9.0-android was computed. net9.0-browser was computed. net9.0-ios was computed. net9.0-maccatalyst was computed. net9.0-macos was computed. net9.0-tvos was computed. net9.0-windows was computed. net10.0 was computed. net10.0-android was computed. net10.0-browser was computed. net10.0-ios was computed. net10.0-maccatalyst was computed. net10.0-macos was computed. net10.0-tvos was computed. net10.0-windows was computed.

Product

.NET

Compatible target framework(s)

Included target framework(s) (in package)

Learn more about Target Frameworks and .NET Standard.

net9.0
- NAudio.Core (>= 3.3.0)

NuGet packages (4)

Showing the top 4 NuGet packages that depend on NAudio.SoundFile:

Package	Downloads
NAudio.Sampler A cross-platform software sampler for NAudio that plays MIDI through SoundFont (.sf2) and SFZ instruments, or a single sample mapped across the keyboard. Polyphonic voice engine with DAHDSR envelopes, LFOs, modulated filters, the SF2 modulator engine and reverb/chorus sends, exposed as an ISampleProvider.	2.3K
Void.Engine Modular 2D game framework for .NET with pluggable rendering, SDL3 platform support, OpenAL audio, asset management, pathfinding, coroutines, LDtk support, encrypted saving, and post-processing.	1.2K
victor-wiki.WhisperSharp Convert audio to text, it's C# version of OpenAI Whisper. Currently, it only supports cpu.	133
mdimai666.Mars.PlayAudioNodePlugin Mars.PlayAudioNodePlugin - provide play audio functions for Mars - Play audio - List output devices	120

GitHub repositories (2)

Showing the top 2 popular GitHub repositories that depend on NAudio.SoundFile:

Repository	Stars
purelogiccode/SimpleLauncher Simple Launcher is an open-source emulator frontend. Designed for both casual gamers and power users, it provides a seamless interface to organize, browse, and launch your retro gaming collection with deep integration for modern emulators and RetroAchievements.	264
Shmellyorc/Void A modular, extensible 2D game framework for .NET.	110

Version	Downloads	Last Updated
3.3.0	223	10/19/2026
3.3.0-preview.1	53	10/17/2026
3.2.0	627	10/15/2026
3.2.0-preview.1	60	10/13/2026
3.1.1-preview.2	107	9/21/2026
3.1.1-preview.1	91	9/8/2026
3.1.0	5,382	9/7/2026
3.1.0-preview.2	95	9/5/2026
3.1.0-preview.1	73	9/4/2026
3.0.2-preview.2	97	8/27/2026
3.0.2-preview.1	90	8/20/2026
3.0.1	703	8/18/2026
3.0.1-preview.1	96	8/17/2026
3.0.0	299	8/15/2026
3.0.0-preview.20	148	8/8/2026
3.0.0-preview.19	100	7/25/2026
3.0.0-preview.18	343	7/16/2026
3.0.0-preview.17	99	7/11/2026
3.0.0-preview.16	145	7/1/2026
3.0.0-preview.15	91	6/28/2026

A packaging and nullability release. The `NAudio` meta-package is now a single
`net9.0` package that brings the Windows backends (WinMM and WASAPI) to plain
`netX.0` projects, so a `net10.0` console app on Windows gets working MP3
decoding and playback rather than a cross-platform subset that threw
`NotSupportedException`. In exchange it no longer pulls in `NAudio.Asio`,
`NAudio.Dmo` or `NAudio.WinForms`, which must now be referenced directly if
used. `NAudio.WinMM`, `NAudio.Asio`, `NAudio.Dmo` and `NAudio.Vst3` likewise
now target plain `net9.0`.

Every NAudio package is now compiled with nullable reference types enabled.
This is a source-level change with no binary breaks, but projects with
nullable enabled may see new warnings, and a number of members that used to
throw `NullReferenceException` now throw `ObjectDisposedException` or
`InvalidOperationException` instead.

The fixes centre on `WasapiRecorder`/`WasapiCapture` restarting cleanly after
both successful and failed starts, buffer and handle lifetime bugs in the
winmm MIDI backend, and frame-aligned seeking in `MediaFoundationReader`.

* **Breaking:** the `NAudio` meta-package is now a single `net9.0` package that pulls in `NAudio.Core`, `NAudio.Midi`, `NAudio.WinMM` and `NAudio.Wasapi` on every target framework. A plain `netX.0` project on Windows (e.g. a console app on `net10.0`) now gets `Mp3FileReader`, `WaveOut`, `WasapiPlayer` and an `AudioFileReader` that reads MP3, where previously it silently got a cross-platform subset that threw `NotSupportedException` (#1472). It **no longer includes `NAudio.Asio`, `NAudio.Dmo` or `NAudio.WinForms`**: add those packages if you use `AsioOut`/`AsioDevice`, `DirectSoundOut` or the DMO effects, or `WaveOutWindow`/`WaveInWindow`/the `NAudio.Gui` controls. `AudioFileReader` now chooses its Media Foundation/ACM paths at runtime, and off Windows its `NotSupportedException` messages point to `NAudio.SoundFile`. `NAudio.Extras` is now single-target `net9.0`, with `AudioPlaybackEngine` marked Windows-only (#1485)
* `NAudio.WinMM`, `NAudio.Asio`, `NAudio.Dmo` and `NAudio.Vst3` now target plain `net9.0` instead of `net9.0-windows`, matching `NAudio.Wasapi`. They remain Windows-only, enforced by `[SupportedOSPlatform("windows")]`, but can now be referenced directly from a plain `netX.0` project (calls show `CA1416` warnings unless guarded or the project is marked Windows-only) and built on Linux/macOS without `EnableWindowsTargeting`. No change for projects targeting `netX.0-windows` (#1482)
* **Nullable reference types in NAudio.Core** - `NAudio.Core` is now compiled with nullable reference types enabled, so its public API carries nullability annotations (e.g. `WaveFileReader.ReadNextSampleFrame` and `Mp3Frame.LoadFromStream` return nullable types, and `Mp3Frame.RawData` is `byte[]?` when a frame is read without its data). This is a source-level change only: there are no binary breaks, but projects with nullable enabled may see new warnings, and overrides of NAudio.Core virtual members may need matching annotations. `XingHeader.LoadXingHeader` now returns `null` for a frame read without its data instead of throwing. Thanks to @Seb-stian (#1452)
* **Nullable reference types in NAudio.Midi** - `NAudio.Midi` is now also compiled with nullable reference types enabled (e.g. `MidiInMessageEventArgs.MidiEvent` and `NoteOnEvent.OffEvent` are nullable). Source-level change only; projects with nullable enabled may see new warnings. `MidiEvent.ReadNextEvent` now throws `FormatException` instead of `NullReferenceException` for running status with no previous event, and `RawMetaEvent` treats null data as empty (#825)
* **Nullable reference types in NAudio.WinMM** - `NAudio.WinMM` is now compiled with nullable reference types enabled (e.g. `AcmDriver.FindByShortName` and `WaveCapabilitiesHelpers.GetNameFromGuid` return nullable types, and `AcmDriver.ShowFormatChooseDialog` has nullable `out` parameters). Source-level change only; projects with nullable enabled may see new warnings. `WaveOut.OutputWaveFormat` before `Init` now throws `InvalidOperationException`, `AcmStream` members throw `ObjectDisposedException` after dispose, and `GetNameFromGuid` returns null instead of throwing when the registry key is missing, where each previously threw `NullReferenceException` (#825)
* **Nullable reference types in NAudio.SoundFile and NAudio.Sampler** - both packages are now compiled with nullable reference types enabled (e.g. the `SoundFileTags` fields, `SoundFileWriterOptions.Tags` and `SoundFileException.Function` are nullable, and the `TryLoad` methods on `WaveSampleLoader` / `ISfzSampleLoader` mark `left` as non-null on success and `right` as null for mono). Source-level change only; projects with nullable enabled may see new warnings, and custom `ISfzSampleLoader` implementations may need matching annotations (#825)
* **Nullable reference types in NAudio.WinForms, NAudio.Alsa and NAudio.Extras** - these packages are now compiled with nullable reference types enabled (e.g. `WaveViewer.WaveStream`, `AlsaException.Function` and the control/device events are nullable). Source-level change only; projects with nullable enabled may see new warnings. `AlsaOut.OutputWaveFormat` and `WaveOutWindow.OutputWaveFormat` now throw `InvalidOperationException` before `Init` (previously null and `NullReferenceException` respectively), and `WaveOutWindow.Play` before `Init` throws `InvalidOperationException` instead of `NullReferenceException` (#825)
* **Nullable reference types in NAudio.Asio** - `NAudio.Asio` is now compiled with nullable reference types enabled (e.g. the optional `AsioPlaybackOptions.OutputChannels` / `AsioDuplexOptions.InputChannels`, the `AsioDevice`/`AsioOut` events and the `AsioDriverExt` callbacks are nullable; required option members such as `Source` and `Processor` stay non-nullable). Source-level change only; projects with nullable enabled may see new warnings. `AsioOut` members now throw `ObjectDisposedException` after `Dispose` and `AsioOut.OutputWaveFormat` throws `InvalidOperationException` when no playback source is initialised, where they previously threw `NullReferenceException` or returned null (#825)
* **Nullable reference types in NAudio.Dmo** - `NAudio.Dmo` is now compiled with nullable reference types enabled (e.g. `DirectSoundOut.PlaybackStopped` and `DirectSoundDeviceInfo.ModuleName` are nullable). Source-level change only; projects with nullable enabled may see new warnings. `DirectSoundOut.OutputWaveFormat` now throws `InvalidOperationException` before `Init` instead of returning null, and the `MediaObject` wrappers, `DmoResampler.MediaObject`, `WindowsMediaMp3Decoder.MediaObject` and `DmoOutputDataBuffer.MediaBuffer` throw `ObjectDisposedException` after `Dispose` instead of returning null or throwing `NullReferenceException` (#825)
* **Nullable reference types in NAudio.Wasapi (CoreAudioApi and MediaFoundation)** - the `NAudio.CoreAudioApi` and `NAudio.MediaFoundation` types are now annotated for nullable reference types (e.g. `AudioClient.TryGetAcousticEchoCancellationControl`, `MMDeviceEnumerator.TryGetDefaultAudioEndpoint`, `MfSourceReader.ReadSample`, `PropertyStoreProperty.Value` and `Part.AudioVolumeLevel`/`AudioMute`/`JackDescription` are nullable); `WasapiOut`, `WasapiCapture` and the other top-level classes follow in a separate change. Source-level change only; projects with nullable enabled may see new warnings. The CoreAudio and Media Foundation COM wrappers now throw `ObjectDisposedException` when used after `Dispose` instead of `NullReferenceException`, `AudioSessionManager.Sessions` throws `InvalidOperationException` instead of returning null when sessions are unavailable, and `AudioSessionControl.AudioMeterInformation` / `SimpleAudioVolume` throw `NotSupportedException` instead of returning null if the session does not expose those interfaces (#825)
* **Nullable reference types in NAudio.Wasapi (playback, capture and Media Foundation classes)** - `WasapiOut`, `WasapiCapture`, `WasapiPlayer`, `WasapiRecorder`, their builders and `MediaFoundationReader`/`StreamMediaFoundationReader`/`MediaFoundationEncoder` are now annotated too, completing NAudio.Wasapi (e.g. `WasapiPlayer`/`WasapiRecorder.DeviceId` and `DeviceFriendlyName`, `LowLatencyUnavailableReason`, `WasapiRecorder.AcousticEchoCancellationControl`, `WasapiPlayer.GetSupportedExclusiveFormat`, `MediaFoundationEncoder.SelectMediaType` and the playback/recording events are nullable). Source-level change only; projects with nullable enabled may see new warnings. The WASAPI classes now throw `ObjectDisposedException` when used after `Dispose`, and report `InvalidOperationException` instead of `NullReferenceException` through `PlaybackStopped` when playback is started without `Init` (#825)
* **Nullable reference types in NAudio.MacOS** - `NAudio.MacOS` is now compiled with nullable reference types enabled (e.g. `AudioSystemObject.DefaultInputDevice`/`DefaultOutputDevice`, the `ConvertUIDToDevice`-style lookups, `AudioObject.Owner`, `AudioDevice.Icon`, `ExtendedAudioFileReaderSettings.OutputFormat`, `ExtendedAudioFileWriterSettings.FileType`/`ProvidingFormat` and the player, recorder and property-listener events are nullable). Source-level change only; projects with nullable enabled may see new warnings. Object-list properties such as `AudioSystemObject.Devices` now skip unknown object IDs instead of returning null entries, the parameterless `CoreAudioPlayer`/`CoreAudioRecorder` constructors throw `InvalidOperationException` instead of `ArgumentNullException` when there is no default device, and `ExtendedAudioFileWriter` captures `ProvidingFormat` when created rather than re-reading the settings object on every write (#825)
* Fixed `WasapiRecorder` and `WasapiCapture` failing with `AUDCLNT_E_ALREADY_INITIALIZED` when restarted after a start that failed late in initialization (e.g. no AEC reference control); the original error is now reported again (#1493)
* Fixed `WasapiRecorder` and `WasapiCapture` being left in the `Starting` state when initialization throws, so later `StartRecording` calls failed with `"Already recording"`. (#1490)
* Fixed `WasapiRecorder` not able to re-start after successfully stopping the recorder. (#1479)
* Fixed several buffer and handle lifetime bugs in the winmm MIDI backend: `MidiOut.SendBuffer` no longer frees a sysex buffer while the driver may still own it, `MidiIn` now stops input before resetting it, and neither class calls into winmm with a handle it never opened. `MidiOut.SendBuffer` now blocks until the driver releases the buffer and throws `MmException` if the send fails (#1478)
* Fixed `MediaFoundationReader` reporting a `Position` that was not a whole number of frames after seeking a compressed file (e.g. MP3 or AAC), up to a frame before the requested position, and a `Length` that could include a partial frame. Seeks now round down to a frame boundary and land exactly on it (#1488)