Dummy WAV File Generator
Every dummy WAV file is real 44.1 kHz stereo audio with a quiet 440 Hz tone, cut to the exact byte size you set.
Sample WAV files, ready to download:
One click, exact size (1 KB = 1,024 bytes), default options, built in your browser.
A dummy WAV file is a real WAV audio file made only for testing: a quiet 440 Hz tone in CD-quality PCM. Download one free at the exact size you need, from 1 KB to 1 GB. The size sets the length, so 1 MB plays for about 5.9 seconds and 10 MB for about a minute. Use it to test audio upload forms, players, transcoders and storage without passing a real recording around. For a smaller file that plays longer, use a dummy MP3 file.
How we check it: every generated file must be exactly the size you set and pass our own RIFF and PCM parser (chunk sizes, format, the 440 Hz tone); the last run on 13 November 2026 passed 223 of 223 runs across 22 formats, and every sample also decoded in headless Microsoft Edge (21 of 21 browser cases) (how the files are made and checked).
What is inside a dummy WAV file
A standard RIFF/WAVE file that any player reads (how we build and check these files):
- PCM audio, 44,100 Hz, 16-bit, two channels: the same format as a CD.
- A 440 Hz sine tone (the A above middle C) at about -12 dBFS, the same on both channels. It is quiet on purpose.
- Exactly 176,400 bytes of audio per second, so the length is the file size divided by 176,400, less a 44-byte header.
- When 1 to 3 bytes are left over, a tiny JUNK chunk at the end takes them. Players skip it, so the size is exact at every byte count.
What a dummy WAV file is used for
Audio upload limits
Podcast hosts, voicemail tools and support forms cap audio uploads. Test one byte under, at and over the limit with a file that really is audio.
Players and waveforms
A steady tone shows at once whether a player, a waveform preview or a level meter reads the file correctly.
Transcoding jobs
Feed a known-length WAV to an encoder or a media pipeline and check that the output length matches.
Media storage
Fill buckets and CDNs with uncompressed audio of predictable sizes to see where uploads slow down or time out.
How long is a WAV file of a given size?
Uncompressed audio grows at a fixed rate. At 44.1 kHz, 16-bit stereo that rate is 176,400 bytes per second, about 10 MB per minute. So 1 MB is about 5.9 seconds, 10 MB about 59 seconds and 100 MB about 9.9 minutes. That makes WAV handy when a test needs a long file of a precise size.
If your service limits duration rather than bytes, work backwards: a 30-second cap is 30 x 176,400 = 5,292,000 bytes of audio plus the 44-byte header.
Testing an audio upload limit
Set the unit to Bytes and make three files around the limit: one byte under, exactly at and one byte over. Unlike a renamed text file, these are real WAV files, so a server that inspects the content will accept the first two and should reject the third with a clear message. Run the same test with a dummy ZIP file if the form also takes archives.
| Limit | Size | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| nginx client_max_body_size (default) | 1 MB 1,048,576 B | Requests with a larger body get HTTP 413. |
| PHP upload_max_filesize (default) | 2 MB 2,097,152 B | Also capped by post_max_size, so raise both. |
| AWS Lambda synchronous invocation payload | 6 MB 6,291,456 B | Applies to request and response. |
| Amazon API Gateway REST API payload | 10 MB 10,485,760 B | Hard quota for REST APIs. |
| Outlook default attachment limit (Exchange accounts) | 10 MB 10,485,760 B | Administrators can change it. |
| Outlook attachment limit (internet accounts) | 20 MB 20,971,520 B | Per Microsoft Outlook guidance. |
| Gmail message size limit | 25 MB 26,214,400 B | Attachments grow about a third when encoded, so a 20 MB file can already be too big. |
| Cloudflare proxy request body (Free and Pro plans) | 100 MB 104,857,600 B | Larger requests return HTTP 413. |
WAV file details
- Extension
- WAV .wav
- MIME type
- audio/wav
- Smallest size
- 1 KB
- Largest size
- 1 GB
- Contents
- PCM WAV, 44.1 kHz, 16-bit stereo, a quiet 440 Hz tone; the length follows from the size
Dummy WAV file FAQ
Is the dummy WAV a real audio file?
Yes. It is a standard PCM WAV that browsers and media players decode. We check every generated file with our own RIFF parser and decode samples in a real browser.
What does the dummy WAV sound like?
A steady, quiet 440 Hz tone, the A above middle C, on both channels for the whole length. It is about a quarter of full volume.
How long is a 10 MB WAV file?
About 59 seconds. This WAV uses 176,400 bytes per second (44.1 kHz, 16-bit, stereo), so 10,485,760 bytes hold 59.4 seconds of audio.
How is the exact file size reached?
The audio data fills the file in whole sample frames. When 1 to 3 bytes are left over, a small JUNK chunk at the end takes them, and players skip it.
Should I test with WAV or MP3?
Use WAV when you need sound or a long, exact duration; use MP3 when you want a smaller file that plays longer. A dummy MP3 is silent, a dummy WAV is a tone.
How large can a dummy WAV file be?
From 1 KB up to 1 GB. A 1 GB WAV is about 1 hour 41 minutes of audio, built in your browser without using 1 GB of memory.
Is my audio uploaded?
No. The file is built in your browser and never sent to a server.