libflac.js

FLAC data stream encoder and decoder compiled in JavaScript using emscripten.

Features

available as pure JavaScript, JavaScript+binary, JavaScript+WASM
encode/decode data all-at-once (~ file) or chunk-by-chunk (~ stream)
supported container formats: native FLAC container (*.flac), OGG container (*.ogg)

For immediate use, the /dist sub-directory contains the compiled files for the libflac.js JavaScript library, as well as a minified version.

Complied from libFLAC (static C library) version: 1.3.3
Used library libogg (static C library) version: 1.3.4
Used compiler Emscripten version: 1.39.19
Used compiler Emscripten toolchain: LLVM (upstream)

In order to build libflac.js, make sure you have emscripten installed (with toolchain LLVM/upstream; default since version 1.39.x).

On running make, the build process will download the sources for the FLAC and OGG libraries, extract them, and build the JavaScript version of libflac.

IMPORTANT changes for version 5.x: simplified naming scheme and library location!

removed version information from library file names, e.g.
libflac4-1.3.2.min.js -> libflac.min.js

moved all library files directly into dist/, i.e. there are no sub-directories dist/min/ and dist/dev/ anymore

Encoder Demo
Try the Encoding Demo for encoding *.wav files to FLAC. Or try the speech-to-flac demo that encodes the audio stream from a microphone to FLAC.

Decoder Demo
Try the Decoding Demo for decoding *.flac files to *.wav files. TODO example for decoding a FLAC audio stream (i.e. where data/size is not known beforehand).

API Documentation
See doc/index.html for the API documentation.

Usage
Building
Contributors
Acknowledgments
License

Usage

Including libflac.js

Browser

Include the library file, e.g. if library file(s) libflac.js is in the same directory as the referencing HTML file:

<script src="libflac.js" type="text/javascript"></script>

WebWorker

Import the library file, e.g. if library file(s) libflac.js is in the same directory as the referencing worker script file:

importScripts('libflac.js');

Node

In Node.js: install with npm

 # install from npm 
npm install --save libflacjs
 
 # install latest from master branch 
npm install --save git+https://github.com/mmig/libflac.js.git

then, use factory method for loading one of the library variants:

 
//load default/release asm.js variant:
var Flac = require('libflacjs')();
 
// use one of the optimization-variants:
//  * <empty> / "release"
//  * "min"
//  * "dev"
// use one of the technology-variants:
//  * <empty> / "asmjs"
//  * "wasm"
//
// can be combined with dot, e.g. "min.wasm":
var FlacFactory = require('libflacjs');
var Flac = FlacFactory('min.wasm');
Flac.on('ready', function(event){
  ...

Alternatively, instead of loading via the factory method, the library variants can also be required directly:

// for example:
var Flac = require('libflacjs/dist/libflac.js');
// or
var Flac = require('libflacjs/dist/libflac.wasm.js');

React/webpack

For reactjs: install with npm (see above), and require() the library file directly, like

// for example:
var Flac = require('libflacjs/dist/libflac.js');
// or
var Flac = require('libflacjs/dist/libflac.wasm.js');

NOTE min and wasm variants will most likely require additional configuration of the build system, see also section about webpack integration

Angular/webpack

For Angular (TypeScript): install with npm (see above), and import the library file directly, like

// for example:
import * as Flac from 'libflacjs/dist/libflac';
// or
import * as Flac from 'libflacjs/dist/libflac.wasm';

NOTE unfortunately, current typings do not allow to set Flac.onready when imported this way. This limitation can be worked around by casting to any, i.e.

(Flac.onready as any) = (evt: Flac.ReadyEvent) => console.log('Flac is ready now: ', evt.target);

Or use Flac.on('ready', ... instead, or import with require statement, e.g. like

import * as FlacModule from 'libflacjs/dist/index.d';//import declaration file for typings
 
declare var require: Function;//NOTE most likely, the require function needs to be explicitly declared, if other envorinments than node are targeted
 
const Flac: typeof FlacModule = require('libflacjs/dist/libflac.js');

NOTE min and wasm variants will most likely require additional configuration of the build system, see also section about async webpack integration

WebWorker with webpack

When using libflac.js from a WebWorker in a webpack project, the worker-loader plugin is required, e.g. install with

npm install --save-dev worker-loader

Then include a rule in the webpack configuration, so that the file with the WebWorker implementation will be built as a seperate script:
in the module.rules array add an entry, e.g. if the file name is flacworker.js something similar to

{
  //this must match the file-name of the worker script:
  test:  /\bflacworker\.js$/i,
  use: {
    loader: 'worker-loader',
    options: { name: 'worker-[name].[hash].js' }
  }
},

See section Async Initialization with webpack for additional details, in case the included library variant includes a binary or *.wasm file.

Then for creating the WebWorker instance use something like

// var flacWorker = new Worker('flacworker.js'); //<- normal way to create a WebWorker instance
var flacWorker = require('./flacworker.js')();   //<- create a WebWorker instance with webpack worker-loader plugin
 
flacWorker.onmessage = function(event) {
 console.log('received message from flacWorker ', event.data);
}
 
flacWorker.postMessage(...

In the WebWorker script itself, do load the libflac.js library like

//importScripts('libflac.js');//<- normal way to load a script within a WebWorker
 
// for including a "single file variant" of libflac.js, e.g. the standard version:
var Flac = require('libflacjs/dist/libflac.js');
 
// OR for including a .wasm variant, e.g standard-wasm (for binary of min-version include its *.mem file):
require.resolve('libflacjs/dist/libflac.wasm.wasm') // <- force webpack to include the binary file
var Flac = require('libflacjs/dist/libflac.wasm.js')
 
self.onmessage = function(event) {
 console.log('received message from main thread ', event.data);
}

Async Initialization

Including dynamically loaded libflac.js:

Some variants of the libflac.js library are loaded asynchronously (e.g. minimized/optimized variants may load a separate binary file during initialization of the library).

In this case, you have to make sure, not to use libflac.js before it has been completely loaded / initialized.

Code example:

 
//either use Flac.on() or set handler Flac.onready:
Flac.on('ready', function(event){
  var libFlac = event.target;
  //NOTE: Flac === libFlac
 
  //execute code that uses libflac.js:
  someFunctionForProcessingFLAC();
};
 
//... or set handler
Flac.onready = function(event){
  var libFlac = event.target;
  //NOTE: Flac === libFlac
 
  //execute code that uses libflac.js:
  someFunctionForProcessingFLAC();
};
 
 
// IMPORTANT: if execution environment does not support Object.defineProperty, then
//            setting the handler will have no effect, if Flac is already initialized.
//            In this case, the ready-state needs to be checked, and if already TRUE,
//            the handler-code should be triggered immediately insteady of setting
//            the handler.
if( !Flac.isReady() ){
  Flac.onready = function(event){
    var libFlac = event.target;
    //NOTE: Flac === libFlac
 
    //call function that uses libflac.js:
    someFunctionForProcessingFLAC();
  };
} else {
 
  //execute code that uses libflac.js:
  someFunctionForProcessingFLAC();
}

NOTE: If Object.defineProperty() is not supported in the execution environment, then the onready() handler will not be called, when the library already has been initialized before assigning it to Flac.onready (i.e. when Flac.isReady() returns true). In this case, you should check Flac.isReady() and provide alternative code execution to the onready() function, in case Flac.isReady() is true (or use Flac.on('ready', ...) instead).

Including Dynamically Loaded libflac.js from Non-Default Location

Variants of the libflac.js library that are loaded asynchronously do usually also load some additional files.

If the library-file is not loaded from the default location ("page root"), but from a sub-directory/-path, you need to let the library know, so that it searches for the additional files, that it needs to load, in that sub-directory/-path.

For this, the path/location must be stored in the global variable FLAC_SCRIPT_LOCATION before the libflac.js library is loaded. If FLAC_SCRIPT_LOCATION is given as string, it specifies the path to the libflac.js files (see examples below), e.g.

//location example as string:
FLAC_SCRIPT_LOCATION = 'libs/';

Note, that the path/location should end with a slash ("/"), e.g. 'some/path/' (however, the library will try to automatically add a slash, if it is missing).

If FLAC_SCRIPT_LOCATION is given as an object, it specifies mappings of the file-names to the file-paths of the libflac.js files (see examples below), e.g.

//location example as object/mapping:
FLAC_SCRIPT_LOCATION = {
  'libflac.min.js.mem': 'libs/flac.mem'
};

An example for specifying the path/location at libs/ in an HTML file:

  <script type="text/javascript">window.FLAC_SCRIPT_LOCATION = 'libs/';</script> 
  <script src="libs/libflac.js" type="text/javascript"></script>

Or example for specifying the path/location at libs/ in a WebWorker script:

  self.FLAC_SCRIPT_LOCATION = 'libs/';
  importScripts('libs/libflac.js');

Or example for specifying the path/location at libs/ in Node.js script:

  process.env.FLAC_SCRIPT_LOCATION = './libs/';
  var Flac = require('./libs/libflac.js');

NOTE: setting FLAC_UMD_MODE has no effect since v5.0.1: automatic export to global namespace has been dropped in case of loading as AMD or CommonJS module, i.e. setting process.env.FLAC_UMD_MODE = true when running in Node.js will have no effect anymore, instead export manually to global namespace, e.g. with global.Flac = require('libflacjs')().

Example for specifying custom path and file-name via mapping (originalFileName -> <newPath/newFileName>):
in this case, the file-name(s) of the additionally required files (e.g. *.mem or .wasm files) need to be mapped to the custom path/file-name(s), that is, for all the required files of the used library variant (see details below).

  self.FLAC_SCRIPT_LOCATION = {
    'libflac.min.js.mem': 'libs/flac.mem'
  };
  importScripts('libs/flac.min.js');

Async Initialization with webpack

When using libflac.js in a webpack build process and a library variant with binary files (e.g. min variant with *.mem files or wasm variant with *.wasm files) is targeted, then the file-loader plugin for webpack is required, e.g. install with

npm install --save-dev file-loader

Then include a rule in the webpack configuration, so that the file with the binary files will be included with the correct file names that libflac.js expects:
in the module.rules array add an entry, e.g. if the file name is flacworker.js something similar to

{
  test: /\.(wasm|mem)$/i,
  use: {
    loader: 'file-loader',
    options: {
      //NOTE binary file must be included with its original file name,
      //     so that libflac.js lib can find it:
      name: function(file) {
        return path.basename(file)
      }
    }
  },
},

Alterantively to using the exact file name of the binary files, FLAC_SCRIPT_LOCATION could be configured to use the file name generated by file-loader plugin, see details above for configuring FLAC_SCRIPT_LOCATION

Library Variants

default vs `min` vs `dev`

There are multiple variants available for the library, that are compiled with different settings for debug-output and code optimization, namely debug, min, and the default (release) library variants.

`asm.js` vs `WASM`

In addition, for each of these variants, there is now a wasm variant (WebAssembly) available: the old/default variants are compiled for asm.js which is "normal" JavaScript, with some optimizations that browsers can take advantage of by specifically supporting asm.js (e.g. FireFox).

(from the Emscripten documentation)

WebAssembly is a new binary format for executing code on the web, allowing much faster start times (smaller download, much faster parsing in browsers)

In short, the (old) asm.js is backwards compatible, since it is simply JavaScript (and browsers that specifically support it, can execute it optimized/more efficiently), while the new WebAssembly format requires more recent/modern browsers, but is generally more efficient with regard to code size and execution time.

Example `WASM` Feature Detection

simple detection of WASM support in browser:

var Flac;
if(typeof WebAssembly === 'object' && WebAssembly){
  //load wasm-based library
  Flac = require('libflac.min.wasm.js');
  //or, for example, in worker script: importScripts('libflac.min.wasm.js');
} else {
  //load asm.js-based library
  Flac = require('libflac.min.js');
  //or, for example, in worker script: importScripts('libflac.min.js');
}

Variants and Notes

NOTE the WebAssembly variant does not create/encode "binary-perfect" FLAC files compared to the other library variants, or compared to the FLAC command-line tool.
More specifically, comparing the encoding results byte-by-byte with encoding results from the asm.js variants, or separately encoded data using the FLAC command-line tool, results are different for the WebAssembly variant. However, the reverse operation, decoding these "binary-different" FLAC files (using WebAssembly, or asm.js or the command-line tool) results in the same WAV data again.
It seems, the WebAssembly variant chooses different frame-sizes while encoding; e.g. the max. frame-size may differ from when encoding with the asm.js variant or with the command-line tool.

NOTES for dynamically loaded library variants:

the corresponding required files must be included in the same directory as the library/JavaScript file
the additional required files file must not be renamed (or the library/JavaScript file must be edited accordingly)
see also the section above for handling dynamically loaded library variants, and, if appropriate, the section for including dynamically loaded libraries from a sub-path/location

Default Library:

(see /dist)

ASM.js Variant:
- libflac.js
WebAssembly variant (dynamically loaded):
- libflac.wasm.js
- libflac.wasm.wasm (required; will be loaded by the library)
- libflac.wasm.js.symbols (optional; contains renaming information)

Minified Library:

(see /dist)

ASM.js Variant (dynamically loaded):
- libflac.min.js
- libflac.min.js.mem (required; will be loaded by the library)
- libflac.min.js.symbols (optional; contains renaming information)
WebAssembly variant (dynamically loaded):
- libflac.min.wasm.js
- libflac.min.wasm.wasm (required; will be loaded by the library)
- libflac.min.wasm.js.symbols (optional; contains renaming information)

Development Library:

(see /dist)

ASM.js Variant:
- libflac.dev.js
- ~~libflac.dev.js.map (optional; mapping to C code)~~ currently not supported by LLVM toolchain
- libflac.dev.js.symbols (optional; contains renaming information)
WebAssembly variant (dynamically loaded):
- libflac.dev.wasm.js
- libflac.dev.wasm.wasm (required; will be loaded by the library)
- libflac.dev.wasm.js.map (optional; mapping to C code)

Encoding with libflac.js

Generally, libflac.js supports a subset of the libflac encoding interface for encoding audio data to FLAC (no full support yet!).

Supported encoding types:

encode from PCM data all-at-once
encode from PCM data chunk-by-chunk (i.e. streaming)

Supported target containers:

native FLAC container
OGG transport container

See example/encode.html for a small example, on how to encode a WAV file.

For a larger example on how to encode audio data from the microphone see the Speech to FLAC example.

Basic steps for encoding:

create encoder

specify encoding parameters, like channels, sampling rate, compression level etc.

initialize encoder

for native FLAC container or OGG container
specify write callback and/or other optional callback(s)

encode data (chunks)
finish encoding
delete encoder

Encoding Example

Encoding example using the utility class Encoder

 
const Flac = require('libflacjs')();
//or as import (see section "Including libflac.js" for more details):
// import * as flacFactory from 'libflacjs';
// const Flac = flacFactory();
 
const Encoder = require('libflacjs/lib/encoder').Encoder;
//or as import:
//import { Encoder } from 'libflacjs/lib/encoder';
 
//helper function for converting interleaved audio to list of channel-audio
//(for actual code, see example in tools/test/util/utils-enc.ts):
//  function deinterleave(Int32Array, channels) => Int32Array[]
 
//NOTE if async-library variant is used, should wait for initialization:
//Flac.onready(function(){ ...
 
const data = new Int32Array(someAudioData);//<- someAudioData: PCM audio data converted to Int32Array samples
 
const encodingMode = 'interleaved';// "interleaved" | "channels"
 
const encoder = new Encoder(flac, {
  sampleRate: sampleRate,         // number, e.g. 44100
  channels: channels,             // number, e.g. 1 (mono), 2 (stereo), ...
  bitsPerSample: bitsPerSample,   // number, e.g. 8 or 16 or 24
  compression: compressionLevel,  // number, value between [0, 8] from low to high compression
  verify: true                    // boolean (OPTIONAL)
  isOgg: false                    // boolean (OPTIONAL), if encode FLAC should be wrapped in OGG container
});
 
if(encodingMode === 'interleaved'){
 
  //encode interleaved audio data (call multiple times for multiple audio chunks, i.e. "streaming")
  encoder.encode(data);
 
  //NOTE if data is TypedArray other than Int32Array then optional argument numberOfSamples MUST be given:
  //encoder.encode(data, numberOfSamples);
 
} else {
 
  //de-interleave data into channels-array
  // i.e. a list/array of Int32Arrays (list.length corresponds to channels)
  const list = deinterleave(data, channels);// returns an Int32Array which's length corresponds to channels
 
  //do encode to FLAC (call multiple times for multiple audio chunks, i.e. "streaming")
  encoder.encode(list);
 
  //NOTE if data was TypedArray other than Int32Array then optional argument numberOfSamples MUST be given:
  //encoder.encode(list, numberOfSamples);
}
encoder.encode();
 
const encData = encoder.getSamples();
const metadata = encoder.metadata;
 
encoder.destroy();
// or encoder.reset() for reusing the encoder instance
 
// -> do something with the encoded FLAC data encData and metadata

Barebones Encoding Example

Encoding example using the library functions directly

 
//prerequisite: loaded libflac.js & available via variable Flac
 
//NOTE if async-library variant is used, should wait for initialization:
//Flac.onready(function(){ ...
 
var flac_encoder,
    CHANNELS = 1,
    SAMPLERATE = 44100,
    COMPRESSION = 5,
    BPS = 16,
    VERIFY = false,
    BLOCK_SIZE = 0,
    flac_ok = 1,
    USE_OGG = false;
 
 
////////
// [1] CREATE -> IN param: config { ... } (encoding parameters)
 
//overwrite default configuration from config object
COMPRESSION = config.compression;
BPS = config.bps;
SAMPLERATE = config.samplerate;
CHANNELS = config.channels;
VERIFY = config.isVerify;//verification can be disabled for speeding up encoding process
BLOCK_SIZE = config.blockSize;
USE_OGG = config.useOgg;
 
//init encoder
flac_encoder = Flac.create_libflac_encoder(SAMPLERATE, CHANNELS, BPS, COMPRESSION, 0, VERIFY, BLOCK_SIZE);
 
if (flac_encoder == 0){
  return;
}
 
////////
// [2] INIT -> OUT: encBuffer (encoded data), metaData (OPTIONALLY, FLAC metadata)
 
//for storing the encoded FLAC data
var encBuffer = [];
//for storing the encoding FLAC metadata summary
var metaData;
 
// [2] (a) setup writing (encoded) output data
 
var write_callback_fn = function(encodedData /*Uint8Array*/, bytes, samples, current_frame){
  //store all encoded data "pieces" into a buffer
  encBuffer.push(encodedData);
};
 
// [2] (b) optional callback for receiving metadata
 
function metadata_callback_fn(data){
  // data -> [example] {
  //  min_blocksize: 4096,
  //  max_blocksize: 4096,
  //  min_framesize: 14,
  //  max_framesize: 5408,
  //  sampleRate: 44100,
  //  channels: 2,
  //  bitsPerSample: 16,
  //  total_samples: 267776,
  //  md5sum: "50d4d469448e5ea75eb44ab6b7f111f4"
  //}
  console.info('meta data: ', data);
  metaData = data;
}
 
// [2] (c) initialize to either write to native-FALC or to OGG container
 
var status_encoder;
if(!USE_OGG){
  // encode to native FLAC container
  status_encoder = Flac.init_encoder_stream(flac_encoder,
    write_callback_fn,    //required callback(s)
    metadata_callback_fn  //optional callback(s)
  );
} else {
  // encode to OGG container
  status_encoder = Flac.init_encoder_ogg_stream(flac_encoder,
    write_callback_fn,    //required callback(s)
    metadata_callback_fn  //optional callback(s)
  );
}
flac_ok &= (status_encoder == 0);
 
 
////////
// [3] ENCODE -> IN: for this example, a PCM Float32 audio, single channel (mono) stream
//                   buffer (Float32Array)
// ... repeat encoding step [3] as often as necessary
 
//convert input data to signed int data, in correspondence to the bps setting (i.e. in this case int32)
// see API docs on FLAC__stream_encoder_process_interleaved() for more details
var buf_length = buffer.length;
var buffer_i32 = new Int32Array(buf_length);
var view = new DataView(buffer_i32.buffer);
var volume = 1;
var index = 0;
for (var i = 0; i < buf_length; i++){
  view.setInt32(index, (buffer[i] * (0x7FFF * volume)), true);
  index += 4;
}
 
var flac_return = Flac.FLAC__stream_encoder_process_interleaved(flac_encoder, buffer_i32, buf_length);
if (flac_return != true){
  console.log("Error: FLAC__stream_encoder_process_interleaved returned false. " + flac_return);
}
 
// encoding mode: either interleaved samples or array of channel-samples
var mode = 'interleaved';// "interleaved" | "channels"
 
// do encode the audio data ...
var flac_return;
if(mode === 'interleaved'){
 
  //VARIANT 1: encode interleaved channels: TypedArray -> [ch1_sample1, ch2_sample1, ch1_sample1, ch2_sample2, ch2_sample3, ...
 
  flac_return = Flac.FLAC__stream_encoder_process_interleaved(flac_encoder, buffer_i32, buf_length);
 
} else {
 
  //VARIANT 2: encode channels array: TypedArray[] -> [ [ch1_sample1, ch1_sample2, ch1_sample3, ...], [ch2_sample1, ch2_sample2, ch2_sample3, ...], ...]
 
  //code example for splitting an interleaved Int32Array into its channels:
  var ch_buf_i32 = new Array(CHANNELS).fill(null).map(function(){ return new Uint32Array(buf_length/CHANNELS); });
  for(var i=0; i < buf_length; i += CHANNELS){
    for(var j=0; j < CHANNELS; ++j){
      ch_buf_i32[j][i / CHANNELS] = buffer_i32[i + j];
    }
  }
 
  // ... encode the array of channel-data:
  flac_return = Flac.FLAC__stream_encoder_process(flac_encoder, ch_buf_i32, buf_length / CHANNELS);
}
 
 
////////
// [4] FINISH ENCODING
 
flac_ok &= Flac.FLAC__stream_encoder_finish(flac_encoder);
console.log("flac finish: " + flac_ok);
 
 
////////
// [5] DESTROY: delete encoder
 
//after usage: free up all resources for the encoder
Flac.FLAC__stream_encoder_delete(flac_encoder);
 
////////
// [6] ... do something with the encoded data, e.g.
//     merge "encoded pieces" in encBuffer into one single Uint8Array...

Decoding with libflac.js

Generally, libflac.js supports a subset of the libflac decoding interface for decoding audio data from FLAC (no full support yet!).

Supported decoding types:

decode from FLAC data to PCM data all-at-once
decode from FLAC data to PCM chunk-by-chunk (i.e. streaming)

Supported source containers:

native FLAC container
OGG transport container

See example/decode.html for a small example, on how to decode a FLAC file.

Basic steps for decoding:

create decoder

specify if checksum verification should be processed

initialize decoder

specify if source is native FLAC container or OGG container
specify read and write callback and/or other optional callback(s)

start decoding data (chunks)
finish decoding
delete decoder

Decoding Example

Decoding example using the utility class Decoder

 
const Flac = require('libflacjs')();
//or as import (see section "Including libflac.js" for more details):
// import * as flacFactory from 'libflacjs';
// const Flac = flacFactory();
 
const Decoder = require('libflacjs/lib/decoder').Decoder;
//or as import:
//import { Decoder } from 'libflacjs/lib/decoder';
 
//NOTE if async-library variant is used, should wait for initialization:
//Flac.onready(function(){ ...
 
const binData = new Uint8Array(someFlacData);// <- someFlacData: binary FLAC data
 
const decodingMode = 'single';// "single" | "chunked"
 
const decoder = new Decoder(Flac, {
  verify: true    // boolean (OPTIONAL)
  isOgg: false    // boolean (OPTIONAL), if FLAC audio is wrapped in OGG container
});
 
if(decodingMode === 'single'){
 
  //use as-single-chunk mode: invokce decode once with the complete FLAC data
  decoder.decode(binData);
 
} else {
 
  //use multiple-chunks mode ("streaming"): invoke decodeChunk(...) for each chunk...
  decoder.decodeChunk(binData);
  //... and finalize decoding by invoking decodeChunk() without arguments
  decoder.decodeChunk();
}
 
const decData = decoder.getSamples(/* return interleaved samples? */ true);// <- returns Uint8Array
//or: non-interleaved samples, i.e. array of channels data:
// const decData = decoder.getSamples(false);// <- returns Uint8Array[]
const metadata = decoder.metadata;
 
decoder.destroy();
// or decoder.reset() for reusing the decoder instance
 
// -> do something with the decoded PCM audio data decData and metadata

Barebones Decoding Example

Decoding example using the library functions directly

 
//prerequisite: loaded libflac.js & available via variable Flac
 
//NOTE if async-library variant is used, should wait for initialization:
//Flac.onready(function(){ ...
 
var VERIFY = true,
  USE_OGG = false;
 
 
////////
// [1] CREATE -> IN: config { ... } (decoding parameters)
 
//overwrite default configuration from config object
VERIFY = config.isVerify;//verification can be disabled for speeding up decoding process
 
//decode from native FLAC container or from OGG container
USE_OGG = config.isOgg;
 
// create decoder
var flac_decoder = Flac.create_libflac_decoder(VERIFY);
 
if (flac_decoder == 0){
  return;
}
 
 
////////
// [2] INIT -> OUT: decBuffer (decoded data), metaData (OPTIONALLY, FLAC metadata)
//             IN: flacData Uint8Array (FLAC data)
 
// [2] (a) setup reading input data
var currentDataOffset = 0;
var size = flacData.buffer.byteLength;
 
//function that will be called for reading the input (FLAC) data:
function read_callback_fn(bufferSize){
 
  var end = currentDataOffset === size? -1 : Math.min(currentDataOffset + bufferSize, size);
 
  var _buffer;
  var numberOfReadBytes;
  if(end !== -1){
 
    _buffer = flacData.subarray(currentDataOffset, end);
    numberOfReadBytes = end - currentDataOffset;
 
    currentDataOffset = end;
  } else {
    //nothing left to read: return zero read bytes (indicates end-of-stream)
    numberOfReadBytes = 0;
  }
 
  return {buffer: _buffer, readDataLength: numberOfReadBytes, error: false};
}
 
 
// [2] (b) setup writing (decoded) output data
 
//for "buffering" the decoded data:
var decBuffer = [];
//for storing the decoded FLAC metadata
var metaData;
 
//function that will be called for decoded output data (WAV audio)
function write_callback_fn(channelsBuffer, frameHeader){
  // channelsBuffer is an Array of the decoded audio data (Uint8Array):
  // the length of array corresponds to the channels, i.e. there is an Uint8Array for each channel
 
  // frameHeader -> [example] {
  //   bitsPerSample: 8
  //   blocksize: 4096
  //   channelAssignment: 0
  //   channels: 2
  //   crc: 0
  //   number: 204800
  //   numberType: "samples"
  //   sampleRate: 44100
  //   subframes: undefined // -> needs to be enabled via
  //                       //     Flac.setOptions(flac_decoder, {analyseSubframes: true})
  //                       // -> see API documentation
  //}
 
  decBuffer.push(channelsBuffer);
}
 
// [2] (c) optional callbacks for receiving details about errors and/or metadata
 
function error_callback_fn(err, errMsg, client_data){
  console.error('decode error callback', err, errMsg);
}
 
function metadata_callback_fn(data){
  // data -> [example] {
  //  min_blocksize: 4096,
  //  max_blocksize: 4096,
  //  min_framesize: 14,
  //  max_framesize: 5408,
  //  sampleRate: 44100,
  //  channels: 2,
  //  bitsPerSample: 16,
  //  total_samples: 267776,
  //  md5sum: "50d4d469448e5ea75eb44ab6b7f111f4"
  //}
  console.info('meta data: ', data);
  metaData = data;
}
 
// [2] (d) intialize for reading from native-FLAC or from OGG container
var flac_ok = 1;
var status_decoder;
if(!USE_OGG){
  // decode from native FLAC container
  status_decoder = Flac.init_decoder_stream(
    flac_decoder,
    read_callback_fn, write_callback_fn,     //required callback(s)
    error_callback_fn, metadata_callback_fn  //optional callback(s)
  );
} else {
  // decode from OGG container
  status_decoder = Flac.init_decoder_ogg_stream(
    flac_decoder,
    read_callback_fn, write_callback_fn,     //required callback(s)
    error_callback_fn, metadata_callback_fn  //optional callback(s)
  );
}
flac_ok &= status_decoder == 0;
 
if(flac_ok != 1){
  return;
}
 
////////
// [3] DECODE -> IN: FLAC audio data (see above, the read-callack)
// ... repeat encoding step [3] as often as necessary
 
// example for chunk-by-chunk (stream mode) or all-at-once decoding (file mode)
var mode = 'stream';// 'stream' | 'file'
 
var state = 0;
var flac_return = 1;
 
if(mode == 'stream'){
 
  // VARIANT 1: decode chunks of flac data, one-by-one
 
  //request to decode data chunks until end-of-stream is reached:
  while(state <= 3 && flac_return != false){
 
    flac_return &= Flac.FLAC__stream_decoder_process_single(flac_decoder);
    state = Flac.FLAC__stream_decoder_get_state(flac_decoder);
  }
 
  flac_ok &= flac_return != false;
 
} else if(mode == 'file'){
 
  // VARIANT 2: decode complete data stream, all-at-once
  flac_return &= Flac.FLAC__stream_decoder_process_until_end_of_stream(flac_decoder);
 
  //optionally: retrieve status
  state = Flac.FLAC__stream_decoder_get_state(flac_decoder);
}
 
 
if (flac_return != true){
  return;
}
 
////////
// [4] FINISH DECODING
 
// finish Decoding
flac_ok &= Flac.FLAC__stream_decoder_finish(flac_decoder);
 
////////
// [5] DESTROY: delete dencoder
// alternatively reset the decoder, and then re-initialize for re-using the decoder instance
 
//after usage: free up all resources for the decoder
Flac.FLAC__stream_decoder_delete(flac_decoder);
 
////////
// [6] ... do something with the decoded data, e.g.
//     merge "decoded pieces" in decBuffer into a single data stream and add WAV header...

Decoding Metadata Example

Example for extracting the metadata while decoding FALC audio

 
// prerequisites: loaded & initialized Flac library
 
//... create decoder flacDecoder (see code examples above)
 
//enable all metadata types:
Flac.FLAC__stream_decoder_set_metadata_respond_all(flacDecoder);
 
//or enable only seek table metadata:
Flac.FLAC__stream_decoder_set_metadata_respond(flacDecoder, 3);
// example seek table metadata (see docs for details):
// {
//   num_points: 1,
//   points: [{
//     frame_samples: 4096,
//     sample_number: 0,
//     stream_offset: 0
//   }]
// }
 
//or enable only vorbis comment metadata:
Flac.FLAC__stream_decoder_set_metadata_respond(flacDecoder, 4);
// example vorbis comment metadata:
// {
//   comments: ["TRACKNUMBER=2/9"],
//   entry: "reference libFLAC 1.3.3 20190804",
//   num_comments: 1
// }
 
//or enable only cue sheet metadata:
Flac.FLAC__stream_decoder_set_metadata_respond(flacDecoder, 5);
// example cue sheet metadata (see docs for details):
// {
//   is_cd: 0,
//   lead_in: 88200,
//   media_catalog_number: "1234567890123",
//   num_tracks: 2,
//   tracks: [{
//     isrc: "",
//     num_indices: 1,
//     indices: [{offset: 0, number: 1}],
//     number: 1,
//     offset: 0,
//     pre_emphasis: false,
//     type: "AUDIO"
//   }, {
//     isrc: "",
//     num_indices: 0,
//     indices: [],
//     number: 170,
//     offset: 267776,
//     pre_emphasis: false,
//     type: "AUDIO"
//   }]
// }
 
//or enable only all picture metadata:
Flac.FLAC__stream_decoder_set_metadata_respond(flacDecoder, 6);
// example vorbis comment metadata:
{
  type: 3,            // image type (see docs FLAC__StreamMetadata_Picture_Type)
  mime_type: "image/jpeg",  //the mime type
  description: "Cover image for the track",
  width: 1144,        // the image width in pixel
  height: 1144,       // the image height in pixel
  depth: 24,          // the depth in bits
  colors: 0,          // colors (e.g. for GIF images)
  data_length: 45496, // the size of the binary image data (in bytes)
  data: Uint8Array    // the binary image data
}
 
 
 
//the metadata callback which stores the metadata in a list:
var streamMetadata, metadataList = [];
function metadata_callback_fn(data, dataBlock){
  if(data){
    // the stream metadata:
    streamMetadata = data;
  } else {
    // other metadata types:
    metadataList.push(dataBlock);
 
    // dataBlock[example]:
    // {
    //   data: METADATA, // the metadata, e.g. stream info, seek table, vorbis comment, picture,...
    //   isLast: 0,      // wether the metadata block is the last block befor the audio data
    //   length: 1032,   // the length/size of the metadata (in byte)
    //   type: 4,        // metadata type, [0, 6] (higher metadata types are as of yet UNKNOWN)
    // }
  }
}
 
//... initilize decoder flacDecoder with metadata_callback_fn,
//    and decode flac data (see code examples above)

API

See the doc/index.html for the API documentation.

Building

Building libflac.js requires that emscripten is installed and configured.

See the emscripten documentation and its main site for an introduction, tutorials etc.

For changing the targeted libflac version, modify the Makefile:

...
FLAC_VERSION:=1.3.2
...

Build *nix (libflac 1.3.0 or later)

If necessary, activate the appropriate emscripten toolchain (e.g. llvm or the older fastcomp toolchain; default is llvm)

 # list versions 
emsdk list
 
 # activate a specific version with llvm toolchain 
 # NOTE update Makefile if necessary with selected toolchain 
 #   TOOL_CHAIN:=$(TOOL_CHAIN_LLVM) 
emsdk activate <version>
 
 
 # activate a specific version with fastcomp toolchain 
 # NOTE update Makefile if necessary with selected toolchain 
 #   TOOL_CHAIN:=$(TOOL_CHAIN_FASTCOMP) 
emsdk activate <version>-fastcomp

NOTE when activating a toolchain, emsdk will print some information on how to set the correct enviornment variables, e.g.
  ...
  To conveniently access the selected set of tools from the command line,
  consider adding the following directories to PATH,
  or call 'source <path>/emsc/emsdk_env.sh' to do this for you.
  ...
even when not changing a toolset via emsdk activate ... you may need to update/export the variables for the emsdk toolchain

Start build process by executing the Makefile:

make

(build process was tested on Unbuntu 18.04)

Changing The Library API

The API for libflac.js (e.g. exported functions) are mainly specified in libflac_post.js.

Functions that will be exported/used from the native libflac implementation need to be declared in the compile option -s EXPORTED_FUNCTIONS='[...]' (see variable EMCC_OPTS:=... in Makefile); note, when manually editing EXPORTED_FUNCTIONS, that the function-names must be prefixed with _, i.e. for function the_function, the string for the exported function would be _the_function.

There is a helper script that will try to extract the compile option from libflac_post.js (i.e. the list of functions that need to be declared). Run the script with Node.js in tools/ (and copy&paste the output value):

cd tools
node extract_EXPORTED_FUNCTIONS.js

IMPORTANT: the helper script extracts function names that are invoked by Module.ccall() or Module.cwrap(). If invoked dynamically (i.e. use of variable instead of string), add a DEV comment where the function is explicitly stated as string, e.g.

//DEV comment for exported-functions script:
//  Module.ccall('FLAC__stream_decoder_init_stream'
//  Module.ccall('FLAC__stream_decoder_init_ogg_stream'
var func_name = test? 'FLAC__stream_decoder_init_stream' : 'FLAC__stream_decoder_init_ogg_stream';
Module.ccall(
  func_name,

Legacy Build Instructions

For more details and/or build instructions for older libflac.js versions, see CHANGELOG.md

Contributors

See CONTRIBUTORS for list of contributors.

Acknowledgments

This project was inspired by Krennmair's libmp3lame-js project for JS mp3 encoding.

License

libflac.js is compiled from the reference implementation of FLAC (BSD license); the additional resources and wrapper-code of this project is published under the MIT license (see file LICENSE).

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Default Library:

Minified Library:

Development Library:

Encoding with libflac.js

Encoding Example

Barebones Encoding Example

Decoding with libflac.js

Decoding Example

Barebones Decoding Example

Decoding Metadata Example

API

Building

Build *nix (libflac 1.3.0 or later)

Changing The Library API

Legacy Build Instructions

Contributors

Acknowledgments

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