VHS Audio Effect Generator: Make Any Audio Sound Like an Old Tape
Drop a song, voice-over or sample and this VHS audio effect generator gives it the sound of a home video from the 80s and 90s: wobbly tape speed, soft hiss, dull highs, warm saturation and the odd dropout. Pick a preset or shape every artefact yourself, preview 20 seconds, then download WAV or MP3. The VHS audio effect generator runs entirely in your browser, so your audio never leaves your device. Free, no sign-up — made by MusicGenerator.so.
Drop audio here to add the VHS effect
MP3, WAV, FLAC, M4A, AAC, OGG, OPUS · up to 20 min · up to 200 MB
100% in your browser: the VHS audio effect generator decodes, processes and encodes your file on your device. Nothing is uploaded.
How to use the VHS audio effect generator
- 1
Drop your audio
Choose an MP3, WAV, FLAC, M4A or OGG file, or drag it onto the VHS audio effect generator. The file is opened only inside your browser.
- 2
Pick a preset or tweak
Start from Home video, Worn rental tape, Vaporwave or Subtle warmth, then adjust wow, flutter, hiss, tone, saturation, dropouts and hum. Press Preview to hear the first 20 seconds.
- 3
Render and download
Choose WAV or MP3 and press Render. The VHS audio effect generator processes the whole file on your device and gives you a download link.
Why use this VHS audio effect generator
Modelled on real VHS audio
Standard VHS recorded sound on a narrow linear track at a slow tape speed, which limited it to roughly 100 Hz–10 kHz in SP mode with a signal-to-noise ratio around 42 dB, and much less in EP mode. The VHS audio effect generator recreates those limits instead of just adding noise.
Every artefact on its own slider
Wow, flutter, hiss, brightness, saturation, dropouts, mains hum, mono and wet/dry mix are separate controls, so the VHS audio effect generator can go from a faint warmth to a chewed-up rental tape.
Private by design
There is no upload step. The VHS audio effect generator decodes with the Web Audio API, renders the effect in a Web Worker and encodes MP3 in another worker, all on your device.
Free and unlimited
No account, no credits and no watermark. Use the VHS audio effect generator on as many files as you like, up to 20 minutes each.
Who it’s for
Producers & beatmakers
Use the VHS audio effect generator to age a lo-fi, vaporwave or synthwave track, a drum loop or a vocal chop.
Video creators
Use the VHS audio effect generator to match the audio of a retro edit, found-footage scene or 90s intro to the picture.
Game & film sound
Use the VHS audio effect generator to make dialogue or music sound like it plays from an old TV or camcorder tape.
Podcasters & streamers
Use the VHS audio effect generator to make a nostalgic intro, a flashback segment or a ‘recorded off TV’ bit in seconds.
How the VHS audio effect generator works
Each control matches a real weakness of VHS linear audio. The effect is applied in the same order the damage happens on tape.
1. Tape-speed wobble
A slow ‘wow’ (about 0.5–1 Hz), a faster ‘flutter’ (6–12 Hz) and a random drift modulate a short delay line, which bends the pitch the way an uneven tape transport does. Ordinary VCRs had wow and flutter around 0.2 %; low settings sit near that and high settings exaggerate it.
2. Band-limiting
A high-pass and a steep low-pass narrow the frequency range. The Tone slider moves the top end from about 4 kHz (like EP mode) up to about 14 kHz.
3. Saturation
Soft tanh clipping rounds off peaks and adds harmonics, like tape driven hard.
4. Mono, hiss, hum and dropouts
Optional mono fold-down copies the single linear track of most VCRs. Then filtered pink-noise hiss, 50 or 60 Hz hum and short random level dips are added.
5. Mix and export
The result is blended with the dry signal, peak-limited and written as a 16-bit WAV or a 192 kbps MP3 made with the open-source LAME encoder, which loads only when you choose MP3.
VHS audio effect generator features
Wow, flutter and drift
Three independent kinds of tape-speed wobble for a natural, never-looping pitch drift.
Runs on your device
The VHS audio effect generator never uploads your audio. Close the tab and it is gone.
Eight sliders + presets
Four one-click looks in the VHS audio effect generator, then fine control over every artefact.
Hiss, hum and dropouts
Filtered tape hiss from −66 to −30 dBFS, optional 50/60 Hz hum and random dropouts.
WAV or MP3 export
Lossless 16-bit WAV for your DAW, or 192 kbps MP3 for sharing.
20-second preview
The VHS audio effect generator lets you hear your settings on the first 20 seconds before you render the whole file.
Tips for a convincing VHS sound
- Less is more: on a full mix, wow 20–40 % and flutter 10–30 % already sound like tape. Push them higher only for a deliberately broken effect.
- Turn on Mono for an authentic home-video sound; most VCRs without Hi-Fi recorded a single mono linear track.
- Lower the Tone slider for the muffled sound of long-play (EP/SLP) recordings, raise it for a cleaner SP tape.
- Use 50 Hz hum for European (PAL) footage and 60 Hz for North American (NTSC) footage.
- Applying the VHS audio effect generator to a single stem — a vocal or a pad — and leaving drums clean keeps a beat tight while it still sounds retro.
- Export WAV if you will keep editing, and MP3 when you only want to share the result.
VHS audio quality compared
Why VHS tapes sound the way they do — and what the VHS audio effect generator imitates. Typical published figures:
| Format | Frequency range | Wow & flutter / noise |
|---|---|---|
| VHS linear audio, SP (NTSC) | ≈ 100 Hz – 10 kHz | ≈ 0.2 % wow · ≈ 42 dB S/N |
| VHS linear audio, SP (PAL) | ≈ 80 Hz – 8 kHz | ≈ 41 dB S/N |
| VHS linear audio, EP/SLP | top end ≈ 4–7 kHz | more hiss and wobble |
| Audio cassette deck | ≈ 30 Hz – 18 kHz | ≈ 0.05 % wow |
| VHS Hi-Fi (from 1984) | 20 Hz – 20 kHz | ≈ 0.005 % · 80 dB+ dynamic range |
| VHS audio effect generator | Tone slider ≈ 4–14 kHz | Wow/flutter, hiss −66…−30 dBFS |
Go beyond the VHS audio effect generator with MusicGenerator.so
Aging an existing track is one thing — writing a new one is another. MusicGenerator.so is an AI music generator that turns a text prompt or your own lyrics into a full song with vocals or an instrumental, including synthwave, lo-fi and vaporwave. Generate a track, then run it through the VHS audio effect generator.
- Full songs with vocals from one prompt
- Synthwave, lo-fi and retro styles
- BPM Detector and Vocal Remover included
- Commercial license on paid plans
Only process audio you have the right to use. Figures in the comparison table are typical published values; real tapes and machines vary.
Frequently asked questions
More free AI music tools
Got the retro sound? Now make your own track
Use the VHS audio effect generator to age any audio, then let MusicGenerator.so — the AI music generator — create a brand-new synthwave or lo-fi song.
Last updated October 2026.