Best ways to play simple sound effect in iOS - iphone

Question

I'm finding a number of conflicting data about playing sounds in iOS. What is a recommended way to play just a simple "ping" sound bite every time the user touches the screen?

Answer 1

I use this:
Header file:
#import <AudioToolbox/AudioServices.h>
#interface SoundEffect : NSObject
{
SystemSoundID soundID;
}
- (id)initWithSoundNamed:(NSString *)filename;
- (void)play;
#end
Source file:
#import "SoundEffect.h"
#implementation SoundEffect
- (id)initWithSoundNamed:(NSString *)filename
{
if ((self = [super init]))
{
NSURL *fileURL = [[NSBundle mainBundle] URLForResource:filename withExtension:nil];
if (fileURL != nil)
{
SystemSoundID theSoundID;
OSStatus error = AudioServicesCreateSystemSoundID((__bridge CFURLRef)fileURL, &theSoundID);
if (error == kAudioServicesNoError)
soundID = theSoundID;
}
}
return self;
}
- (void)dealloc
{
AudioServicesDisposeSystemSoundID(soundID);
}
- (void)play
{
AudioServicesPlaySystemSound(soundID);
}
#end
You will need to create an instance of SoundEffect and direct call the method play on it.

Answer 2

This is the best way of playing a simple sound in iOS (no more than 30 seconds):
//Retrieve audio file
NSString *path = [[NSBundle mainBundle] pathForResource:#"soundeffect" ofType:#"m4a"];
NSURL *pathURL = [NSURL fileURLWithPath : path];
SystemSoundID audioEffect;
AudioServicesCreateSystemSoundID((__bridge CFURLRef) pathURL, &audioEffect);
AudioServicesPlaySystemSound(audioEffect);
// call the following function when the sound is no longer used
// (must be done AFTER the sound is done playing)
AudioServicesDisposeSystemSoundID(audioEffect);

Answer 3

(Small amendment to the correct answer to take care of the disposing of the audio)
NSString *path = [[NSBundle mainBundle] pathForResource:#"soundeffect" ofType:#"m4a"];
NSURL *pathURL = [NSURL fileURLWithPath : path];
SystemSoundID audioEffect;
AudioServicesCreateSystemSoundID((__bridge CFURLRef) pathURL, &audioEffect);
AudioServicesPlaySystemSound(audioEffect);
// Using GCD, we can use a block to dispose of the audio effect without using a NSTimer or something else to figure out when it'll be finished playing.
dispatch_after(dispatch_time(DISPATCH_TIME_NOW, (int64_t)(30 * NSEC_PER_SEC)), dispatch_get_main_queue(), ^{
AudioServicesDisposeSystemSoundID(audioEffect);
});

Answer 4

You can use AVFoundation or AudioToolbox.
Here're two examples which use the libraries separately.
SAMSoundEffect (archived repository)
BRYSoundEffectPlayer

Answer 5

Here's an updated answer for Swift (4):
import AudioToolbox
func playSound() {
var soundId: SystemSoundID = 0
guard let soundPath = Bundle.main.url(forResource: "Success7", withExtension: "wav") else {
print("Error finding file")
return
}
let error = AudioServicesCreateSystemSoundID(soundPath as CFURL, &soundId)
if error != kAudioServicesNoError {
print("Error loading sound")
return
}
AudioServicesPlaySystemSoundWithCompletion(soundId) {
AudioServicesDisposeSystemSoundID(soundId)
}
}
If you have a sound effect that you want to play multiple times in a view, then you can be a little more smart about loading and disposing of the audio:
class YourViewController: UIViewController {
fileprivate lazy var soundId: SystemSoundID? = {
guard let soundPath = Bundle.main.url(forResource: "Success7", withExtension: "wav") else {
return nil
}
var soundId: SystemSoundID = 0
let error = AudioServicesCreateSystemSoundID(soundPath as CFURL, &soundId)
if error != kAudioServicesNoError {
return nil
}
return soundId
}()
func playScannedSound() {
guard let soundId = self.soundId else {
return
}
AudioServicesPlaySystemSoundWithCompletion(soundId, nil)
}
deinit {
guard let soundId = self.soundId else {
return
}
AudioServicesDisposeSystemSoundID(soundId)
}
}