BBC Sound Effects Library - 287 Water Sound Effects

Water Sounds

The Avosound Online Sound Archive contains numerous variations of water sound. Sound recordings of water cover a wide range of elements that include brook sounds, river, lake and ocean sounds. But the Avosound Online Sound Archive also contains many detailed water sounds as well, e.g. water drop sound effects, bubbling brooks, dripping water sounds from caves and walls.

Water sounds also include everyday recordings of water sounds like bottles being poured, water bubbling sounds forth from fountains and springs, being splashed over surfaces and floors, and shooting out of watering cans and firehoses.

Water Sounds: from a drop to an ocean

Water sounds are everywhere in nature, the variations are nearly endless. These fascinating sounds have been resonating on our planet for millions of years - in fact, they've been with us since the dawn of time. Roaring surf sounds and breaking waves crashing into bays and cliffs have been fascinating sights for millennia.

The ocean water vaporises when hit by the rays of the sun and rises into the atmosphere where it collects as clouds and ultimately rains or snows down onto the earth again. The sounds and noises of drops, rain, storms and electric storms are individually categorised. The water sounds category contains many more elements as well. After it rains, water collects in small brooks and rivers or shoots down the mountainside in torrents. Frozen water forms into snow and ice (and, in alpine regions, into glaciers). In the spring, torrents of snow melt run down into the valley and collect in the lakes.

Sounds of Rivers and Brooks

The roaring and rushing of mountain streams is a rather distinctive sound in the mountains and often echoes throughout the valleys. Depending on the water level, the sound might be stronger and more forceful. Glacier streams tend to be weaker in the morning. During the day, the water level rises considerably (even dangerously), because the sun makes the ice melt into water. The water will rush into the valley, flowing into rivers and collecting in lakes. Rivers run off from lakes or join other rivers until they turn into massive streams that lead towards the oceans - where the water will evaporate again, thereby starting a new cycle.

Water Sounds: Waterfalls

Waterfalls are a very distinct element in the water sounds category. Although big waterfalls hardly sound any different from each other (and generally bear a close resemblance to white noise), the thunderous noise they produce is a rather unique sound. Waterfalls feature prominently in our collection, varying from big to small. The Dettifoss in Iceland, for example, has a rather mighty sound as it is Europe's largest waterfall. Standing in front of these thunderous masses of water will make you feel very small and puny -- no wonder so many movies have been shot in this location.

Wave Sounds

Wave sounds are one of the most impressive and best known sounds in existence. The calming effect of wave sounds hitting gravel or sand beaches have been fascinating human beings for a long time.

Wave sound have been some of the most popular sounds for meditation and sleep since the invention of sound recording. Wave sounds are not only pleasant to listen to, they are also very nice to record; no matter what beach you're on, you are bound to have a great experience. Wave sounds come in all sorts of variations: waves on gravel and sand beaches; small rippling waves on the lakeside; roaring flood and storm waves breaking on the cliffs and coasts, dragging everything out to sea that is too close to the surf.