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What Is an Oscilloscope Visualiser?
Short answer: An oscilloscope visualiser plots an audio signal directly; in XY mode the left channel moves the beam horizontally and the right channel vertically, so stereo audio traces shapes, which oscilloscope music uses to draw deliberate images with sound.
An oscilloscope visualiser displays an audio signal the way a laboratory oscilloscope does: as a bright trace drawn by a moving point. It is the most direct of all music visualisers, because there is no frequency analysis; the signal itself moves the beam.
Two modes: time and XY
Time mode (Y–T) plots the signal’s amplitude against time, sweeping left to right. This is a close-up, real-time waveform, and is how most “scope” displays in audio plugins work.
XY mode plots one channel against the other. With stereo audio:
- the left channel moves the point horizontally;
- the right channel moves it vertically.
Mono audio, where left and right are identical, draws a diagonal line. Wide stereo spreads the trace into a cloud. Two sine waves at simple frequency ratios produce Lissajous figures: circles, ellipses and figure-eights. In audio engineering this XY view is also called a goniometer or vectorscope, used to judge stereo width and phase.
Oscilloscope music
If XY audio can draw a circle, carefully designed audio can draw anything. Oscilloscope music is music composed so that, in XY mode, it draws deliberate images and animations, while remaining listenable as sound.
The best-known work is Oscilloscope Music by Jerobeam Fenderson and Hansi Raber, developed over several years along with their own software. The audio is effectively a vector drawing: the beam traces the outline of each shape quickly enough that persistence of vision shows a complete image.
Because the picture is encoded in the stereo signal, the audio must reach the display untouched. Lossy compression, EQ, or effects that alter phase between channels distort the image.
Software for oscilloscope visuals
Creating oscilloscope music:
- osci-render: an open-source synthesiser and plugin that converts 3D models, SVGs, text, images and Blender scenes into XY audio, playable from a DAW.
- OsciStudio: Fenderson and Raber’s tool for turning 3D objects and Blender animations into sound, with a sequencer and live coding.
Viewing it:
- Oscilloscope by Hansi Raber: a free, open-source software oscilloscope with video export.
- XXY Oscilloscope: a browser-based XY scope with a signal generator.
- MiniMeters: includes oscilloscope and stereometer views for general production use.
Scope-style visuals in videos are also offered by video makers such as BeatVisualiser, Banger.Show and Rotor, which draw XY-style traces from ordinary stereo music rather than purpose-composed audio.
See all oscilloscope visualisers or the oscilloscope music tools collection.
Frequently asked questions
What is XY mode on an oscilloscope?
In XY mode the oscilloscope plots one input against another instead of against time. With audio, the left channel controls horizontal position and the right channel controls vertical position.
What is a Lissajous figure?
A Lissajous figure is the curve produced in XY mode by two sine waves. Their frequency ratio and phase difference determine the shape, from circles and ellipses to figure-eights and more complex loops.
Can I make oscilloscope music without hardware?
Yes. osci-render and OsciStudio generate the audio, and software oscilloscopes such as Hansi Raber's Oscilloscope or the browser-based XXY Oscilloscope display it on a normal screen.
