Soundwave

SoundWave adds proximity voice chat to your Paper server. Players talk to each other from a web browser, so nobody needs to install a mod, a client, or a separate voice app.

Players who are close together in-game can hear each other. Voices get quieter as players move apart and fade out completely at 33 blocks. Sound is also panned left or right depending on where the speaker is relative to the way you are facing, so you can tell which direction someone is talking from. Players in different worlds can't hear each other.

Why use SoundWave

• Nothing to install for players. Voice chat runs in the browser on a web page. Players open the page, type a short code in-game, and they're connected.
• Works with any client. Since players don't need a mod, SoundWave works with vanilla clients and any launcher.
• Simple to set up. Drop the plugin into your plugins folder and start the server. A voice room is created automatically, using a free hosted relay by default.
• Good audio options. Players can pick their microphone, choose a noise suppression mode (DTLN, RNNoise, or off), adjust a noise gate, mute themselves, and set a separate volume for each player. These settings are saved in their browser.
• Moderation tools. Operators can see who is connected to voice and disconnect a player's voice session.

Before you download

• Paper is required. SoundWave is built for Paper 26.2 and needs Java 21. It uses Paper-only features, so it will not run on plain Spigot or CraftBukkit.
• Players need a browser and a microphone. They must allow microphone access on the SoundWave web page. The page needs to stay open while they play.
• An internet connection to the relay is required. The plugin uses a relay service to set up voice rooms and share player positions with the web page. By default this is a free relay run by me, KohanMathers, however hosting costs are expensive so if you have the option I would recommend hosting your own. The relay receives your room ID, the names of online players, and the positions and facing direction of players who have linked voice. Voice audio itself goes directly between players' browsers and does not pass through the relay.
• You can host your own relay. The relay is open source and runs on Cloudflare Workers. If you host your own, set its address in the config.
• Some networks may block voice. Voice connects players' browsers directly to each other. Players on strict school, work, or mobile networks may not be able to hear each other if the relay has no TURN server configured.

How players join voice

1. In-game, run /soundwave id to get the server's room ID.
2. Open the SoundWave web page (the relay address, which is https://soundwave.kmathers.co.uk by default) and enter the room ID.
3. The page shows a 6-character code. In-game, run /soundwave link <code>.
4. Allow microphone access when the browser asks. You're now in voice chat.

To leave voice, run /soundwave unlink or close the web page. Leaving the server also disconnects your voice session. If the web page loses its connection, it has 20 seconds to reconnect before you are removed from voice.

Commands

Commands for everyone:

• /soundwave id shows the server's room ID.
• /soundwave link <code> links your browser to your in-game player.
• /soundwave unlink disconnects your browser from voice.

Commands for operators:

• /soundwave list (or /soundwave who) shows which online players are connected to voice.
• /soundwave kick <player> disconnects a player's browser from voice.
• /soundwave status shows the room ID, how long the room has been open, whether the relay can be reached, whether TURN is configured, and how many players are linked.
• /soundwave reload tries to open the voice room again if the relay couldn't be reached when the server started. You don't need to restart the server.

Permissions

• soundwave.id lets players use /soundwave id. Everyone has this by default.
• soundwave.link lets players use /soundwave link. Everyone has this by default.
• soundwave.unlink lets players use /soundwave unlink. Everyone has this by default.
• soundwave.list lets players use /soundwave list. Only operators have this by default.
• soundwave.kick lets players use /soundwave kick. Only operators have this by default.
• soundwave.status lets players use /soundwave status. Only operators have this by default.
• soundwave.reload lets players use /soundwave reload. Only operators have this by default.

Configuration

The config file is at plugins/SoundWave/config.yml and has two options.

• relay-url is the address of the relay. Leave it as it is to use the free hosted relay, or change it to the address of your own relay.
• room-id is the ID players type on the web page. If you leave it blank, SoundWave picks a random ID the first time the server starts and saves it here, so the ID stays the same after restarts. You can set your own ID using 3 to 32 lowercase letters, numbers, hyphens, or underscores. If someone else is already using that ID, SoundWave picks a random one instead.

The voice room is closed when the server shuts down, which disconnects everyone from voice.