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Restaurant
Restaurant is the warmer and heavier of the two indoor crowd recordings. Most of its energy sits in the 80 to 250 Hz room rumble, with about four crockery and cutlery hits a second rather than the cafe recording’s eight. Voices stay unintelligible. Suits listeners who want a fuller, less clattery room.
Ready to play
Stack this under rain or a fire, keep the blend, and play it with your screen off. Slo, on iOS, Android and Mac.
What the recording actually contains
The loudest measured band is 80 to 250 Hz, the range where a full room of bodies, furniture and low voices lives. Above that it falls away faster than the Cafe recording does, with the 4 to 8 kHz band about six decibels lower, so hard surfaces register as thuds and dull chinks rather than bright rings. Transient events come at roughly four a second, about half the cafe rate. The stereo image is a little wider than the cafe, and the loop runs 32 seconds.
Choosing between the three crowd recordings
Cafe is the bright, busy one; this is the warm, dense one; and Summer Evening Chatter is outdoors, wider, and carries insects rather than cutlery. All three are separate recordings with measurably different spectra and event rates. The sound library index lists everything on the site.
If the low-end weight is more than you want, thin it out with something brighter on top. The Restaurant and rain blend in the free sound mixer adds high-frequency detail without adding more voices.
Frequently asked questions
Can you hear separate conversations?
No. Speech in the file stays below intelligibility, so you cannot follow any words or conversations.
How is it different from the Cafe track?
It is warmer and calmer: more energy in the 80 to 250 Hz room rumble, about six decibels less in the 4 to 8 kHz band, and roughly half the rate of bright clatter events.
Why does it sound heavier on good speakers?
Its loudest band sits between 80 and 250 Hz, which small speakers largely miss and larger ones reproduce fully.
Is there a sleep timer?
Yes. The browser player stops after 15, 30, or 60 minutes, or runs continuously with the timer off.