December 25, 2024
So raise your hand if you knew that there was such a thing as a non-looping white noise machine? I didn't.
I have always been a light sleeper and will easily awaken with the slightest sound. This is why I usually sleep with some sort of noise going, usually a fan. That's worked well so far.
Recently I thought I'd try using a white noise machine as I know others who use them to mask out unwanted sounds, to help with concentration, or, like me, to try and sleep better.
I found a cheap $20 model online so I figured I'd give that a try. Small footprint, runs on batteries, and has an assortment of sounds. I set it up for the first night of sleep and immediately noticed that there were these other sounds buried under the main SHHHHHHHHHHH sound. This was not ideal. I needed a continuous unbroken sound and not a pattern that my brain would immediately pay attention to. I needed the opposite of that.
And then I realized that yeah, these little devices are playing audio files that obviously can't run forever so they are being looped. What I was hearing under the main sound was the audio file looping back to the beginning to start over. Needless to say this is a pretty bad thing in a machine that's supposed to help you relax! Seems like whoever engineers these devices would have noticed this and made the transition seamless.
Upon further research I have since learned that there is such a thing as a non-looping white noise machine like this one. I haven't heard these in person yet but if you're like me and need a continuous unbroken sound for relaxation, one of these models might be good to try.