/playsound
Plays a sound effect to one or more players. Supports all vanilla and custom sounds with volume and pitch control.
Syntax
/playsound <sound> <source> <targets> [<pos>] [<volume>] [<pitch>] [<minVolume>]Parameters
| Name | Type | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| sound | resource | Required | The sound event to play (e.g., entity.experience_orb.pickup). |
| source | literal | Required | The sound category: master, music, record, weather, block, hostile, neutral, player, ambient, voice. |
| targets | entity | Required | The player(s) who hear the sound. |
| pos | vec3 | Optional | The position the sound originates from. Defaults to the target's position. |
| volume | float | Optional | The volume (0.0+). Values above 1.0 increase hearing range, not actual loudness. |
| pitch | float | Optional | The pitch (0.0-2.0). 1.0 is normal. Default is 1.0. |
| minVolume | float | Optional | Minimum volume for players outside the normal range (0.0-1.0). |
Examples
/playsound minecraft:entity.experience_orb.pickup player @aPlays the experience orb pickup sound to all players.
/playsound minecraft:entity.ender_dragon.growl hostile @p ~ ~ ~ 1 0.5Plays the ender dragon growl at half pitch to the nearest player.
/playsound minecraft:block.note_block.harp record @a ~ ~ ~ 1 1.5Plays a harp note at 1.5 pitch to all players.
Common Mistakes
- Forgetting the source category, it is required and determines which volume slider controls the sound.
- Using volume > 1.0 expecting louder sound, values above 1 only increase the hearing distance, not the volume.
Notes
Volume values above 1.0 extend the range at which the sound can be heard (range = volume * 16 blocks) but do not make it louder. The source category (master, music, etc.) determines which in-game volume slider affects the sound.
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