Beach waves is a real field recording of surf on the beach at Punta Allen, on the Caribbean coast of Quintana Roo, Mexico. Felix Blume recorded it on November 1, 2015, and released it into the public domain under CC0. It plays at a lower level than the other sounds here, so its natural rise and fall stays intact.
Where is Punta Allen?
Punta Allen is in the Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve, on the Caribbean coast of Quintana Roo, Mexico. This recording was made there on November 1, 2015.
Why does it play quieter?
Its waves rise and fall slowly over many seconds, a wide natural swing rather than a steady level. Turning the whole loop up to match the other sounds here would have meant flattening that swing down to a constant hiss, which would have thrown away the one thing that makes it a recording rather than noise. So beach waves plays at roughly half the loudness of the rest by default, keeping its swell intact. Push its slider to about 85% and it sits level with the rest of the mix.
Ocean waves or brown noise?
Brown noise is synthesized, a steady rumble generated fresh every time you press play, with no recording behind it and no rise or fall of its own beyond what a slider gives it. Beach waves is the opposite: a real recording of one specific stretch of sea on one specific day, with the waves' own slow rise and fall left in rather than smoothed away. Which one suits a moment is a matter of what you're after — an even backdrop that never changes, or something that actually happened once and still carries that shape.
Is it part of a ready-made mix?
Yes. Beach waves is the heart of the Relax mix. With Pro, its slider sits at about 85% with green noise low underneath at about 25%, playing for thirty minutes by default before it fades out on its own; without Pro, it plays alone for fifteen minutes a day. Tap Relax and it starts already loaded and playing, or, with Pro, add beach waves by hand to a mix of up to six sounds you build yourself.