Getting Started Guide

On first launch, the system will ask whether to allow microphone access. Click "Allow".

If you're using an external mic or audio interface, click the 🎙 microphone button in the top-right corner and select your device.

Click the ▶ Start Measuring button in the toolbar. Speak or sing into your mic and the charts on screen start moving.

Like an EKG — you make sound, it responds.

Sing a long, comfortable "Ah~" at an easy volume. You'll see:

• the waveform rise and fall (the shape of your sound)
• pitch display the note you're singing
• the TA/CT Balance show the "thickness" of your voice

SonaLab has four tier levels, like "unlockable stages" in a game. The higher the tier, the more charts you can see:

This gauge tells you the name of the note you are singing (e.g., C4, A3) and how far off it is.

An olive-shaped slider: TA (thick voice) on the left, CT (thin voice) on the right.

Closure tells you whether your vocal folds come together exactly as much as they should.

Depth measures how "sunk-in" and "in-the-mic" your voice is. A voice with good depth sounds full and has real presence.

The Singer's Formant Monitor measures whether your voice can "cut through" the accompaniment and reach the listener clearly.

Waveform — the "EKG" of your sound. Bigger waves = louder sound; denser waves = higher pitch.

Loudness — a simple volume meter. Green = healthy, red = too loud.

Onset Detective — every time you start a note, your vocal folds go through a "start-up" moment. The Onset Detective checks whether that start-up is healthy.

This is a "vowel map". Sing different vowels (ah, oh, ee, oo, eh) and the cursor moves to different spots on the map.

How to use it:

• On "ah", the cursor should sit low on the map (jaw dropped wide)
• On "ee", the cursor should sit toward the top right (wide mouth, tongue forward)
• If the cursor keeps drifting away from the target vowel, your mouth shape or tongue position needs adjusting

The Sagittal View is one of SonaLab's coolest features. It renders a live side view of your head, showing what's happening inside your mouth in real time as you sing.

Three key structures move dynamically in the view:

A circular 0-100 gauge. It blends four dimensions — closure, singer's formant, stability and vibrato — into one overall score.

SonaLab automatically detects problems that may appear while you sing and presents them as "flip cards".

Below the health score sits a "Today's Vocal Load" progress bar. It tracks how long you have been voicing today, so you can avoid over-practicing.

This is the core idea of the SonaLab vocal analysis method: a good voice needs balance in three dimensions.

Squeezing on high notes is the most common problem. Usually the vocal folds fail to "thin out" in time, or the external laryngeal muscles are "helping" in the worst way.

Open these charts:

• TA/CT Balance — on high notes the cursor should drift naturally to the right (CT). If it stays stuck on the left, your folds aren't thinning.
• Vocal Fold Closure — if it reads "Pressed" (red), you are squeezing. Try easing off.
• Sagittal View (L2) — check whether the larynx has climbed. A slight rise on high notes is normal; climb too far and the sound jams.
• Symptom Detection — look for "Extrinsic Compensation" or "Register Break" cards.

A closed-off sound usually comes from "not enough singer's formant" or a "retracted tongue root".

Open these charts:

• Singer's Formant Monitor — if it reads "insufficient formant" (orange), your sound lacks high-frequency energy and gets muffled.
• Depth — depth and the singer's formant must work as a team. Formant without depth = shrill; depth without formant = muffled.
• Sagittal View (L2) — watch whether the tongue is turning red (tongue root tension). A retracted tongue blocks the sound channel.
• Formant Tracking (L2) — see whether the cursor drifts off the target vowel. Big drift means the mouth shape needs adjusting.

Vocal fatigue sends clear signals. SonaLab can spot them "before the damage is done".

Watch these indicators:

• Vocal Load bar — the most direct indicator. When it approaches orange, it's time to rest.
• Vocal Health Score — if the score keeps sliding during practice, the voice is getting tired.
• Vocal Fold Closure — closure drops with fatigue (from "Flowing" to "Breathy"), because the fold muscles are tiring out.
• Voice Stability (L3) — a tired voice starts to wobble and the stability score falls.
• Symptom Detection — look for "Extrinsic Compensation" cards. Once the voice tires, the body quietly recruits the neck muscles to help.

Running out of breath usually isn't about lung capacity — it's about air not being used efficiently.

Open these charts:

• Vocal Fold Closure — if it reads "Breathy" (orange), the folds aren't closing firmly and air is leaking away for nothing.
• Onset Detective — if onsets keep reading "soft" (orange), every note-start is leaking air.
• Breathiness Detection (L3) — tells you the degree of leakage directly. The thicker the fog, the more air is escaping.

Nasality comes from the soft palate (the "curtain" at the back of the mouth) failing to lift, so the sound escapes into the nose.

Open these charts:

• Sagittal View (L2) — watch the soft palate (the green part). If it sits low, sound exits through the nose.
• Symptom Detection — check for an "Excessive Nasality" card.

Click the 🍃 Warm-Up / Cool Down button on the left side of the toolbar, and SonaLab will guide you through a warm-up routine.

Recommended warm-up sequence:

1. Lip trills (brrr) — relax the lips and face
2. Humming (mm~) — gently wake up the vocal folds
3. Slides (low to high and back) — stretch the folds
4. Simple scales — ease into full voice

When you're done, run a cool-down routine to help the folds recover.

1. Gentle humming — let the folds "cool down" slowly
2. Sigh-like phonation (hah~) — release throat tension
3. Sip warm water — keep the folds hydrated
4. Rest quietly for 10-15 minutes — let the folds fully recover