ZaX-Mindscape: User Guide

Author: Zachary Wartell

Revised: 3/12/2025

Overview

ZaX-Mindscape is an experimental Progressive Web App exploring audio, visual and text stimulation for meditation.

ZaX-Mindscape is a work in progress and in the pre-alpha stage of software development.

ZaX-Mindscape has not been evaluated nor approved for medical use.  Use at your own risk.

Features:

Privacy:

Zax-Mindscape does not collect any user data. The app does not send any information over Internet except the standard PWA protocol that downloads and updates the app.

Binaural Beats

Note on Audibility of Binaural Beats: 
  1. Binarual beats (BB's) that use low base frequencies will not be audible on smart phone speakers, nor on many laptop built-in speakers.   Head phones or external speakers are likely required to hear any of the low frequency BB's.
  2. The human brain generally only perceives the beat of a binaural beat when using stereo headphones.

From [WMD2025]:(WebMD does not endorse nor sponsor "zax-mindscape")

"A binaural beat is an illusion created by the brain when you listen to two tones with slightly different frequencies at the same time.

Your Brain and Binaural Beats

Your brain interprets the two tones as a beat of its own. The two tones align with your brain waves to produce a beat with a different frequency. This frequency is the difference in hertz (Hz) between the frequencies of the two tones. For example, if you are listening to a 440 Hz tone with your left ear and a 444 Hz tone with your right ear, you would be hearing a 4 Hz tone. [In this example the base frequency is 440hz and the binaural beat frequency is 4hz.] When you listen to binaural beats, your brain activity matches the frequency set by the frequency of the beat. This is called the frequency-following effect. This means you can use binaural beats to entrain your mind to reach a certain mental state."


Box Breathing

From [WMD2025a]:(WebMD does not endorse nor sponsor "zax-mindscape")

How to do Box Breathing

Box breathing is easy and quick to learn. Anyone can practice this technique and it's useful in stressful situations when you want to re-center yourself or improve concentration.

Four Steps to Master Box Breathing

  • Step 1: Breathe in, counting to four slowly. Feel the air enter your lungs.
  • Step 2: Hold your breath for 4 seconds. Try to avoid inhaling or exhaling for 4 seconds.
  • Step 3: Slowly exhale through your mouth for 4 seconds.
  • Step 4: Wait for another 4 seconds before you breathe in again. 

Repeat this exercise until you feel re-centered. Thirty seconds of deep breathing will help you feel more relaxed and in control.

Help

Tooltips

On a computing device with an input device such as a mouse that supports 'mouse hover', you can hover over the user interface control elements (a button, a slider, etc.).   Zax-Mindscape will pop-up a "tooltip" with a brief description of the control's purpose plus a hyperlink to more details about the control in this User Guide.

Audio User Interface (Binuaral Beats)

This section covers the user interface for controlling the binaural beat.  (Section Binaural Beats gives brief explanation of binaural beats)

Controls

  • Play/Stop: The toggles the audio on and off.
  • Count Down Timer: The Count Down Timer allows you to set a count down timer that will play the binaural tone for a given number of minutes. Press "Play" to start the countdown. Pressing "Stop" will zero the timer.
  • Preset Binural Beat: Select a preset base frequency and binaural beat.

    From [WMD2025]:(WebMD does not endorse nor sponsor "zax-mindscape")

    There are five different brain waves:
    • Delta: 1-4 Hz. Delta is the lowest frequency state, and it's linked to:
      • Healing and pain relief
      • Meditation
      • Anti-aging: cortisol reduction/DHEA increase Access to the unconscious min
      • Deep sleep
    • Theta: 4-8 Hz. Theta binaural beats benefits include:
      • Meditation
      • Deep relaxation
      • Creativity
    • Alpha: 8-14 Hz. When you are in an alpha state of mind, your brain is focused and productive. Alpha brain waves help you to:
      • Relax and focus
      • Reduce Stress
      • Maintain positive thinking
      • Increase your learning capabilities
        • Easily engage in activities and the environment because you are in a state of flow
    • Beta: 14-30 Hz. Beta is a higher frequency brainwave and helps in:
      • Keeping your attention focused
      • Analytical thinking and solving problems
      • Stimulating energy and action
      • High-level cognition
    • Gamma: 30-100 Hz. With a higher frequency than beta, these brain waves help in:
      • Increased cognitive enhancement
      • Attention to detail, helping in memory recall
        • A different way of thinking, which is a sign of
      • creativity

  • Base Frequency: The base frequency slider adjusts the base frequency in the range of 40hz to 1500hz (see #fact1 ).
  • Binaural Beat Frequency: The beat frequency slider adjusts the binaural beat frequency.

  • Add Audio Loop: Add audio loop chosen from built in list.
  • Load Audio Loop: Load an audio file (mp3) from local file system and play as mixed in audio loop.
  • Binaural Waveform: Displays the left and right channels of the binuaral waveforms sampled in real-time via AnalyserNode

Box Breathing Trainer User Interface

This section explains the user interface for the Box Breathing Trainer.   (Section Box Breathing briefly explains what box breathing is).

Controls

  • Inhale: Adjusts the inhale duration measured in seconds.
  • Inhale Hold: Adjusts the inhale hold duration measured in seconds.
  • Exhale: Adjusts the exhale duration measured in seconds.
  • Exhale Hold: Adjusts the exhale hold duration measured in seconds.
  • Microphone Toggle:  Toggle display of the waveform coming from the microphone.   (see Microphone Waveform).

Audio and Visuals

  • Breath State Cue - The Breath State (visual) Cue bounces up and down through the
    inhale-hold-exhale-hold cycle.
  • Microphone Waveform - The audio waveform coming from the microphone can be displayed in the Breath State panel.  In some meditation practices, a practitioner hums or chants on the exhale. The visual waveform gives visual feedback of this real-time audio. Your microphone may be able to pick up a loud exhale.   (Note, your web browser will prompt you for permission for Zax-Mindscape to access your microphone when you first visit the page).
  • Video - The "Video" select controller allows you to load one of several preset videos that are played overlaid by the Breath State Cue and Microphone Waveform visuals.
    • "Double Click" - double clicking in this Box Breathing Visual Area will toggle full viewport mode on and off.    In full viewport mode, the Box Breathing Visual Area will expand to the browser window.

Media Attributions

Names Local File URL Attribution
Water Stream 1
  sounds/water-stream-1.mp3
 https://freesound.org/s/482042/ Water Stream - 02.wav by GregorQuendel -- https://freesound.org/s/482042/ --
License: Attribution 4.0
Rain 1
  sounds/rain-1.mp3
 https://freesound.org/s/89947/
 Rain.WAV by inchadney -- https://freesound.org/s/89947/ -- License: Attribution 4.0
Cat Purr 1
  sounds/cat-purr-1.mp3
 https://freesound.org/s/695630/
 Female cat purr by Sadiquecat -- https://freesound.org/s/695630/ -- License: Creative Commons 0
Beach Sunset 1 video/beach-sunset-1.mp4 https://www.pexels.com/search/videos/water/ Free to Use (CC0) https://www.pexels.com/creative-commons-images/
Candle 1 video/candle-1.mp4 https://www.pexels.com/video/... Video by okayama candle yutoridx from Pexels: https://www.pexels.com/video/close-up-footage-of-a-burning-candle-giving-light-in-darkness-3562198/
Yosemitebear Mountain Double Rainbow video/zjw-favorites/Yosemitebear Mountain Double Rainbow.mp4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OQSNhk5ICTI
 (Currently only available to the zax-mindscape author (ZJW) and friends....) 		Yosemitebear Mountain Double Rainbow 1-8-10, Yosemitebear62, Youtube
Luke Explains the Force to Rey video/zjw-favorites/Luke Explains the Force to Rey.mp4
 screen captured from multiple YouTube sources and edited by ZJW
(The Star Wars clip is copyright LucasFilm. Currently it is only available to the zax-mindscape author (ZJW) and friends....) 		Copyright LucasFilm, Star Wars:  "The Last Jedi"
The Miracle of Walking on Earth video/zjw-favorites/The Miracle of Walking on Earth.mp4 https://www.eomega.org/videos/the-miracle-of-walking-on-earth (Currently only available to the zax-mindscape author (ZJW) and friends....) https://www.eomega.org/videos/the-miracle-of-walking-on-earth

Factoids

  1. In order to produce a binaural beat, the two tones sounded in the ears must both have frequencies below 1,500 Hz with a difference of no greater than 40 Hz between them. [PT2025]
  2. Pure tones of 420 Hz and 460 Hz presented to the left and right ear, respectively, were perceived as a 40-Hz BB with a 440 Hz fundamental tone. Pure tones of 431.85 Hz and 448.15 Hz were used to produce the 16-Hz BB with the same fundamental tone. [Ross2020]
  3. ??? [Chaieb2015]
  4. This code generates 40 Hz flicker during which the light turns on for 12.5 ms and
      then off for 12.5 ms.
      Also plays a 10kHz tone for 12.5 milliseconds every 25 milliseconds (40 Hz, 50% Duty Cycle) [BW2025]

Road Map , Todo List, Bug List

See:

References

Binaural Beat References