Funny sound youtube

So, you’re on the look out for YouTube sound effects for your videos and just don’t know where to start? Well, you’ve come to the right place. There are so many things you need to master to make your videos shine and be engaging and interesting to your audience. One of those things is the sound… and there’s a lot to know. So in this guide, we’ll discuss what type of sound effects you can use and for what purpose, where to find them or how to create them and how to use them legally.

People looking for free sound effects for video editing and YouTubers make up a large portion of our members here at ZapSplat so we spend a lot of time and resources creating free sound effects that you can download and use safe in the knowledge they’re 100% legal and won’t throw any content ID claims. Every single sound in our library has either been created by the ZapSplat team, or we work closely with our contributors and vet every sound we host guaranteeing they’re all royalty free.

Sound is half of the viewer’s experience and some producers often neglect the importance of it. While it’s true that sometimes less is more, well placed and cleverly thought out usage of audio in your videos will bring them to life. This article explains why and is a great read. Things like transition sounds to move the viewer from one scene to the next are often the missing piece that can help add a sparkle and more professional edge to your creation. Or a subtle background noise can help immerse the viewer into the scene. So read on and learn more about using our sound effects for Youtube videos.

What type of sound effects are there and how should you use them?

This is a great question and one that we will answer below. Keep in mind, creativity is subjective and you should consider your audience, or the message your video is trying to get across. How you use the visual and audio elements will translate this message in the appropriate way if done right.

Spot sound effects

Spot sound effects are sounds that represent a single event. These one-shot sounds can be anything from an impact, punch, kiss, splat… you get the picture. They’re often the most heavily used sound as depending on how complex the scene or environment the sounds are being placed into is, the more there will be and they will likely need to be layered correctly to sound just right.

Ambience/background sounds

As the name suggests, these sounds typically don’t represent an action or event, but allow you to add depth and sometimes realism to your video. These could be anything from nature sounds (rain, wind, thunder, birds etc.) to subtle drones, air atmospheres or even more abstract elements for things like science fiction themed works. These recordings are usually long (2 to 5 minutes) and would be more subtle and quieter in your videos.

Production elements

A production element is a sound (often designed) that enhances something in an exaggerated way. A good example is a transition effect. Probably the most classic transition is the whoosh, the fast airy swiping sound that you hear that splices one scene to another. These audio cues help tell the user ‘on to the next scene’, and can convey a passing of time or space. But please do not fall into the trap of overusing this type of transition effect, it’s kind of overused (but still great). Be creative and find alternatives. Depending on the theme of your video, you can experiment with musical sounds and many others to get the right effect.

Why should I use a sound library like ZapSplat and not just use commercial music or other sounds?

When you use a sound and music library such as us, you’re acquiring a License to use our free sound effects for video editing. This means when you download any of the audio found here, or on another stock library, you’re granted permission by the copyright owner of each file to use it. It’s important to remember, we are granting you the rights to use the audio, NOT transferring ownership. This means you can use the sounds as stated in our License Agreement and it’s important to follow those terms.

If you simply rip music from a commercial music release, you’ll be using music (or sounds) without permission of the copyright owner/publisher. Not only will it almost certainly throw up a content ID claim or copyright strike, it will also leave you open to legal action. So, don’t do that, it’s just not worth the risk. Using a professional stock library such as ZapSplat.com means you’re using audio created specifically for synchronisation in audio/visual works and you have the rights to do so.

What are some of the most popular sound effects for YouTube videos available at ZapSplat?

Okay, so if you’re at the stage after reading the above to get on with finding sounds for your next video, here are some of our most popular with YouTubers. Continue reading for more info on how to use them legally and more resources you’ll find useful.

Sound effects are an inseparable part of the film industry.

The on-screen visuals paint a picture for the audience, and the music and performances help weave together a narrative and a sense of emotion. But it’s the sound effects — the small, overlooked things we take for granted — that ground a film and make it feel realistic.

Somehow, we can watch Avatar and imagine ourselves in the world of Pandora. Or walking through the Death Star in Star Wars, alongside Stormtroopers and droids. Or standing on the H.M.S. Surprise in Master and Commander, with all the creaks and groans we’d imagine from a ship deck.

Not all of those sounds are natural, of course. Even less fantastic experiences like Ferrari v. Ford or The Social Network still benefit from sound design, and they often exaggerate sound effects (or even make them up) to really immerse audiences in a scene, setting, or time period. 

Dramatic, overstated sound effects are something films have used since the very first movies. It’s a part of the theatrical experience, a sense of melodrama dating way back to Shakespearean performances and beyond. In fact, Homer probably used this same practice during his oral storytelling of The Iliad.

But the real star of sound effects is something a whole lot less dramatic.

The Power Of Nostalgia In Cartoons

Cartoons helped establish sound design as part of filmmaking. During this period, hand-drawn characters were anthropomorphized creatures that broke natural laws, but people still connected with them. Those stories resonated with audiences, even without a single human on screen.

And because the visuals in cartoons freely ignore the laws of physics, these shows can also get away with breaking rules in sound design.

None of the sounds in The Yogi Bear Show or Snagglepuss were things that appear in the natural world, but it works. It met audience expectations because the sound effects were designed to be funny, and most of them could make you laugh even without seeing any visuals.

If you sat down to think about or imagine funny sound effects, what are the first things that come to mind? Is it the classic skid of a running character? A particular crash or clang that you imagine when something falls?

There’s an odd magic to cartoons. It’s strange how sound effects we heard as kids are as much a part of our mental vocabulary as actual worlds. And it’s even stranger that a lot of those sounds are older than us, and possibly even older than our parents.

Whether it was after school or on the weekends, animated shows became a part of our cultural heritage.

In fact, cartoons have been a touchstone of “growing up” for generations. They started out as pure entertainment, something in newspapers that made people laugh. But when film/TV came along, cartoons became a source of education, teaching social behaviors or even reading and math.

Things have continued to evolve over the decades. Now we’re in an age where animated movies make us feel real emotions (and sometimes cry). Even as an adult, there’s a good chance that cartoons are still part of your life, either as a parent or as a source of nostalgia.

And funny sound effects are a foundational piece of what makes cartoons work.

Everyone can remember certain sounds from Batman: The Animated Series, The Simpsons, or Pokemon. The same is true for Looney Tunes, The Flintstones, The Pink Panther.

Those older shows helped create a standard for cartoon sound effects, which also changed how we interpret “funny sounds.” In fact, a lot of the effects used in the earliest cartoons are still being recycled and used in animated shows that are currently running.

Believe it or not, funny sound effects started back before the days of Hana-Barbera and the Looney Tunes. You might think they were part of the first movies with sound, like an early transition from the silent film era. 

The truth is, sound effects have always been a staple — and you might even say an icon — of animated cartoons.

A Brief History Of Sound Effects

Think back to those early days of film. Most movies were comical, or at least leaned into humorous elements. But the public perception of movies was stuck in a rut until sound became a key player.

In terms of sound effects — and particularly funny ones — things really took off when a household name began to push the envelope on what animation could be.

Yep, we’re talking about Walt Disney.

Disney introduced “Oswald the Lucky Rabbit” in 1927. And while the rights to that character were (somewhat savagely) stolen from him by his partner, the interaction lit a fire under Disney. He bounced back by creating a similar character: Mickey Mouse.

(For what it’s worth, Disney would get the last laugh from his old party. Even though he passed away in 1966, Disney’s company bought back the rights to Oswald the Lucky Rabbit in 2006.)

1927 was a big year for the film industry. It gave us The Jazz Singer and, more importantly, the use of sound and music in a movie. That transformed an industry that had been fixated on its “silent film” era, and producers started scrambling to pivot their next project.

Disney, however, saw this evolution as a chance to stand out from other animation houses.

So, in 1928, he partnered with Pat Powers, founder of sound design company Powers Cinephone System. Powers would provide sound effects and music, and Disney would lend his voice to the world’s favorite mouse. (Powers’ company would also distribute Disney’s films.)

On Nov. 18, 1928, Steamboat Willie became the world’s first sound cartoon. The movie created two entertainment icons — a man and a mouse — and set the tone for the next 90 years of animation.

Steamboat Willie was a seminal moment for the film industry. Mickey Mouse wasn’t just another cartoon character — he was the start of a revolution that would see animated films become a major player in the entertainment industry. 

And Disney’s work helped inspire an entire generation of master cartoonists, which led to the creation of studios like Hanna-Barbera (Tom & Jerry, The Flintstones, Scooby Doo) and Warner Bros. (Looney Tunes, Merrie Melodies).

Funny Sound Effects In Modern Film

Fast Forward to the modern era. At times, it can be hard to trace the lasting effect of Steamboat Willie or Looney Tunes. Hand animation has become a rarity, replaced by visual effects and CGI-rendered cartoons for kids to watch.

In the 1960s, the animators at Hanna-Barbera started selling off their sound effects library. This led to an infusion of those classic sound effects into other studios, like Warner Bros.

Basically, this collaborative “sharing” from legendary cartoon-makers helped establish a universal “language” of sound effects. It’s why we still recognize certain sounds, and why people use them in cartoons, podcasts, and even vlogs.

These sounds have a historical meaning that tell us what our brains should think or “see,” even with next to no context. That makes them timeless, no matter what medium they’re used in.

(Some of those old effects, like the spaceship sounds from The Jetsons, are still a mystery to this day. A lot of the artistry has been lost over the decades, replaced by automation and streamlining within the production process.) 

The biggest difference between live action sound design and animated sound effects is the source. For live action work, the starting point is the recorded audio, whether that’s collected on set or a foley sound aimed to recreate what is on screen.

Cartoons, on the other hand, are blank slates. We talked about how cartoons don’t follow natural laws, and that really comes into effect here.

Modern animated projects try to replicate the realism of live action films to help create the same level of immersion. Classic cartoons did the complete opposite, and while Pixar or Dreamworks might land somewhere in the middle (between “realistic” and “fantastical”), it’s very much a change in direction.

Thankfully, even as the industry keeps evolving, we’ve still got funny sound effects to enjoy. They’re alive and well in modern TV shows and YouTube videos. And as long as they continue to stay in our cultural awareness, they’ll always be just as impactful as they were in the 1960s.

(And if you’re interested in a deeper dive on this, you can check out this episode of Twenty Thousand Hertz. The podcast includes interviews with two celebrated cartoon sound designers.)

Finding Sound Effects For Video

Now that you’re an expert on the history of sound effects (Or something close to it) let’s answer the big question that got you here: Where can you find cartoon sound effects to use in your projects?

We know not every project has a Disney-level budget. Even if you appreciate the value of great sound design, you won’t be able to afford a team of full-time designers or the Hanna-Barbera effects library. 

That means you have two options: create the sound effects yourself, or find a great library that fits into your budget. And unless you moonlight as a foley artist, you probably won’t have the tools or the expertise to create a whole database of effects for your projects.

So, in reality, you’ve got one option. The good news is that it’s never been easier to find sound effects online.

A simple Google search will lead you to dozens of options that range in quality and price. The new obstacle becomes finding a sound effects library you can afford without sacrificing on quality or diversity.

If you’ve done much work in the industry, you might have heard about why you need royalty free music. But in case you aren’t familiar with it, here’s a quick snapshot of how it works.

Copyright law exists to make sure that the work of artists (like you) is protected. If you want to use another artist’s works — in this case, music — you’ll need to license that from them. In most cases, there’s also an exchange where you pay for the rights to use that work.

In addition, you will also be expected to pay royalties. This system is a way to make sure that if your videos generate income for you, you’ll share some of that revenue with other artists whose creations helped contribute to your project.

Royalty free music is an alternative process. In this situation, companies will license songs from artists, combine them into an online library, and let filmmakers and content creators pay for individual song licenses at a discounted rate (and usually through a more convenient process).

Even if you’re already familiar with why you need royalty free music (and how to find it), it might surprise you to learn that some of those music libraries also include sound effects! It’s a great way to get all of your sound design needs from a source you trust.

Soundstripe offers more than 35,000 sound effects as part of our Premium subscription plan. And that is in addition to a curated library of music to use in your video projects.

Here’s how it works. With a Standard subscription, you pay a monthly or yearly fee and get unlimited access to all of our songs. License as many of the songs as you want for your projects, and you’ll never have to worry about copyright claims — you’ll own those licenses forever.

But by upgrading to our Premium subscription, you’ll get a few more goodies. You will have access to stem files as well as our entire sound effects library. More importantly, you won’t have to worry about paying royalty fees, arranging individual licenses, or dealing with copyright claims.

In other words, it’s your entry point into using funny sound effects in your projects. So whether you work on a vlog, an ad agency, or an indie film crew, royalty free music and sound effects will help you capture that nostalgic humor we all know and love.