Sample Sounds of the MRI Scanner

Recorded these for a guy here at the University, but there’s nothing proprietary about them, so hey, let’s share?

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‘BIDE’

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Diffusion Tensor Imaging

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Fluid Attenuation Inversion Recovery

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Gradient

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K.I.S.S.

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R.A.G.E.

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T1

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T2

All files here.

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25 Responses to Sample Sounds of the MRI Scanner

  1. megan says:

    do you have any more sounds by chance of any type of scan.. and no mater what type of scanner it is will it always make the same sounds?

    • chaircrusher says:

      I don’t have any more scanner sounds right now. They do pretty much make the same sounds.

  2. Dawn says:

    Thank you so so much for having these! I have been looking everywhere for decent sound clips to have our study subjects listen to before having their scans. You just made my life so much easier.
    :)

  3. Mike says:

    I just had an MRI for the first time yesterday — and I loved the sounds! Reminded me of heavy metal music. Thank you for the recordings.

  4. Pingback: Music made from MRI machine samples « The Wrong End of the Telescope

  5. matt says:

    i have nurofibromatosis so i get MRIs about 1 a year and it still annoys me

    • Coat says:

      Just had one the other day – they are without doubt the most unpleasant sounds, I shall enjoy turning base metal into gold with Pauls Stretch. Thankyou.

  6. powersherlock says:

    Love it love it love it. have a mix by way of thanks: http://www.divshare.com/download/13891443-943

    ace site by the way and great mixes as well

  7. r0ise says:

    Hey man this are really cool!! I ve downloaded them and Im gonna use in my next “song” ^^ so keep a eye on my soundcloud account…

    Thanks!

  8. Pingback: Peanut gets her MRI | supermominthemaking

  9. Michelle says:

    If done properly, it’s not so bothersome. Unfortunately, my first one was in a mobile (the device is in a 53-foot trailer) w/no music, voice or anxiety med – all I could hear was the bong, bong, bong, bing, bing, bing and all could see peripherally was the back trailer door. This was compounded by the fact that I was in it for 2 1/2 hours (pulled me out once to put in contrast – was a MRSA abscess in my spine that ran from L1 down to tailbone in the end). Probably wouldn’t have been as bad if when they finally took me out, they weren’t all in a panic seeing something they’d never seen before and then rushed me straight to the trauma room in the ER at the hosp. next door w/out telling me anything. Was then rushed to one of the closest trauma centers (wanted to fly me in helo, but wx didn’t allow).

    I’ve had 3 more since (plus a nuclear scan and a couple CTs). Incredible difference when one gets an anxiety med first and music to distract and voices – as well as open space peripherally – I have another one this week due to shifts in pain, but know it won’t be close to that 1st one.

  10. jean loew says:

    I’m due for an MRI and am scared to death (being claustrophobic). Those sounds scared me even more! Has anyone ever gone deaf just listening to them?

    • chaircrusher says:

      Jean, I’ve been through several MRIs and the scanner is not so loud as to damage your hearing.

      You can ask for a Valium or other tranquilizer before the scan, and I highly recommend it. My worst experience was when I had a painful infection in my elbow, and they put me in an uncomfortable position and said ‘don’t move’ — and I was in the scanner for 45 minutes.

      Despite that horror story, it usually isn’t unpleasant, just long and boring, and loud. I advise tranquilizers and earplugs — if you’re lucky you can sleep through it.

  11. Lisa says:

    Thanks for the MRI sounds! I plan to use them in a sound&image assignment along with these images: http://insideinsides.blogspot.co.uk/search?updated-max=2012-04-30T08:29:00-07:00&max-results=6
    It’s amazing that technology that creates such grating sound can also produce beautiful images (and life-saving diagnoses).

  12. Steve P says:

    So how did you make these recordings? I’ve been told that there can not be any metal objects in the room with the scanner, such as recorders, mics, etc. because it messes with the magnetic thing. Is that true? Or just something they tell you because they don’t want to deal with someone making recordings?

    • chaircrusher says:

      Anything made of magnetizable metal is definitely a problem around an MRI Scanner. But magnetic fields follow the inverse square law, meaning the field strength falls off very quickly with distance. We fed a microphone (a Shure Beta 58A, coincidentally a microphone once used by Thom Yorke at Launch Studios in LA) through a cable port between the control room and the MRI room, and set the mic on a non-metallic table inside the MRI room. It didn’t get sucked into the scanner.

  13. e says:

    Hi,
    I wanna research about my project about MRI sound but I don’t know your sound that you recorded is real or not and who you recoreded that?! please tell me. thanks a lot

    • chaircrusher says:

      Those are real MRI sounds, and they were recorded at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics.

  14. Hi there,

    Fantastic sounds! I was wondering if you had them recorded at a higher format at all?
    WAV. files perhaps?

    Thanks.

  15. Lou Riccio says:

    Thank you very much for sharing these audio files. I will use them to make a prep book (short for preparation) so that child life staff may ease the anxiety and discomfort of children about to undergo MRI scans. The materials I produce for child life, including this one, are on a volunteer basis and there is never a fee for any of the services or products delivered. Thank you once again for your generosity for the children.

    lou.riccio@childlifetechnology.org

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