To load and play a .wav file using the AudioSystem class in Java, you can use the Clip interface from the javax.sound.sampled package. The AudioSystem class provides methods to get an audio input stream and obtain a clip to play the sound.

Here’s a step-by-step guide, including example code:

Steps:

1. Import required packages from javax.sound.sampled.
2. Use AudioSystem.getAudioInputStream() to read the .wav file into an audio stream.
3. Obtain a Clip object from AudioSystem.
4. Open the audio stream in the clip.
5. Start playing the audio with the start() method.

Example Code

package org.kodejava.sound;

import javax.sound.sampled.*;
import java.io.File;
import java.io.IOException;

public class WavPlayer {

    public static void main(String[] args) {
        // Path to the .wav file
        String filePath = "D:/Sound/sound.wav";

        try {
            // Load the audio file as a File object
            File audioFile = new File(filePath);

            // Get an AudioInputStream from the file
            AudioInputStream audioStream = AudioSystem.getAudioInputStream(audioFile);

            // Get a Clip object
            Clip clip = AudioSystem.getClip();

            // Open the audio stream in the clip
            clip.open(audioStream);

            // Start playing the audio
            clip.start();

            // Keep the program running to listen to the complete audio
            System.out.println("Playing audio...");
            Thread.sleep(clip.getMicrosecondLength() / 1000);  // Convert microseconds to milliseconds

        } catch (UnsupportedAudioFileException e) {
            System.out.println("The specified audio file format is not supported.");
            e.printStackTrace();
        } catch (LineUnavailableException e) {
            System.out.println("Audio line for playing the sound is unavailable.");
            e.printStackTrace();
        } catch (IOException e) {
            System.out.println("Error occurred while trying to read the audio file.");
            e.printStackTrace();
        } catch (InterruptedException e) {
            System.out.println("Playback was interrupted.");
            e.printStackTrace();
        }
    }
}

How it Works:

1. AudioSystem.getAudioInputStream(File): Loads the audio file into an audio stream.
2. AudioSystem.getClip(): Obtains a Clip object for playback.
3. clip.open(audioStream): Opens the audio stream in the clip.
4. clip.start(): Starts the playback.
5. Thread.sleep(): Ensures playback completes before the program exits.

Key Points to Consider:

1. File Path: Replace "D:/Sound/sound.wav" with the correct path to your .wav file.
2. Audio Format: Ensure the .wav file is in a supported format (e.g., linear PCM).
3. Thread Management: The thread is paused with Thread.sleep() to allow the entire audio clip to play before the program exits. Without this, the program could terminate before playback completes.
4. Exception Handling: Handle exceptions such as unsupported file formats or unavailable audio lines.