Soundwave (Cyberverse)

Soundwave is a Decepticon from the Cyberverse continuity family.

A Soundwave with bat ears? Ridiculous!

Soundwave is not the most orthodox of Decepticons. A lover and abuser of good music with a penchant for cutting jibes, he's as skilled at psychological warfare as he is at physical combat. Perhaps this is why he's one of Megatron's top agents. He's as likely to defeat his enemies with a creative use of audio manipulation as he is with his missiles. Shockwave has a particular dislike of him.

Despite this, Soundwave is not without his positive traits. He's one of the only 'Cons Shadow Striker can tolerate for any length of time and once you earn his respect, his loyalty is absolute. Perhaps this is why he's formed a strange partnership bordering on friendship with the rebellious young Autobot Hot Rod. They are, in an odd way, two rule-bending birds of a feather.

Fiction

Cyberverse cartoon

Voice actor: Marc Swint (English), Yōji Ueda (Japanese), Roman Kretschmer (German), Olivier Cuvellier (French), János Bácskai (Hungarian, Allspark), Róbert Bolla (Hungarian, Megatron Is My Hero), Marco Balbi (Italian), Antonio Llano (Castilian Spanish), Manuel Pérez (Latin-American Spanish), Jonathan Guedes (Brazilian Portuguese)

It's just a jump to the left, a step to the right-

Prior to the war, Soundwave was a patron at Maccadam's Old Oil House when Bumblebee brought Windblade there for the first time. There, he did a dance that impressed Maccadam's other customers, and even convinced two other Seekers to join in. Maccadam's At some later point, Soundwave captured a Cybertronian bird and named him Laserbeak. The Scientist Afterwards, he attended Megatron's rally, and eventually fell in with the Decepticons. At some point after he joined the Decepticons, Soundwave faced Soundblaster in a beatboxing competition, defeating him to become the champion, and earning Soundblaster’s enduring hatred. The Immobilizers

Time to drop some science on you all.

During the war, Soundwave attacked Bumblebee after the scout overheard Shockwave discussing the Decepticons' plans for Vector Sigma, and successfully incapacitated the Autobot after Shadow Striker failed to do so. The duo brought Bumblebee before Megatron, and were subsequently ordered to leave while Megatron interrogated their prisoner. Megatron Is My Hero

Bumblebee survived the encounter, and sometime later, when the Autobots attempted to take the Decepticons' space bridge to send the AllSpark offworld, Soundwave defended the bridge's control panel from him by laying down a hailstorm of sonic blasts. Unfortunately for him, Megatron attempted to achieve the same goal as well by firing at the scout, with the resulting explosion knocking Soundwave into the depths below. Allspark

In the modern era, Soundwave was part of the Decepticon fleet that had arrived to seek out the AllSpark on Earth. When Megatron opted to simply destroy Earth via a Planet Smasher on the moon, Soundwave took part in defending it against the Autobots, knocking aside a trio of Autobot soldiers before blasting Rack'n'Ruin. When Starscream ignored Megatron's orders to reinforce him and furthermore activated the Planet Smasher's force field despite Megatron apparently still being outside, the Seeker declared himself the new Decepticon leader. Noticing Megatron standing behind Starscream, Soundwave had a laugh at the boast before punctuating Starscream's demotion with with some dramatic music. Sea of Tranquility

"This seat isn't very comfortable but it'll have to do."

Following the Planet Smasher's destruction, the Decepticons split into two groups, with Soundwave overseeing the Nemesis and playing some Space Opera music to set the mood. He was surprised when Starscream and the others appeared on the bridge sans Megatron, and even more so when Starscream announced himself as their new leader and ordered Soundwave off the command throne. Cutting the music, a silent Soundwave stomped up to Starscream but was prevented from attacking the Seeker by Shadow Striker. Soundwave would later bear witness to an irate Megatron's return, and arrived in the hangar bay in time to watch Megatron blast Starscream and then dump his prone form on the lunar surface. Bad Moon Rising

Soundwave attended a fake memorial service for Starscream with the other Decepticons. With the role of second-in-command left open, Megatron set the spot as a price to whoever would deliver to him the spark of Optimus Prime. Eager for his commander's favor, Soundwave confronted Shockwave in overly dramatic fashion, mockingly suggesting the scientist to back off from the challenge. To ensure his chances, he tasked Clobber with blowing up Shockwave's lab, only to later witness her and Lockdown to deliver Hot Rod to front of their leader to use as a bait against Prime. After the Autobot broke free, Soundwave stood behind to monitor his escape, spotting a strange spotted creature watching from the sidelines. Soundwave was ready to carry out his leader's order to capture the creature, only for it to flee trough a GroundBridge. Bring Me The Spark Of Optimus Prime

After Shockwave managed to replicate the GroundBridge process and locate the Allspark, Soundwave was ready to follow Megatron trough the portal along with Shadow Striker. However, the portal failed to send them after their leader, much to Soundwave's frustration. Trials Unaware that Starscream had stolen the Allspark for his own ambitions, the Autobots stormed the Nemesis in order to retrieve the relic. The assault erupted into a huge battle in the ship's hangar, until Cheetor arrived to break up the fight after sensing the Allspark's absence from the ship. Dark Birth

After Optimus Prime and Megatron agreed to meet and discuss forming a unified front against Starscream, Soundwave was part of the initial meeting. However, he was unable to stop himself from needling Windblade, causing an argument to break out that ended with Megatron ordering everyone except himself and Optimus out of the meeting room. As he was returning to the Nemesis, Soundwave encountered Slipstream. As the Seekers had previously gone AWOL along with Vector Sigma, Soundwave attacked the presumed traitor. However, she managed to knock him off his feet and fled. Shortly after, the talks broke down when a fight broke out, and the Decepticons departed with no peace in sight. Parley

When Starscream launched a sudden assault on the Nemesis with a horde of monstrosities, Soundwave was barely able to draw his weapon before his energon was drained and left him paralyzed. His paralyzed form was discovered by a rescue team of Autobots, with Optimus Prime expressing concern that whatever had happened must've been bad if even Soundwave had been overcome. He was restored along with everyone else when Starscream was driven off. Starscream's Children

When Shockwave's drone hand Lefty went berserk on the bridge of the Nemesis, even attacking Megatron himself, Soundwave was unable to keep his amusement hidden. Shadow Striker expressed her glee at the thought of the cyclopean scientist being permanently on the outs, but both Decepticons were disappointed when Shockwave revealed he now had a way of controlling Starscream's beasts. Secret Science

Soundwave was later part of a group that confronted the Autobot superjet Jetfire when he attacked the Nemesis in search of his archfoe Sky-Byte. Infinite Vendetta Soundwave was present on the bridge of the Nemesis when the warship pursued a quintet of Autobot shuttles trying to get the AllSpark off of Earth. The shuttles turned out to be a decoy, but Shockwave successfully tricked the Autobots into thinking the Space Bridge in Earth's orbit had been destroyed and allowed the Decepticons to get a head start on their foes. Escape From Earth

Soundwave returned to Cybertron along with the other Decepticons. He followed Laserbeak and recaptured an escaped Chromia. He ushered her back to her cell when they witnessed the Ark get destroyed by Shockwave. Battle For Cybertron I However, the Autobots managed to abandon ship and survive. During the climatic battle with the Autobots, Soundwave attacked Ratchet and an injured Autobot soldier with a sonic attack before getting knocked aside by Grimlock. Battle For Cybertron II

After Windblade and Wheeljack managed to send Vector Sigma to unspace, Soundwave made a mad dash for Optimus Prime but was tossed aside by the Autobot leader. He later bore witness to the rebirth of Cybertron and the end of the war. Battle For Cybertron IV

After the Quintessons invaded Cybertron, Soundwave was among those who was locked in the Loop, a virtual reality. When Dead End broke free, he found Soundwave's inactive body. The Dead End During a battle with the Prosecutors, Whirl accidentally knocked off the machinery connecting Soundwave to the Loop. However, due to not being awoken from inside the Loop, Soundwave was left unstable, left glitching before collapsing in front of Clobber and Dead End. Taken to Maccadam's to be analysed by Perceptor, Soundwave was left inactive. Over time, Soundwave began to return to functionality, in time to overhear Clobber and Dead End plotting to get rid of him, which he disagreed with. By the time Hot Rod and Whirl returned, a fully functional Soundwave "thanked" them. The Trial

Soundwave superior, MCU-esque humor inferior

In Maccadam's Soundwave stared down Hot Rod and the other Autobots. Maccadam urged Hot Rod and Soundwave to try to come to an agreement over a couple of mugs of energon. Hot Rod started to layout his plan only for Soundwave to cut him off and declare himself in charge. When Hot Rod protested, Soundwave attempted to attack him but suddenly froze in place, his speakers blaring the parade music from the Loop. Preceptor scanned him and concluded that the glitch was due to Soundwave being improperly removed from the simulation. An annoyed Dead End knocked Soundwave back to normal. Soundwave promptly walked out and quickly returned with a prosecutor, intending to interrogate it. It reactivated before he got the chance and Clobber knocked it out again. Hot Rod convinced him they needed to capture a Sharkticon Bailiff instead. After locating one; Soundwave took charge. He ordered Whirl to provide cover while the others boxed the sharkticon in. He pulled Clobber aside and ordered her to deactivate Hot Rod. While Hot Rod was fending off a remorseful Clobber; Soundwave and Dead End attacked the Bailiff. Mid-fight Soundwave again froze, blaring music. After hearing the music, Hot Rod and Clobber arrived and easily knocked out the Bailiff. Dead End and Clobber were all for leaving the inert Soundwave behind, but Hot Rod insisted they save him. After Hot Rod returned to Maccadam's he found Soundwave torturing the Sharkticon with a sonic blast. Appalled by his brutality Hot Rod attacked him, causing his glitch to return. After the fight the Bailiff revealed the existence of the only one who knew anything useful: the Scientist. The Prisoner

Soundwave and the resistance infiltrated the Scientist’s lab, Soundwave mimicked a Quintesson Prosecutor to gain entry. He entered the lab, and Hot Rod followed him, the door closing behind them. Soundwave and Hot Rod confronted the Scientist, who was overjoyed to see Soundwave. He showed off his collection of Soundwaves from across the multiverse, which disgusted Soundwave. He began to glitch, which the Scientist remedied easily. Soundwave thanked him by destroying the Scientist, only for another to rapidly appear. They defeated Scientist after Scientist, but were restrained as the Scientist fed his creation. He ordered Laserbeak to eject, and the cassette flew away and provided Perceptor with the source code for the Loop. When Perceptor freed everyone from the Loop, Soundwave and Hot Rod made their exit. The Scientist

Soundwave and Hot Rod explained to Optimus Prime and Megatron that the Quintessons were draining the AllSpark to power the new Judge. When Hot Rod failed to get the attention of the assembled Autobots and Decepticons, Soundwave quieted them down with a blast from his speaker, and Hot Rod and Soundwave explained the situation. When the two factions failed to work together, Soundwave declared they would make them cooperate, by running them through the training simulation located within Iaconus. When Windblade asked when her turn to train was, Soundwave and Hot Rod instead led her to Iaconus’s Cityspeaker chamber, explaining the need for the Titan’s might against the Quintesson invasion. In the battle at the Quintesson tower, Hot Rod and Soundwave cleared the way for Optimus carrying a massive warhead to the tower. They were confronted by Lord Gnaw and his legions of Sharkticon forces, and Soundwave called the retreat. The Alliance

Wheeljack explained to Soundwave and others that the multiverse drive inside the Quintesson ship could be used to send the Quintessons into another universe. Hot Rod and Soundwave observed that the Quintesson forces were too numerous to make it to the ship. Maccadam suggested disabling Iaconus’s cloaking system to distract the Quintessons, and together, Soundwave and Hot Rod coordinated Iaconus’s defenders. Eventually, Soundwave and Hot Rod joined the battle, and they, along with other members of the alliance, managed to destroy the Judge, and the Quintesson ship. Moments later, Soundwave watched in horror as the new Judge, Starscream, arose. The Judge

Soundwave was immediately captured by Starscream, along with the rest of the alliance. At the arena where Starscream’s forces gathered the apprehended Cybertronians, Soundwave used his speaker to disrupt Starscream’s forces and start a breakout. The escape was short lived, and with the exception of Windblade, everyone was recaptured, and Soundwave’s speaker was destroyed. For their role in instigating the breakout, Soundwave and Hot Rod were placed into a simulation similar to the Loop, surrounded on all sides by Cosmic Rust. The End Of The Universe I

Still inside the simulation, Soundwave and Hot Rod were repeatedly overrun by the Cosmic Rust, until they were freed by Maccadam. The End Of The Universe III

Soundwave and Hot Rod were confronted by the Scientist’s collection of Soundwaves. When Megatron returned from the multiverse, Soundwave was granted a power boost alongside other alliance members. Using his elevated power, Soundwave incapacitated his alternate universe doppelgangers, declaring them inferior. Following Starscream’s destruction, Soundwave was present as Optimus and Megatron established a ceasefire between Autobots and Decepticons. The End Of The Universe IV

When Wildwheel rampaged through Croaton city, Soundwave flanked Megatron as he confronted the outlaw. Wild Wild Wheel

When Rack’n’Ruin infiltrated the secret Decepticon facility where Astrotrain and Dead End were testing an unspace weapon, Soundwave and Shadow Striker approached the Autobots and questioned them. When Rack’n’Ruin revealed their intention was to investigate the facility, the Decepticons encouraged them to continue, as they were intending on doing the exact same thing. Later, the two Decepticons attempted to sneak into the facility themselves, and the door Shadow Striker was picking open was removed by the haywire multiverse ray. Dead End and Astrotrain confronted them, and Astrotrain grabbed both of the interlopers, but the multiverse ray zapped him into unspace. Rack 'n' Ruin 'n' Ratchet

Soundwave and Shadow Striker reviewed Laserbeak’s footage of Megatron. Suspicious of Megatron’s plans, the two Decepticons interrogated Dead End. Dead End was uncooperative, and fled, directly into the arms of Optimus and his infiltration team. Chasing Dead End, Soundwave and Shadow Striker engaged the Autobots. Silent Strike

Soundwave was one of the Autobots and Decepticons surrounded by the “Other One”’s Decepticon supersoldiers. He attacked one with his sonic waves, to no avail. When the Other One himself arrived, Soundwave and the other Decepticons pledged themselves to him. Following the Other One’s defeat and Windblade’s recovery, Soundwave joined the Autobots in welcoming her back. The Other One

Soundwave led the Decepticon delegation at the signing of the Treaty of the Wall, standing with Shadow Striker, Sky-Byte and Alpha Strike. Soundwave was frozen in time with the rest of Cybertron by Trypticon’s Mercenaries. Soundblaster later unfroze his head in order to gloat, and stole Laserbeak. Soundwave was placed in an infinite resonator, which amplified every sound he made infinitely, and would have destroyed him if not for the timely intervention of Volcanicus. Once freed from the infinite resonator, he prepared to attack Soundblaster, but was once again immobilized. He was restored along with the rest of the planet, and played music as the Autobots and Decepticons celebrated the signing of the peace treaty. The Immobilizers

Soundwave participated in the ceremony at the grand opening of Trypticon Plaza. During the council meeting where Astrotrain’s dire warning was discussed, Soundwave agreed with Bumblebee that they lacked information, and deployed Laserbeak to shoo away Teletraan-X. He later reported that all Decepticon and Autobot forces were prepared to defend Cybertron. Tarn later arrived, under attack by two Decepticon supersoldiers. When Tarn explained his situation, Soundwave was content to let the warring supersoldiers destroy each other. When Wheeljack’s gadgets were ineffective in quelling the combat, Soundwave declared the next attempt would be “the Decepticon way”, and ordered a heavy attack on the supersoldiers. All conventional weapons, including a massive bomb, were ineffective. At Bumblebee’s suggestion, Soundwave and Shadow Striker accompanied Optimus, Tarn and Bumblebee to find Thunderhowl, who could help them find the Cortex Helm. Thunderhowl led them to the Isle of Onyx Prime, where after being faced by living statues of Alpha Trion and nearly plummeting to their doom in a collapsing passageway, Tarn claimed the Cortex Helm for himself, bringing the Decepticon supersoldiers under his control. Supersoldiers teleported in and restrained everyone, as Tarn declared himself the true leader of the Deceptions, and his intentions to annihilate the Autobots.

Man these new gimmicks are getting out of control. I hope that thing gets destroyed soon.

Tarn offered Soundwave the chance to join him, which he accepted, and teleported away with Tarn and Optimus to the Cube arena. He watched Optimus battle several supersoldiers, and when Shadow Striker was brought before Tarn, he was ordered to execute her. He signaled to Shadow Striker that he was only pretending to obey Tarn, and was knocked over when Optimus threw one of the supersoldiers at him and Tarn. When the Autobots and Decepticons confronted Tarn, Soundwave revealed his deception, but was restrained. He was menaced by several supersoldiers, but Volcanicus fended them off. He was later restrained again, and when Tarn nearly destroyed Hot Rod, Soundwave broke free of his captors. He ejected Laserbeak, who distracted Tarn long enough for Soundwave to grab the Cortex Helm and use it to reprogram the supersoldiers. Tarn attacked Soundwave and retrieved the Helm, but Soundwave unleashed an incredibly powerful attack that destroyed himself and Tarn. Soundwave would be remembered fondly by his friends and former enemies, who held a wake in his honor at Maccadam’s. The Perfect Decepticon

Alternate universe

A glimpse into an alternate reality where Thew Adams collected Soundwaves instead of Skywarps.

The Quintesson Scientist had a habit of collecting Soundwaves from the universes they judged and destroyed. He showed off said collection to Hot Rod and another universe's Soundwave during their meeting in his lab and professed his desire to add that universe's Soundwave to his collection despite his lack of space. The Scientist Following the Scientist's demise, the Soundwaves in his collection were reactivated The End Of The Universe III and assisted the Quintesson forces in fighting the Autobots and Decepticon forces. They were defeated by an upgraded version of that universe's Soundwave, who deemed them inferior to him. The End Of The Universe IV

In Megatron X's timeline, when the victorious tyrant decided that he had no further need for the majority of the Decepticon forces, he ordered them executed by the Decepticon supersoldiers, Soundwave falling to the one that would become Tarn. The Perfect Decepticon

My Nezha and Transformers cartoon

Games

Transformers: Battlegrounds

Voice actor: Marc Swint (English), Loïc Houdré (French), Roman Kretschmer (German), Roberto Fidecaro (Italian), Daniel Rey (Spanish)

I want to tell you about the Transformers! This character article is a stub and is missing information on their fictional appearances. You can help Transformers Wiki by expanding it. Transformers: Battlegrounds

Toys

Cyberverse

A Soundwave in disguise as Soundwave.

• Soundwave (1-Step Changer, 2018, 2021)

Part of the first wave of Cyberverse 1-Step Changers, Soundwave is a redeco of Robots in Disguise Soundwave, painted to disguise the fact that he's a completely different design, and transforms from robot to vehicle in a single step.

This mold's engineering was later reused for Cyberverse One-Step Changer Ratchet.

Soundwave was released twice: First in 2018 in the original Cyberverse packaging design, and then again in 2021 in the Dinobots Unite subline imprint packaging refresh.

• Soundwave (Warrior Class, 2018-2019)
  • Action Attack: "Laserbeak Blast"

Part of the third wave of Cyberverse Warrior Class toys, Soundwave is a Deluxe-sized mold that transforms from robot into an armored SUV and back. He features a "Laserbeak Blast" Action Attack gimmick, which "deploys" a spring-loaded Laserbeak from his chest when activated. However, Laserbeak himself is permanently affixed to Soundwave and is not removable.

Soundwave's headsculpt is based on the design used in promotional artwork, differing slightly from the animation model. CG renders show his alt-mode grille being completely blue, whereas the actual toy have blocks of white on it due to it being molded together with his thighs.

Soundwave has seen four releases: First in late 2018/early 2019 in the original Cyberverse packaging design, then again in mid-2019 in the Power of the Spark subline imprint packaging refresh, and then again in late 2019 in the Battle for Cybertron subline imprint packaging refresh. He was also released in Nezha: Transformers packaging in Chinese markets. He was once more reissued in 2024 as part of the Authentics-branded "Decepticon Commander 3-Pack".

• Soundwave (Deluxe Class, 2020-2021)
  • Accessories: Gun/shoulder cannon, effect part, Laserbeak
  • Action Attack: "Sound Blast"

Cyberverse Deluxe Soundwave transforms from armored car to robot. Like his wavemates, Soundwave does not come with a piece to a Build-A-Figure like previous Deluxes.

Soundwave's chest (or hood in vehicle mode) is capable of opening to store a small minifigure of Laserbeak, which itself can transform from cassette to bird in just a few steps, as well as perch on Soundwave's arm or shoulder via the same tabs uses for the effect parts.

Unlike his Warrior Class counterpart, Soundwave uses the animation model's head- though the box art still displays promotional artwork using the old head. Soundwave's gray thighs are also swapped, with animation model details facing backwards. Unfortunately, they are very difficult to swap back due to how the knees are pinned.

Like other 2020 Cyberverse Deluxe class figures, Soundwave is prone to photodegradation, particularly on his side panels.

Similar to the Warrior Class figure, Deluxe Class Soundwave has also been released twice: First in late 2020 under the Bumblebee: Cyberverse Adventures subline imprint, and then again in 2021 in the line's final Dinobots Unite subline imprint packaging refresh.

• Soundwave (Tiny Turbo Changer, 2019)
  • Series: 1, 2, 5
  • Bag code: I (Series 1-2), J (Series 5)

Part of the first Series of Cyberverse Tiny Turbo Changers, Soundwave is a soft-plastic figure that transforms into a tiny armored SUV. He is one of the few Tiny Turbo Changers with independent neck articulation. However, his shoulders are jointed so far back on his torso due to his transformation that he can't reach past his own chest.

Soundwave was also released without changes in Series 2 and 5.

Notes

• As with several Cyberverse characters, Soundwave's design is based on the evergreen design also used for his Generation 1 counterpart, with some minor stylistic tweaks.
• His head design used in Hasbro promotional artwork (seen to the right) differs from the head used on his Boulder animation model.
• Soundwave's on-screen portrayal differs fairly dramatically from his original promotional bio. Whereas he was initially stated to be emotionless,^[1] the Cyberverse cartoon features him clearly displaying a wide range of emotions, complete with a comedic barrage of music from his circuits.
• In the Japanese dub of Cyberverse, Soundwave speaks in a operatic singing voice.
• According to Megatron's threat of replacing Shockwave, Soundwave has some degrees of science skills.
• An unproduced joke for "Trials" would have involved Soundwave popping into Brazil during a music festival. He would then crash the concert and hang out.^[2]
• According to writer Mae Catt, Soundwave's favorite music is EDM, and his favorite song is "Despacito", because he thinks it's very sad.^[2]
• Soundwave never transforms into his alt-mode in the entire show.

Foreign names

• Japanese: Soundwave (サウンドウェーブ Saundowēbu)

See also

You look familiar...

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Versions of Soundwave have appeared in other continuity families, including:

• Soundwave, the Decepticon Communications Officer in the Generation 1 continuity family.
• Soundwave, the Decepticon Planet X-born stealth bomber from the Cybertron portion of the Unicron Trilogy.
• Soundwave, the Decepticon music box/Scion xB with a guitar and a keytar from Transformers Animated.
• Soundwave, the Decepticon satellite/spaceship from Revenge of the Fallen and sports car from Dark of the Moon..
• Soundwave, the Decepticon Cybertronic car/drone plane from the Aligned continuity family.

For more information, see Soundwave (disambiguation).

References