It is actually like white light where it reflects all light wavelengths and frequencies in the light spectrum and does not absorb any.

White noise machine also does this with sound wavelengths and frequencies.

So, when there is an external noise, that noise just combines with the white noise making it unrecognizable.

You can think of it as thousand of different sounds playing at the same time. But since this type of noise combines all the different wavelengths and sound frequencies, it masks the other sounds.

For instance, your neighbour is having a very loud party. You can just switch on your sound machine and all the loud noises will drown out and you can sleep. This is how white noise works. It masks the unnecessary sounds that creates a soothing and relaxing sound so you can sleep easier and better.

Now, imagine you are in a hotel room and you can hear the voices of the people next to your room, well, what you can do is turn on a fan and it will drown out the voices you hear.

As most people are unaware of, fan produces a good amount of noise or at least enough to drown out the noises you are hearing. If it still hard to understand, let us take this situation.

For example, you are talking to two people at once, it will be easy for you to pick out one voice. If you are talking to three people at the same time, you will probably pick one voice. But, if there are 1000 people speaking at the same time, your brain cannot pick one voice. The 1000 people speaking sounds like white noise. And when you use a fan, it is like you are creating 1000 voices. So when there is another sound, the 1001th sound, your brain will not pick it up anymore.

Fans are a good source of this noise. It is very economical and easy to use at home. However, some users say that a fan can only last you long. If you can tolerate it, then good for you. But since it only runs in low, medium or high speed, there is not much too control. And fans are really not made specially to drown out noises, but it is really made to make our surrounding cooler.

In comparison to a sound machine, this is made specifically to drown out noises by producing white noise. Fans are very big, even bigger compared to sound machines. Sound machines are small and light weight which makes it easy to carry around. Settings can be changed depending on your needs. It is also said to be very durable and are often made in plastic. Some testimonials say that this sound machine lasts them 25 years.

Now, you can try this and see the results for yourself.  Some users even say that sound machines has saved marriages due to frequent snoring of the husbands.