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Basic Sound Design Terminology
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Amplitude
The measure of the strength or level of a sound wave, which determines its loudness.
Frequency
The number of times a sound wave cycles per second, determining the pitch of the sound.
Equalization (EQ)
The process of adjusting the balance between frequency components within an audio signal.
Reverb
The persistence of sound after the original sound is produced; a collection of reflected sounds from the surfaces in the environment.
Delay
An audio effect that records an audio signal for playback a set period of time after the original signal.
Compression
The process of lessening the dynamic range between the loudest and quietest parts of an audio signal.
Decibel (dB)
A unit of measurement used to express the amplitude of a sound wave, indicating the volume level or intensity.
Dynamic Range
The range between the quietest and the loudest sounds a system can produce or a piece of audio contains.
Noise Gate
An electronic device or software that is used to control the volume of an audio signal by cutting off the sound when its level falls below a set threshold.
Feedback
The high-pitched screeching sound when a microphone picks up sound from a speaker connected to it, creating a looped signal.
Foley
The reproduction of everyday sound effects that are added to films, videos, and other media in post-production to enhance audio quality.
ADSR Envelope
An acronym that stands for Attack, Decay, Sustain, and Release, representing the stages of a sound's intensity over time.
Mixer
An electronic device that combines, routes, and changes the level, tone, and/or dynamics of audio signals.
Gain
The input level of the audio signal coming into a channel on a mixer, pre-amplification.
Pan
The distribution of a sound signal (either mono or stereo) into a new stereo or multichannel sound field determined by the pan control settings.
Patch
In sound synthesis, a set of parameters defining a particular sound on a synthesizer.
Phase
The relationship in time between two or more sound waves at a given point in their cycles.
Sample Rate
The number of times per second that a digital audio system takes snapshots of the analog signal.
Sound Envelope
The characteristic volume and timbral changes of a sound over time, including attack, decay, sustain, and release phases.
Threshold
In dynamics processing, the level at which a processor like a compressor or noise gate begins to affect the signal.
Bit Depth
The number of bits of information in each sample, determining the resolution in digital audio recordings.
Monitor
Speakers or headphones used in the recording studio or at live events to listen to the mix or certain sources.
Direct Input (DI)
A device used to connect a high impedance, line level signal to a low impedance microphone level input on a mixer.
Subtractive Synthesis
A sound synthesis method that creates a new sound by filtering and shaping a rich harmonic sound source.
Waveform
The shape of the graph that represents the variation of pressure with respect to time of a sound signal.
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