Salford City CollegeEccles Sixth Form CentreBTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGNUnit 73: Sound For Computer GamesIG2 Task 1

Produce a glossary of terms specific to the methods and principles of sound design and production. Using a provided template, you must research and gather definitions specific to provided glossary terms. Any definitions must be referenced with the URL link of the website you have obtained the definition.

You must also, where possible, provide specific details of how researched definitions relate to your own production practice.

Name: RESEARCHED DEFINITION (provide short internet researched definition and URL link)

DESCRIBE THE RELEVANCE OF THE RESEARCHED TERM TO YOUR OWN PRODUCTION PRACTICE?

SOUND DESIGN METHODOLOGY

Foley Artistry Foley effects are sound effects added to the film during post production (after the shooting stops). They include sounds such as footsteps, clothes rustling, crockery clinking, paper folding, doors opening and slamming,

punches hitting, glass breaking, etc. http://www.sound-ideas.com/what-is-foley.html

Foley effects are relevant because we are going to make them for a video game

Sound Libraries A sample library is a collection of digital sound recordings, known as samples, for use by composers, arrangers, performers, and producers of music. The sound files are loaded into a sampler - either hardware or computer-based - which is then used to create music. Sample libraries appear in a variety of forms: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sample_library

We produced a sample library before making most of our sound projects

SOUND FILE FORMATS Uncompressed Uncompressed audio files are the most accurate digital representation of a soundwave, but can also be the most resource-intensive method of recording and storing digital audio, both in terms of storage and management. Their accuracy makes them suitable for archiving and delivering audio at high resolution, and working with audio at a professional level, and they are the 'master' audio format of choice. http://www.jiscdigitalmedia.ac.uk/guide/uncompressed-audio-file-formats

This is relevant to the quality of our sound. If we want better quality sounds we need to compress it as little as possible.

.wav The format for storing sound in files developed jointly by Microsoftand IBM. Support for WAV files was built into Windows 95 making it the de facto standard for sound on PCs. WAV sound files end with a.wav extension and can be played by nearly all Windows

applications that support sound. http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/W/WAV.html

.wav is the audio format we use for all our files

.aiff Audio Interchange File Format (AIFF) is an audio file format standard used for storing sound data for personal computers and other electronic audio devices. The format was developed by Apple Inc. in 1988 based

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Salford City CollegeEccles Sixth Form CentreBTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGNUnit 73: Sound For Computer GamesIG2 Task 1

on Electronic Arts' Interchange File Format(IFF, widely used on Amiga systems) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Audio_Interchange_File_Format

.au The Au file format is a simple audio file format introduced by Sun Microsystems. The format was common on NeXT systems and on early Web pages. Originally it was headerless, being simply 8-bit µ-law-encoded data at an 8000 Hz sample rate. Hardware from other vendors often used sample rates as high as 8192 Hz, often integer factors of video clock signals. Newer files have a header that consists of six unsigned 32-bit words, an optional information chunk and then the data (in big endian format).http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Au_file_format

.smp Short for Symmetric Multiprocessing, a computer architecturethat provides fast performance by making multiple CPUs available to complete individual processes simultaneously (multiprocessing).http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/S/SMP.html

Lossy Compression Lossy file compression results in lost data and quality from the original version. http://www.techterms.com/definition/lossy

.mp3 (MPEG-1 Audio Layer III) The audio compression technology that revolutionized digital music (see "MP3 Shook Up the Industry" below). Derived from the audio sections of the MPEG-1 and MPEG-2 video specifications, MP3 compresses CD-quality sound by a factor of roughly 10, while retaining most of the original fidelity. For example, a 40MB CD track is turned into approximately a 4MB MP3 file. See CD-DA.http://www.pcmag.com/encyclopedia/term/47286/mp3

AUDIO LIMITATIONS Sound Processor Unit (SPU) Integrated circuit that generates an audio signal and sends it to a computer's speakers. The sound card can accept an analog sound (as from a microphone or audio tape) and convert it to digital data that can be stored in an audio file, or accept digitized audio signals (as from an audio file) and convert them to analog signals that can be played on the computer's speakers.http://encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary.com/Audio+processing+unit

This is what all the sound work we do is processed on

Digital Sound Processor (DSP)

Digital Signal Processors (DSPs) take real-world signals like voice, audio, video, temperature, pressure, or position that have been digitized and then mathematically manipulate them. A DSP is designed for performing mathematical functions like "add",

"subtract", "multiply" and "divide" very quickly. http://www.analog.com/en/content/beginners_guide_to_dsp/fca.html

This is what all the sound work we do is processed on

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Salford City CollegeEccles Sixth Form CentreBTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGNUnit 73: Sound For Computer GamesIG2 Task 1

Random Access Memory (RAM)

RAM (pronounced ramm) is an acronym for random accessmemory, a type of computer memory that can be accessedrandomly; that is, any byte of memory can be accessed without touching the preceding bytes. RAM is the most common type of memory found in computers and other devices, such as printershttp://www.webopedia.com/TERM/R/RAM.html

This helps to run multiple programs at high speeds

Mono Audio A single track of audio.http://www.allynn.org/fcp/node/33

We mostly use mono audio when making our work

Stereo Audio Stereophonic sound or, more commonly, stereo, is a method of sound reproduction that creates an illusion of directionality and audible perspective. This is usually achieved by using two or more independent audio channels through a configuration of two or moreloudspeakers (or stereo headphones)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stereophonic_sound

We sometimes use more than one audio track to achieve stereophonic sound

Surround Sound )Surround sound is a term used to describe a type of audio output in which the sound appears to "surround the listener" by 360 degrees.http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/S/surround_sound.html

Direct Audio (Pulse Code Modulation – PCM)

Pulse code modulation (PCM) is a digital representation of an analog signal that takes samples of the amplitude of the analog signal at regular intervals. The sampled analog data is changed to, and then represented by, binary data.http://www.techopedia.com/definition/24128/pulse-code-modulation-pcm

AUDIO RECORDING SYSTEMS

Analogue Analog audio is a representation of a sound that is analogous to the air pressure waves of the sound. http://www.ehow.com/about_5101414_analog-audio.html

Digital Mini Disc One easy way to think about a MiniDisc is like a floppy disk -- you can record and erase files on a MiniDisc just as easily as you can on a floppy disk. The big difference between the a MiniDisc and a floppy disk is that a MiniDisc can hold about 100 times more data (about 140 megabytes in data mode, 160

megabytes in audio mode vs. 1.44 megabytes for a floppy). http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/question55.htm

Compact Disc (CD) Compact disc (CD) is a digital optical disc data storage format. The format was originally developed to store and play back sound recordings only (CD-DA), but was later adapted for storage of data (CD-ROM)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compact_disc

Digital Audio Tape (DAT) Digital Audio Tape (DAT or R-DAT) is a signal recording and playback medium developed by Sony and introduced in 1987.[1]

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Salford City CollegeEccles Sixth Form CentreBTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGNUnit 73: Sound For Computer GamesIG2 Task 1

http://www.princeton.edu/~achaney/tmve/wiki100k/docs/Digital_Audio_Tape.htmlMIDI Pronounced middy, an acronym for musical instrument digitalinterface,

a standard adopted by the electronic music industry for controlling devices, such as synthesizers and sound cards, that emit music. At minimum, a MIDI representation of a sound includes values for the note's pitch, length, and volume. It can also include additional characteristics, such as attack and delay time.http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/M/MIDI.html

We have used Midi to create sounds and music for our projects

Software Sequencers A music sequencer (or simply sequencer) is a device or application software that can record, edit, or play back music, by handling note and performance information in several forms, typically MIDI or CV/Gate, and possibly audio and automation data for DAWs and plug-inshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Music_sequencer

Software Plug-ins In computing, a plug-in (or plugin, extension, or add-on / addon) is a software component that adds a specific feature to an existing software application.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plug-in_(computing)

MIDI Keyboard Instruments

A Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI) keyboard is a musical instrument like a piano keyboard. The MIDI portion indicates that the instrument has a communication protocol built in that allows it to communicate with a computer or other MIDI-equipped instrument.http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-midi-keyboard.htm

AUDIO SAMPLING File Size Constraints - Bit-depth Bit depth is the number of bits used to carry the data in each sample of audio.

The bit depth chosen for recording limits the dynamic range of the recording.

(Other factors in the audio chain may also limit this, so more bits often will not

produce a better recording.)

http://wiki.audacityteam.org/wiki/Bit_DepthFile Size Constraints - Sample Rate

Also called a sample rate. Typically expressed in samples per second, or hertz (Hz), the rate at which samples of an analogsignal are taken in order to be converted into digital form.http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/S/sampling_rate.html

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