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: Shaun Warburton

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 “A Foley Artist is a person who creates (or re-creates) sounds for movies. For example, if the sound of an actor's footsteps were not recorded well or lost when the voice was re-recorded, a Foley artist will recreate them. In fact, except for dialogue and music, almost all the sounds you hear in Hollywood films is Foley sound.” http://www.mediacollege.com/employment/film/foley-artist.html

This meaning is relevant to my work as I used various methods to create my own sound such as switching a light switch off to make a shooting effect

Sound Libraries “A collection of sounds stored on file (for example on CDs, DVDs, or as digital audio files).”http://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/sound-library

This is relevant to my production as it helps store a collection of sounds that I have produced.

SOUND FILE FORMATS

Uncompressed “(Of data) not compressed.”http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/uncompressed

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

.wav “WAV is the format used for storing sound in files developed jointly by Microsoft and 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/DidYouKnow/Computer_Science/digital_audio_formats.asp

I used this file format to save my work that I was creating

.aiff “("Audio Interchange File Format.") AIFF is a file format designed to store audio data. It was developed by Apple Computer, but is based on Electronic Arts' IFF (Interchange File Format), a container format originally used on Amiga systems.”http://www.techterms.com/definition/aiff

.au “AU is a file extension for a sound file format belonging to Sun, NeXT and DEC and used in UNIX. The AU file format is also known as the Sparc-audio or u-law fomat. AU files contain three parts: the audio data and text for a header (containing 24 bytes) and an annotation block.”http://whatis.techtarget.com/fileformat/AU-Sun-NeXT-DEC-UNIX-sound-file

.smp “An ".smp" file may be one of several different types of audio file. For example, it could be a SampleVision audio sample file. This 16-bit audio file was originally used by Turtle Beach SampleVision; you can open it with Adobe Auction, Sound Forge Pro or Awave Studio. It could also be a sample file for AdLib Gold, a PC sound card released in 1992; Scream Tracker, a mid-1990s music editing program; or Swell. Reason, a music recording and production program, uses the ".smp" extension for sampler instrument patches.”http://www.ehow.com/info_12198596_file-smp.html

Lossy Compression “Lossy file compression results in lost data and quality from the original version. Lossy compression is typically associated with image files, such as JPEGs, but can also be used for audio files, like MP3s or AAC files. The "lossyness" of an image file may show up as jagged edges or pixelated areas. In audio files, the lossyness may produce a watery sound or reduce the dynamic range of the audio.”http://www.techterms.com/definition/lossy

.mp3 “Stands for "MPEG-1 Audio Layer-3." MP3 is popular compressed audio file format that helped popularize digital music downloads beginning in the late 1990s. MP3 files are typically about one tenth the size of uncompressed WAVE or AIFF files, but maintain nearly the same CD-quality sound. Because of their small size and good fidelity, MP3 files have become a popular way to store music files on both computers and portable devices like the iPod.”http://www.techterms.com/definition/mp3

AUDIO LIMITATIONS

Sound Processor Unit (SPU)

A sound card is an internal computer expansion card that facilitates the input and output of audio signals to and from a computer under control of computer programs. The term sound card is also applied to external audio interfaces that use software to generate sound.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sound_card

Digital Sound Processor (DSP)

The digital processing unit (DPU) consists of 4 digital signal processors. One processor is assigned to the red detector data (red processor), two to the blue detector data (blue processor 1 and 2) and the fourth, 'white' or master processor has been allocated image shifting and recognition tasks.http://xmm.esac.esa.int/external/xmm_user_support/documentation/socdoc/socdoc/instdocs/om_gsrq/node188.html

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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 is made up of small memory chips that form a memory module. These modules are installed in the RAM slots on the motherboard of your computer.Every time you open a program, it gets loaded from the hard drive into the RAM. This is because reading data from the RAM is much faster than reading data from the hard drive. Running programs from the RAM of the computer allows them to function without any lag time. The more RAM your computer has, the more data can be loaded from the hard drive into the RAM, which can effectively speed up your computer.”http://www.techterms.com/definition/ram

This is what helped me create more in detail work

Mono Audio Monaural or monophonic sound reproduction (often shortened to mono) is single-channel. Typically there is only one microphone, one loudspeaker, or (in the case of headphones and multiple loudspeakers) channels are fed from a common signal path. In the case of multiple microphones the paths are mixed into a single signal path at some stage.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monaural

We used this channel to record sound

Stereo Audio True stereophonic sound systems have two independent audio signal channels, and the signals that are reproduced have a specific level and phase relationship to each other so that when played back through a suitable reproduction system, there will be an apparent image of the original sound source. Stereo would be a requirement if there is a need to replicate the aural perspective and localization of instruments on a stage or platform, a very common requirement in performing arts centres.http://www.mcsquared.com/mono-stereo.htm

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. Surround sound systems use three or more channels and speakers in front and behind the listener to create a surrounding envelope of sound and directional audio sources. The term surround sound has become popular in recent years and more commonly used since the advent of home theatre systems. Surround sound can be either an analog or digital system.http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/S/surround_sound.html

Direct Audio (Pulse Code Modulation – PCM)

Pulse-code modulation (PCM) is a method used to digitally represent sampled analog signals. It is the standard form of digital audio in computers, Compact Discs, digital telephony and other digital audio applications. In a PCM stream, the amplitude of the analog signal is sampled regularly at uniform intervals, and each sample is quantized to the nearest value within a range of digital steps.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pulse-code_modulation

AUDIO RECORDING SYSTEMS

Analogue Relating to or using signals or information represented by a continuously variable physical quantity such as spatial position, voltage, etc.:http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/analogue

Digital Mini Disc The MiniDisc (MD) is an obsolete magneto-optical disc-based data storage device for 74 minutes and, later, 80 minutes, of digitized audio or 1 gigabyte of Hi-MD data. The Sony brand audio players were on the market from September 1992 until March 2013.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MiniDisc

Compact Disc (CD) CDs were read-only, but newer technology allows users to record as well. CDs will probably continue to be popular for music recording and playback.http://searchstorage.techtarget.com/definition/compact-disc

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

Digital Audio Tape (DAT)

a type of magnetic tape that uses a scheme called helical scan to record data. A DAT cartridge is slightly larger than a credit card in width and height and contains a magnetic tape that can hold from 2 to 24 gigabytes of data.http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/D/DAT.html

MIDI “Short for musical instrument digital interface, MIDI is 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/DidYouKnow/Computer_Science/digital_audio_formats.asp

I used the MIDI keyboard a lot this helped me create random and various sounds

Software Sequencers

In digital audio recording, a sequencer is a program in a computer or stand-alone keyboard unit that puts together a sound sequence from a series (or sequence) of Musical Instrument Digital Interface ( MIDI ) events (operations). The MIDI sequencer allows the user to record and edit a musical performance without using an audio-based input source. The performance is recorded as a series of events that would ordinarily be played in from a keyboard instrument.http://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/sequencer

Software Plug-ins Plug-in applications are programs that can easily be installed and used as part of your Web browser. Initially, the Netscape browser allowed you to download, install, and define supplementary programs that played sound or motion video or performed other functions.http://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/plug-in

I used the plug-ins to put an effect on my sounds that I had created

MIDI Keyboard Instruments

MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) is a protocol designed for recording and playing back music on digital synthesizers that is supported by many makes of personal computer sound cards. Originally intended to control one keyboard from another, it was quickly adopted for the personal computer. Rather than representing musical sound directly, it transmits information about how music is produced.http://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/MIDI-Musical-Instrument-Digital-Interface

AUDIO SAMPLING File Size Constraints - Bit-depth

The number of binary bits (ones and zeroes) used to record the sampled level of the waveform. Thus 8-bit sampling uses an 8 digit binary number to record the level, giving 2^8, or 256 potential values.

Bit depth determines the ratio between the quietest and loudest signals the system can record (dynamic range); 16 bit has 65,536 possible values (i.e. 2^16), and hence a far higher dynamic range (96dB) than 8-bit recording. 24-bit sampling has 16,777,216 discrete levels, giving 144dB dynamic range, which exceeds the tolerances of human hearing.http://www.jiscdigitalmedia.ac.uk/guide/uncompressed-audio-file-formats

File Size Constraints - Sample Rate

In signal processing, sampling is the reduction of a continuous signal to a discrete signal. A common example is the conversion of a sound wave (a continuous signal) to a sequence of samples (a discrete-time signal).A sample refers to a value or set of values at a point in time and/or space.

A sampler is a subsystem or operation that extracts samples from a continuous signal.A theoretical ideal sampler produces samples equivalent to the instantaneous value of the continuous signal at the desired points.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sampling_(signal_processing)

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

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