Topic: Audio Terms Explained

[Steve J]

This site (http://lp2cd.com/audio_terms) has some good info/definition of terms. By it's own admission, it emphasizes "vintage" technology; but most of it is pertinent to what we do (or in my case, try to do  ).

I thought I'd seen it before; but I couldn't find it using the TS search.

[momule]

didnt know where else to put this .
I thought it would nice for some of the New folks to understand what the "Veterans" are refering too..

DYNAMICS -- The dynamic range, impact and weight of the musical event

DYNAMIC RANGE -- the required range of audible frequencies with the same loudness or output: Perhaps a symphonic selection with wide dynamic and frequency range

WEIGHT -- The authority and feel of a solid and correct bass foundation to the music:
Perhaps an Upright Bass, Kettle Drums, or Organ selection

IMPACT -- The strong concussive forces of live music, mainly in the bass region:
Definitely a Percussion Selection, more drums the better

PRESENCE -- The quality of the realism and vitality of the music

ATTACK -- The initiation and buildup of sound when an instrument is bowed, struck or plucked: Violin, Piano, Plucked Guitar, Xylophone, Solo Clarinet

PACE -- The apparent tempo of the music, tempo is the rate of speed of a musical passage: Select “Tight” bands and Music with varying Tempo, Jazz, Classic Rock

RHYTHM -- The synchronization of the ensemble playing the music
Go Latin, Cuban or Brazilian, Demo Disc Time

COHERENCE -- The imaging, layering, height and ambiance of the musical event

HEIGHT -- A stable and properly sized location of the instruments up and down the sound stage: Classical or Choral, Don’t forget Gospel

IMAGING -- A stable and properly sized location of instruments across the width of the sound stage: Ideally a selection that was recorded with a single microphone

LAYERING -- A stable and properly sized location of the instruments through the sound stage's depth: A good recording with a vocalist centered in front of a symphonic orchestra

AMBIANCE -- The spatial and reverberent cues of the “hall” where the musical event was recorded: Symphonic, String Quartet, Jazz “Live”

RESOLUTION -- The low level detail resolution of instrumental sounds and reverberation decay.

AIR -- The treble sounds delicate, open and unrestricted without any grain or edge

Strings, Triangle, Bells, Flute

FOCUS -- The musical instruments are clearly defined and you can hear the silence between the musical impulses: Accappella, Scat, String Quartets, Jazz
 
ARTICULATION -- How well an audio component resolves the inner harmonic structure of an instrument:Solo Violin, Piano, Female Voice, Eva Cassidy

VOICING -- The accuracy of the sound and range of the instruments in your perception

TIMBRE -- The full complex harmonic structure of an instrument's voice:
Violin, Woodwind, Piano, Acoustic Guitar, Brass

TONAL BALANCE -- proper loudness of the instruments upper and lower frequencies:
Solo Piano, Organ

ACCURACY -- The reproduction of the music without adding any coloration or distortion:
Acoustic Instruments
Methods – One of the most effective ways to evaluate your audio system is to determine how well it reproduces all aspects of music. This evaluation form was developed to help you do that. In order for a product to be a “long term” asset to your enjoyment of music, it needs to reproduce all aspects of music well. It is more important for the evaluation graph to show close to the same point scores for all aspects then to score very high in some and poorly in others. A “well rounded” product provides much better long term enjoyment.