Test your basic knowledge |

Digital Audio

Subject : engineering
Instructions:
  • Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
  • If you are not ready to take this test, you can study here.
  • Match each statement with the correct term.
  • Don't refresh. All questions and answers are randomly picked and ordered every time you load a test.

This is a study tool. The 3 wrong answers for each question are randomly chosen from answers to other questions. So, you might find at times the answers obvious, but you will see it re-enforces your understanding as you take the test each time.
1. Electromagnetic receptor that detects the radiation known as visible light






2. MPEG; Standardizing body of audio coding






3. Based on psychoacoustics - these are the basis of frequency analysis for a perceptual codec;






4. 'Capturing' part of digital audio; Never captures a signal perfectly






5. Multi-Bit Words; (Pulse Code Modulation)






6. When recording you want the smallest buffer available; When mixing you want the largest buffer available






7. More accuracy in low amplitudes and less in higher amplitudes






8. Describes acceptable data - performances both offered and essential for a disc player - and the complete user experience






9. Specific set of instructions for carrying out a data reduction technique that determines how to 'save' binary data information efficiently






10. The continuous loss of signal strengths as a signal travels through a medium






11. Full Scale; Type of metering that measures level in digital recording system; Recording and Mixing levels should NEVER exceed 0dB FS in digital audio or clipping will occur






12. Method used in digital recording and reproduction in which a signal is sampled at various points and the resulting value is translated into binary numbers






13. Circuit that seizes voltage values with each tick of an A/D device's internal clock






14. 12cm plastic disc; 1.2mm thick; One- sided; Red Laser; 1.6 microns between tracks; 125 nanometer pits






15. How Loud (Y-Axis) & How Fast (X-Axis)






16. Inner ear component that attaches to the stapes and helps to decrease the amplitude of vibrations; Causes the masking phenomenon






17. Algorithm uses matrix of a mid/side microphone pair to determine a side signal & that signal is reduced then distributed as code in stereo






18. Overtones that contribute to the timbre of a sound and make up a complex waveform's physical characteristics






19. More aggressive lossy data reduction techniques that require further manipulation of the stereo field; Examples are 'Intensity' & 'M-S'






20. Occurs as data is assembled into meaningful bits or information and as left & right channels are separated






21. Sum of all harmonics; Sum of sine and cosine waves which have frequencies f - 2f - 3f - 4f...






22. Signal conversions are mixed with playback tracks resulting in near-zero latency






23. Reference voltage determined by summing the voltage values of a predetermined number of previous samples; Numbers of 1 in row = waveform peak; Numbers of 0 in row = waveform trough; Basis of Sony's Direct Stream Digital (DSD)






24. A digital filter's time domain output sequence when the input is a single sample is input






25. 16-Bit; 44.1 kHz; PCM; Stereo






26. Voltage -> Dither -> Anti-Aliasing (Low Pass Filter) -> Sample & Hold Circuit -> Successive Approximation/Quantizer --) 100111010 (PCM Audio File)






27. Built into DAWs; Bits are added when signals are mixed together to avoid clipping






28. Lossless Format; Can hold up to 25GB on a single- layer disc and 50GB on a dual- layer disc






29. Roughly around 1 -130 ft/s






30. Channels are processed one at a time and the results are stored on multiple CPU buffers that alternately send data as DAW requests the data for playback; First few seconds are relayed to the buffer prior to processing and playback and it continuously






31. Low Pressure; Part in a longitudinal wave where the particles are spread apart






32. The frequency range that is allowed through a filter






33. The act of a frequency swinging back and forth with a steady - uninterrupted rhythm






34. Data transmission protocol over which computer network traffic travels; Poorly suited to real- time transmission but numerous attempts have been made to harness the technology because of its flexible routing; Uses simple Cat5 cabling; Resists interfe






35. Digital (binary) measurements of how long each pulse is either on or off; Width of increasing voltage or decreasing voltage is assigned a 1 or 0 respectively






36. Have odd numbered harmonics






37. The mathematics - algorithms - and the techniques used to manipulate signals after they have been converted to digital form






38. Reduces A/D sample rate from the oversampled rate to nominal rate by turning series of one- bit samples into a series of multi- bit PCM samples; (ex. => 2.8MHz sample rate converted to 44.1kHz and simultaneously converts 1-Bit samples to multi- bit);






39. Also known as equal loudness curves; Graph that indicates the average ear sensitivity to different frequencies at different SPL levels (as volume increases - these curves flatten out)






40. Increases D/A sample rate from nominal rate to oversampling rate by turning series multi- bit PCM samples into 1- bit samples; (ex. => 44.1kHz sample rate converted to 2.8MHz and simultaneously converts multi- bit samples to 1- bit); Low Pass Filter






41. The loudest point of a Full Scale system






42. Perceptual coding technique that uses louder sounds of a similar frequency to decide what information is to be saved during data reduction






43. The ability of a digital system to perform complex DSP without running into problems with overflow or loss of resolution






44. Allowance of noise floor below that which is required for the final product






45. The more bits allocated during quantization - the more accurate the measurement






46. Level above which audible sounds are painful (125 - 130 db)






47. Computer program or device capable of encoding and/or decoding a digital data stream with the end result being a reduced file size






48. Increases or decreases the digital signal so that the loudest sample is brought up to 0dBfs; Uses all bits from dynamic range and makes it even from track to track






49. Twice as many samples as the highest frequency at minimum; Sampling rate totally controls frequency response






50. Accuracy with which an electronic system reproduces the sound or image of its input signal