APPENDIX A: GLOSSARY
This Glossary contains brief definitions of
many of the audio and electronic terms used in discussions of sound mixing and recording. Many of the terms have other meanings or nuances or very rigorous technical definitions which we have sidestepped here because we figure you already have a lot on your mind. If you’d like to get more information, you can call Mix Bookshelf at
AFL
An acronym for After Fade Listen, which is another way of saying
assign
In sound mixers, assign means to switch or route a signal to a particular signal path or combination of signal paths.
attenuate
To reduce or make quieter.
aux
See next entry.
auxiliary
In sound mixers, supplemental equipment or features that provide additional capabilities to the basic system. Examples of auxiliary equipment include: serial processors (equaliz- ers, compressors, limiters, gates) and parallel devices (reverberation and delay). Most mix- ers have aux send buses and aux return inputs to accommodate auxiliary equipment.
balanced
In a classic balanced audio circuit, the two legs of the circuit (+ and
bandwidth
The band of frequencies that pass through a device with a loss of less than 3dB, expressed in Hertz or in musical octaves. Also see Q.
bus
An electrical connection common to three or more circuits. In mixer design, a bus usually carries signals from a number of inputs to a mixing amplifier, just like a city bus carries people from a number of neighborhoods to their jobs.
Cannon
A manufacturer of electrical connectors
who first popularized the
cardioid
Means
channel
A functional path in an audio circuit: an input channel, an output channel, a recording channel, the left channel and so on.
channel strip
The physical representation of an audio channel on the front panel of a mixer; usually a long, vertical strip of controls.
chorusing
An effect available in some digital delay effects units and reverbs. Chorusing involves a number of moving delays and pitch shifting, usually panned across a stereo field. Depend- ing on how used, it can be lovely or grotesque.
clipping
A cause of severe audio distortion that is the result of excessive gain requiring the peaks of the audio signal to rise above the capabili- ties of the amplifier circuit. Seen on an oscilloscope, the audio peaks appear clipped off. To avoid distortion, reduce the system gain in or before the gain stage in which the clip- ping occurs. See also headroom.
condenser
Another term for the electronic component generally known as a capacitor. In audio, condenser usually refers to a type of micro- phone that uses a capacitor as the sound pickup element. Condenser microphones require electrical power to run internal ampli- fiers and maintain an electrical charge on the capacitor. They are typically powered by inter- nal batteries or “phantom power” supplied by an external source, such as a mixing console.
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