Ig2 task 1 work sheet (1)

Salford City College
Eccles Sixth Form Centre
BTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGN
Unit 73: Sound For Computer Games
IG2 Task 1
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: Brandon McNamara 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. etc. In other words, many of the sounds that the sound
recordists on set did their best to avoid recording during the
shoot.
http://www.sound-ideas.com/what-is-foley.html
Foley artistry is the practice I will be
using to add most of my sounds to
my game. It is useful as it allows me
to have finer control as to when
sounds occur.
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
My sample library will be used to
create most of my sounds. It is full
of sounds I have captured with
audio equipment.
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-
Some of the sounds I will use are
uncompressed allowing the sounds
to be heard crisper and clearer than
compressed.

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file-formats
.wav Waveform Audio File Format (WAVE, or more commonly known
as WAV due to its filename extension; rarely, Audio for
Windows) is a Microsoft and IBM audio file format standard for
storing an audio bitstream on PCs. It is an application of the
Resource Interchange File Format bitstream format method for
storing data in "chunks", and thus is also close to the 8SVX and
the AIFF format used on Amiga and Macintosh computers,
respectively. It is the main format used on Windows systems for
raw and typically uncompressed audio. The usual bitstream
encoding is the linear pulse-code modulation (LPCM) format.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WAV
A lot of my sounds within my sound
library are saved as .wav files.
.aiff In terms of file size and quality, AIFF and WAV formats are
fairly interchangeable. For you techno-junkies, the AIFF format
results in an uncompressed PCM (pulse-code modulation) file
meaning it still has relatively large file sizes, but maintains a
higher quality of sound. Again, AIFF files offer a lot of flexibility
in editing, copying, changing file formats, and other post-
production activities. They are the Apple/Macintosh equivalent
of WAV files, though both Windows PCs and Apple Macs will
recognize either format.
http://www.freestockmusic.com/audio-formats/
Some of my sounds are saved as
.aiff as it allows them to be used
clearer than .wav.
.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
I have not used .au sound files
however they would be useful for
compressed sounds where quality is
not an issue.

IG2 Task 1
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.smp A ".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#ixzz31UO0RMGr
I have also used no .smp files
however I can see how they would
be useful when working with
specialized software.
Lossy Compression In information technology, "lossy" compression is the class
of data encoding methods that uses inexact approximations (or
partial data discarding) for representing the content that has
been encoded. Such compression techniques are used to reduce
the amount of data that would otherwise be needed to store,
handle, and/or transmit the represented content. The different
versions of the photo of the dog at the right demonstrate how
the approximation of an image becomes progressively coarser
as more details of the data that made up the original image are
removed. The amount of data reduction possible using lossy
compression can often be much more substantial than what is
possible with lossless data compression techniques.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lossy_compression
Lossy compression allows for
relatively good quality sounds with
relatively small files.
.mp3 MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III, more commonly referred to
as MP3, is an encoding format for digital audio which uses a
form of lossy data compression. It is a common audio format for
consumer audio streaming or storage, as well as a de facto
standard of digital audio compression for the transfer and
playback of music on most digital audio players.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MP3
.mp3 files are useful to me as
several of my files are.mp3. This
allows for high quality and low size
sound files.

IG2 Task 1
4
AUDIO LIMITATIONS Sound Processor Unit (SPU) The SPU is the unit responsible for all aural capabilities of the
psx. It
handles 24 voices, has a 512kb sound buffer, has ADSR envelope
filters for
Each voice and lots of other features.
http://psx.rules.org/spu.txt
The sup is important as it allows me
to hear sounds on my computer.
Digital Sound Processor (DSP) A digital signal processor (DSP) is a specialized microprocessor
with an architecture optimized for the operational needs of
digital signal processing.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_signal_processor
A high quality dsp allows for more
clear and good sounds.
Random Access Memory
(RAM)
Random-access memory (RAM) is a form of computer data
storage. A random-access memory device allows data items to
be read and written in roughly the same amount of time
regardless of the order in which data items are accessed. In
contrast, with other direct-access data storage media such as
hard disks, CD-RWs, DVD-RWs and the older drum memory, the
time required to read and write data items varies significantly
depending on their physical locations on the recording medium.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Random-access_memory
Without ram the computer wouldn’t
work therefore it is fairly important
to my work.
Mono Audio Commonly called mono sound, mono, or non-stereo sound, this
early sound system used a single channel of audio for sound
output. In monophonic sound systems, the signal sent to the
sound system encodes one single stream of sound and it usually
uses just one speaker. Monophonic sound is the most basic
format of sound output.
http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/M/monophonic_sound.html
Mono audio is useful for ambient
sound as the same sound would be
heard all around.
Stereo Audio Stereo produces its spatial magic by creating the illusion that
you are in the middle of a three-dimensional sound source.
Stereo audio sounds clearer than mono and your brain can
detect distance and depth better. These effects are more
Stereo sound is useful for when
sounds are more prominently on
one side than another.

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pronounced in TVs or stereos that have speakers spaced widely
apart. You can create quality stereo sound recordings by
connecting two microphones to a recorder and placing them at
different locations around your audio source. Increase the
distance between the microphones to enhance the stereo effect.
http://smallbusiness.chron.com/difference-between-mono-
stereo-audio-38235.html
Surround Sound Surround sound is a technique for enriching the sound
reproduction quality of an audio source with additional audio
channels from speakers that surround the listener (surround
channels), providing sound from a 360° radius in the horizontal
plane (2D) as opposed to "screen channels" (centre, [front] left,
and [front] right) originating only from the listener's forward
arc.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surround_sound
Surround sound allows for a more
immersive experience within sound
design.
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
PCM allows me to analyse and edit
sounds easily and effectively.
AUDIO RECORDING SYSTEMS Analogue Analog (or analogue) recording is a technique used for the
recording of analog signals which among many possibilities
include audio frequency, analog audio and analog video
information for later playback.
Analog recording methods store signals as a continual wave in
or on the media. The wave might be stored as a physical texture
Most of my recordings were created
using analogue recording.

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on a phonograph record, or a fluctuation in the field strength of
a magnetic recording. This is different from digital recording of
which among many possibilities include digital audio and digital
video, which digital signals are represented as data or discrete
numbers.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Analog_recording
Digital Mini Disc Different sizes of floppy disks are mechanically incompatible,
and disks can fit only one size of drive. Drives with 3½-inch and
5¼-inch slots were available during the transition period
between the sizes, but they contained two separate drive
mechanisms. In addition, there are many subtle, usually
software-driven incompatibilities between the two. 5¼-inch
disks formatted for use with Apple II computers would be
unreadable and treated as unformatted on a Commodore. As
computer platforms began to form, attempts were made at
interchangeability. For example, the "Superdrive" included from
the Macintosh SE to the Power Macintosh G3 could read, write
and format IBM PC format 3½-inch disks, but few IBM-
compatible computers had drives that did the reverse. 8-inch,
5¼-inch and 3½-inch drives were manufactured in a variety of
sizes, most to fit standardized drive bays. Alongside the
common disk sizes were non-classical sizes for specialized
systems.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MiniDisc
Knowing about digital mini discs is
not particularly important
regarding my work as they are
outdated and defunct.
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). Several other formats were further
derived from these, including write-once audio and data storage
(CD-R), rewritable media (CD-RW), Video Compact Disc (VCD),
Super Video Compact Disc (SVCD), Photo CD, PictureCD, CD-i,
and Enhanced Music CD. Audio CDs and audio CD players have
been commercially available since October 1982.
Compact discs are also not too
relevand to my workas all of my
work is stored on hard drives

IG2 Task 1
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Standard CDs have a diameter of 120 millimetres (4.7 in) and
can hold up to about 80 minutes of uncompressed audio or 700
MiB (actually about 703 MiB or 737 MB) of data. The Mini CD
has various diameters ranging from 60 to 80 millimetres (2.4 to
3.1 in); they are sometimes used for CD singles, storing up to 24
minutes of audio or delivering device drivers.
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. In
appearance it is similar to a Compact Cassette, using 4 mm
magnetic tape enclosed in a protective shell, but is roughly half
the size at 73 mm × 54 mm × 10.5 mm. As the name suggests,
the recording is digital rather than analogue. DAT has the ability
to record at higher, equal or lower sampling rates than a CD
(48, 44.1 or 32 kHz sampling rate respectively) at 16 bits
quantization. If a digital source is copied then the DAT will
produce an exact clone, unlike other digital media such as
Digital Compact Cassette or non-Hi-MD Minidisc, both of which
use a lossy data reduction system.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_Audio_Tape
Similar to compact discs and mini
discs the digital audio tape is not
relevant to my work
MIDI MIDI is a technical standard that describes a protocol, digital
interface and connectors and allows a wide variety of electronic
musical instruments, computers and other related devices to
connect and communicate with one another. A single MIDI link
can carry up to sixteen channels of information, each of which
can be routed to a separate device.
MIDI carries event messages that specify notation, pitch and
velocity, control signals for parameters such as volume, vibrato,
audio panning, cues, and clock signals that set and synchronize
tempo between multiple devices. These messages are sent to
other devices where they control sound generation and other
Most of the sound editing software i
have used has used midi
technology.

IG2 Task 1
8
features. This data can also be recorded into a hardware or
software device called a sequencer, which can be used to edit
the data and to play it back at a later time.[2]:4
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MIDI
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-ins.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Music_sequencer
Most of the sounds I edit are edited
in a software sequencer.
Software Plug-ins In computing, a plug-in (or plugin, extension, or add-on) is a
software component that adds a specific feature to an existing
software application. When an application supports plug-ins, it
enables customization. The common examples are the plug-ins
used in web browsers to add new features such as search-
engines, virus scanners, or the ability to utilize a new file type
such as a new video format. Well-known browser plug-ins
includes the Adobe Flash Player, the QuickTime Player, and the
Java plug-in, which can launch a user-activated Java applet on a
web page to its execution a local Java virtual machine.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plug-in
Some software plugins may be
necessary in creating my sounds.
MIDI Keyboard Instruments A MIDI keyboard is typically a piano-style user interface
keyboard device used for sending MIDI signals or commands
over a USB or MIDI cable to other devices connected and
operating on the same MIDI protocol interface. This could also
be a personal computer running software such as a digital audio
workstation (DAW) that listens to and sends MIDI information
to other MIDI devices connected by cable or running internal to
the personal computer system. The basic MIDI keyboard does
not produce sound. Instead, MIDI information is sent to an
electronic module capable of reproducing an array of digital
Midi keyboard instruments are how
I will create a lot of sounds.

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sounds or samples that resemble traditional analog musical
instruments. These samples or waveforms are also referred to
as voices or timbres.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MIDI_keyboard
AUDIO SAMPLING File Size Constraints - Bit-
depth
In digital audio using pulse-code modulation (PCM), bit depth is
the number of bits of information in each sample, and it directly
corresponds to the resolution of each sample. Examples of bit
depth include Compact Disc Digital Audio, which uses 16 bits per
sample, and DVD-Audio and Blu-ray Disc which can support up
to 24 bits per sample.
In basic implementations, variations in bit depth primarily affect
the noise level from quantization error—thus the signal-to-noise
ratio (SNR) and dynamic range. However, techniques such as
dithering, noise shaping and oversampling mitigate these
effects without changing the bit depth. Bit depth also affects bit
rate and file size.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Audio_bit_depth
This will prevent my work from
having too high a bit depth in its
final product.
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.
This will prevent my work from
having too high a sample rate in its
final product.

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sampling_(signal_processing)

Ig2 task 1 work sheet (1)

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