The document is a glossary assignment for a games design course requiring the student to research and define audio terms and relate them to their production practice. It includes definitions for over 20 terms related to sound design, formats, limitations, recording systems, MIDI, sampling and more. Each term defines provided with a short definition and URL source, and the student describes how the term relates to their own work producing audio for games.

1. Salford City College
Eccles Sixth Form Centre
BTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGN
Unit 73: Sound For Computer Games
IG2 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: Elliot Black 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 is the reproduction of everyday sound effects that are added to film,
video, and other mediums in post-production to enhance audio quality. These
reproduced sounds can be anything from the swishing of clothing and
footsteps to squeaky doors and breaking glass.”
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foley_(filmmaking)
Foley atristry is relevant as During
our coursework it is required that
we make our own sounds that could
be used in various game genres so
we may be required to make a
gunshot by clapping to items
together and making a bang etc...
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.”
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sample_library
We use a sample library to see all of
our sounds an d available sounds in
one place and in a way that they are
easily found and used.
SOUND FILE FORMATS Uncompressed “There is one major uncompressed audio format, PCM, which is usually stored
in a .wav file on Windows or in a .aiff file on Mac OS. “
-
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Audio_file_format#Uncompressed_audio_forma
t
Since we save in .wav most of the
time, uncompressed audio is the
main format we use to save our
audio.
.wav “Waveform Audio File Format is a Microsoft and IBM audio file format
standard for storing an audio bitstream on PCs.”
-
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wav
Any audio we create is usually saved
as a .wav format as It is the main
format used on Windows systems
for raw and typically uncompressed
audio.
.aiff “Audio Interchange File Format (AIFF) is an audio file format standard used for
storing sound data for personal computers and other electronic audio devices.
The format was developed by Apple Computer in 1988 based on Electronic
Arts' Interchange File Format (IFF, widely used on Amiga systems) and is most
commonly used on Apple Macintosh computer systems.”
1

2. Salford City College
Eccles Sixth Form Centre
BTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGN
Unit 73: Sound For Computer Games
IG2 Task 1
-
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AIFF
.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.”
-
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Au_file_format
.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.”
-
http://www.ehow.com/info_12198596_file-smp.html
Lossy Compression “Lossy compression is a data reduction method that reduces
the amount of data during the coding process, but retains
enough information to be useful. For example, an MP3 file is a
lossy music file that discards some of the original data but is
still acceptable for music listening.”
-
http://stereos.about.com/od/stereoscience/a/lossy.htm
.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
Most common format for saving
music files.
AUDIO LIMITATIONS Sound Processor Unit (SPU) “Integrated circuit that generates an audio signal and sends it to a computer's
speakers. The sound card can accept an analog sound (as from a microphone
or audio tape) and convert it to digital data that can be stored in an audio file,
or accept digitized audio signals (as from an audio file) and convert them to
analog signals that can be played on the computer's speakers. On a personal
computer, the sound card is usually a separate circuit board that is plugged
into the motherboard.”
-
http://encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary.com/Audio+processing+unit
We need sound processing units in
our computers in order to hear the
sound we are creating and using,
through our headphones.
Digital Sound Processor
(DSP)
“Short for digital signal processing, which refers to manipulating analog
information, such as sound or photographs that has been converted into a
2

3. Salford City College
Eccles Sixth Form Centre
BTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGN
Unit 73: Sound For Computer Games
IG2 Task 1
digital form. DSP also implies the use of a data compression technique.”
-
http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/D/DSP.html
Random Access Memory
(RAM)
Random-access memory 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.
-
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Random-access_memory
RAM helps us do many taks at the
same time, such as using many
sounds in different layers with
different VST's on them whilst
having other windows open such as
chrome.
Mono Audio “Mono or monophonic describes a system where all the audio signals are
mixed together and routed through a single audio channel.”
-
http://www.mcsquared.com/mono-stereo.htm
Used for most sounds when there
isn’t any pan In the actual 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.”
-
http://www.mcsquared.com/mono-stereo.htm
As in reaper, we have the ability to
change which speaker a certain
audio stream comes out from,
stereo audio is very beneficial to our
work.
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
Using surround sound would allow
us to hear precisely where an audio
source is coming from.
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 “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.”
-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Analog_recording
3

4. Salford City College
Eccles Sixth Form Centre
BTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGN
Unit 73: Sound For Computer Games
IG2 Task 1
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) “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.“
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CD
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 analog. 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
MIDI MIDI (short for Musical Instrument Digital Interface) 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.
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MIDI
In order to create our own sounds in
Reaper, we have to create a blank
MIDI item where we can use a
variety of VSTi's to give the MIDI
item different sound effects such as
a drum or a piano.
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
Our main audio editor, Reaper, is a
Software sequencer that we use to
create , manipulate and save our
produced audio.
4

5. Salford City College
Eccles Sixth Form Centre
BTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGN
Unit 73: Sound For Computer Games
IG2 Task 1
Software Plug-ins In computing, a plug-in (or plugin, extension, or add-on / addon) is a software
component that adds a specific feature to an existing software application.
When an application supports plug-ins, it enables customization.
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plug-in_%28computing%29
In reaper, many of the VST's and
VSTi's we use did not come with the
main download and are actually plug
ins.
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.
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MIDI_keyboard
Keyboard instrument recreate sound
from actual instruments, so in our
work in which we have to create
music pieces, its very beneficial.
AUDIO SAMPLING File Size Constraints - Bit-
depth
“Bit depth (sometimes called also resolution) affects file size. All other things
being equal, a 32 bit file is twice the size of a 16 bit file, and an 8 bit file half
the size of a 16 bit one.
Bit resolution also affects CPU use. If you are recording for immediate export
without editing, 32 bit recording may offer no advantage over 16 bit recording
if you only have a 16 bit sound device. Most built-in consumer sound devices
on computers (and even many cheaper sound cards) are only 16 bit.”
- http://wiki.audacityteam.org/wiki/Bit_Depth
The reaper bit depth of which we
usually render at, is the default 24-
bit PCM.
File Size Constraints -
Sample Rate
“Sample rate is the number of samples of audio carried per second,
measured in Hz or kHz (one kHz being 1 000 Hz). For example, 44 100
samples per second can be expressed as either 44 100 Hz, or 44.1 kHz.
”
- http://wiki.audacityteam.org/wiki/Sample_Rates
The Reaper sample rate of which we
sue to render is 44,100HZ which is a
standard sample rate for most audio
as it's maximum frequency is 20Khz,
which is the highest frequency
audible by humans.
5

6. Salford City College
Eccles Sixth Form Centre
BTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGN
Unit 73: Sound For Computer Games
IG2 Task 1
Software Plug-ins In computing, a plug-in (or plugin, extension, or add-on / addon) is a software
component that adds a specific feature to an existing software application.
When an application supports plug-ins, it enables customization.
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plug-in_%28computing%29
In reaper, many of the VST's and
VSTi's we use did not come with the
main download and are actually plug
ins.
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.
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MIDI_keyboard
Keyboard instrument recreate sound
from actual instruments, so in our
work in which we have to create
music pieces, its very beneficial.
AUDIO SAMPLING File Size Constraints - Bit-
depth
“Bit depth (sometimes called also resolution) affects file size. All other things
being equal, a 32 bit file is twice the size of a 16 bit file, and an 8 bit file half
the size of a 16 bit one.
Bit resolution also affects CPU use. If you are recording for immediate export
without editing, 32 bit recording may offer no advantage over 16 bit recording
if you only have a 16 bit sound device. Most built-in consumer sound devices
on computers (and even many cheaper sound cards) are only 16 bit.”
- http://wiki.audacityteam.org/wiki/Bit_Depth
The reaper bit depth of which we
usually render at, is the default 24-
bit PCM.
File Size Constraints -
Sample Rate
“Sample rate is the number of samples of audio carried per second,
measured in Hz or kHz (one kHz being 1 000 Hz). For example, 44 100
samples per second can be expressed as either 44 100 Hz, or 44.1 kHz.
”
- http://wiki.audacityteam.org/wiki/Sample_Rates
The Reaper sample rate of which we
sue to render is 44,100HZ which is a
standard sample rate for most audio
as it's maximum frequency is 20Khz,
which is the highest frequency
audible by humans.
5