This lesson discusses the different categories of audio effects used in music production. There are three main categories: dynamic effects, delay effects, and filter effects. Dynamic effects act on amplitude and the dynamic range, and include compressors, limiters, gates, and expanders. Delay effects apply to propagation by delaying the audio signal and include delays, reverbs, phasers, and flangers. Filter effects apply to timbre by allowing certain frequencies to pass through while blocking others, including low-pass, high-pass, and band-pass filters. Each effect category was explained in more detail along with common controller parameters.

1. Introduction to Music
Production
Lesson 3 – Categories of Effects
Presented by Saijal Dullabh

2. Contents
 Introduction
 Audio Effects and Types
 Dynamic Effects
 Delay Effects
 Filter Effects
 Conclusion
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Introduction to Music Production
Lesson 3 – Categories of Effects

3. Introduction
 Hello and welcome to lesson 3 of Introduction to Music Production. I’m Saijal from South Africa and
today I’ll be presenting the different categories of audio effects used in music and what properties
of sound they affect.
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Introduction to Music Production
Lesson 3 – Categories of Effects

4. Audio Effects and Types
Audio effects are devices (in physical or digital form) which are used to alter how a piece of audio
sounds. In the DAW we could refer the audio effects as Digital Signal Processing or DSP. We have 3
categories of effects. Below is a list of these effects as well as which property of sound they relate to.
 Dynamic Effects
 Applies to amplitude
 Delay Effects
 Applies to Propagation
 Filter Effects
 Applies to Timbre
Lets have look at the above in a little more detail in the slides that follow.
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Introduction to Music Production
Lesson 3 – Categories of Effects

5. Dynamic Effects
 Dynamic effects processors/plugins act on the dynamic range of your music – IE the range between
the loudest and softest sounds. By adding a dynamic effect you can essentially increase or decrease
this range. When an incoming audio signal crosses a set threshold level, the processor adjusts the
volume according to parameters set by you.
 Examples of dynamic effects plugins are Compressors, Limiters, Gates and Expanders.
 Each of the above works differently. Limiters for example limit the volume of the incoming sound to
the threshold level. Sound higher then the threshold will remain at that threshold. Compressors on
the other hand scale the volume down when the threshold is reached.
 Some important controllers that you will find on your dynamic effects plugin are threshold, attack,
release, ratio and gain.
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Introduction to Music Production
Lesson 3 – Categories of Effects

6. Delays Effects
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Introduction to Music Production
Lesson 3 – Categories of Effects
 As the name implies, delay effects basically delay the incoming audio signal and outputs it after a
specified time. Sound coming into the effect is split into a wet (or delayed) signal and a dry (or
unaffected) signal. The wet signal goes into a buffer from where it emerges after a predefined time
(delay time – usually in milliseconds). The output from this buffer is then splits into 2 paths. One
path feeds back into the buffer while the other gets mixed with the dry signal using the wet/dry
control.
 Examples of delay effects include delay, reverb, phasers and flangers.
 Some common controls found on delay effects plugins include delay, feedback & wet/dry mix.
Wet/dry may be in the form of one controller or a separate controller for each.

7. Filter Effects
 Filters allow you to amplify or attenuate certain frequencies of a sound.
 A low-pass filter will allow low frequencies to pass through and block the high frequencies. A high-
pass filter will do the exact opposite.
 Band-pass filters lie between low-pass and high-pass. These allow for the a narrow range of
frequencies to go through while filtering out frequencies above and below the range in question.
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Introduction to Music Production
Lesson 3 – Categories of Effects

8. Conclusion
 This presentation only scratches the surface of audio effects. There is a lot that can be said about
each of the plugins in each category as I discovered when researching the topic for this
presentation. Below are some of the links that I used which you might find useful as well. Some of
them go into some detail about the common controllers (wet/dry, attack, release etc) and what
they mean or do so I strongly suggest reading them if you are new the audio effects. Thanks for the
making time to read and evalute. Until next time!
 http://www.iub.edu/~emusic/361/rsn-dynamics.htm
 http://www.iub.edu/~emusic/361/rsn-delay.htm
 http://blog.dubspot.com/understanding-audio-effects-an-overview/
 http://www.musicradar.com/tuition/tech/the-ultimate-guide-to-effects-delay-457920
 http://www.musicradar.com/tuition/tech/the-ultimate-guide-to-effects-dynamics-processing-484003
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Introduction to Music Production
Lesson 3 – Categories of Effects