The document is a glossary produced by a student named Michael Williams for a unit on sound design and production. It contains definitions and examples of over 30 key terms related to sound design methodology, file formats, limitations, recording systems, MIDI, sampling, and more. For each term, Michael provides a short definition from an online source as well as how the term relates to his own production practice, such as using uncompressed files, WAV and MP3 formats, RAM, MIDI keyboards, software plugins, and setting sample rate and bit depth when rendering sounds.

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: Michael
Williams
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 “Artist: a person who recreates non-computerized
sound effects for film,
television and radio”
http://www.folger.edu/documents/foleynew.pdf
Foley Artistry is relevant to my own practise from me
creating sounds form the MIDI keyboard.
Sound Libraries “a collection of sounds stored on file (for example on
CDs, DVDs, or as digital audio files)”
http://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionar
y/english/sound-library
The sounds libraries are relevant to my own production
practise by gather all of my sound into one place for me to
use at any given time.
SOUND FILE
FORMATS
Uncompressed “restore to its uncompressed form; decompress data"
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/uncompress
Uncompressed files were used in my work from me no
compressing them to be smaller when uploading to sound
cloud.
.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 bit stream on PCs”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wav
WAV files were used in my work with the sounds used in the
editing programme and become the final renders of my work
into .Wav files. To be heard and be used in many different
things we can do with them.
.aiff “Audio Interchange File Format." AIFF is a file
format designed to store audio data”
http://www.techterms.com/definition/aiff
.au “The Au file format is a simple audio file
format introduced by Sun Microsystems. The format

2. Salford City College
Eccles Sixth Form Centre
BTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGN
Unit 73: Sound For Computer Games
IG2 Task 1
2
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 “Symmetric Multiprocessing, a computer architecture
that provides fast performance by making
multiple CPUs available to complete
individual processes simultaneously
(multiprocessing)”
http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/S/SMP.html
Lossy
Compression
“Lossy compression is typically associated with image
files, such as JPEGs, but can also be used for audio
files, like MP3s or AAC files”
http://www.techterms.com/definition/lossy
.mp3 “MP3, is an encoding format for digital audio which
uses a form of lossy data compression”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MP3
MP3 was used in my work when the files are rendered out
into the MP3 format just like the .WAV 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”
http://encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary.com/Audio+pr
ocessing+unit
The SPU (Sound Processor Unit) was used in my work to hear
all of the sounds I created in my reaper projects and heard
after being rendered out.
Digital Sound
Processor (DSP)
“digital signal processing, which refers to
manipulatinganalog information, such as sound or
photographs that has been converted into
a digital form”
http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/D/DSP.html
Random Access
Memory (RAM)
“RAM (pronounced ramm) is
an acronym for random access memory, a type
RAM was used in my work to help making the computer be
fast enough to support the reaper package files.

3. Salford City College
Eccles Sixth Form Centre
BTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGN
Unit 73: Sound For Computer Games
IG2 Task 1
3
of computer memory that can be accessed randomly”
http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/R/RAM.html
Mono Audio “mono sound, mono, or non-stereo sound, this early
sound system used a single channel of audio for sound
output”
http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/M/monophonic_s
ound.html
Mono Audio used in my work to be able to hear all sound
outputs coming from my work to headphones or speakers.
Stereo Audio “Stereophonic sound or, more commonly, stereo, is a
method of sound reproduction that creates an illusion
of directionality and audible perspective”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stereophonic_sound
Stereo Audio used in my work to be able to hear all sound
outputs coming from my work to headphones or speakers.
Surround
Sound
“a system of stereophony involving three or more
speakers surrounding the listener so as to give a more
realistic effect”
https://www.google.co.uk/?gfe_rd=ctrl&ei=ZNI6U7e9
N8ik0AWp4YGgAw&gws_rd=cr#q=surround+sound+d
efinition&spell=1
Surround Sound used in my work to be able to hear all sound
outputs coming from my work to headphones or speakers.
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.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pulse-code_modulation
AUDIO
RECORDING
SYSTEMS
Analogue The analogue device reads data from a record as a
continuous signal. The opposite of analogue is digital,
these are the devices that read information in ones
and zeros.
http://uk.ask.com/question/what-does-analogue-
mean
Digital Mini
Disc
The MiniDisc (MD) is an obsolete magneto-optical
disc-based data storage device for 74 minutes and,

4. Salford City College
Eccles Sixth Form Centre
BTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGN
Unit 73: Sound For Computer Games
IG2 Task 1
4
later, 80 minutes, of digitized audio or 1 gigabyte of
Hi-MD data.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MiniDisc
Compact Disc
(CD)
CD, a compact disc is a polycarbonate with one or
more metal layers capable of storing digital
information.
http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/C/compact_disc.h
tml
Digital Audio
Tape (DAT)
Digital Audio Tape is a signal recording and playback
medium developed by Sony and introduced in 1987.
https://www.google.co.uk/?gfe_rd=cr&ei=RPVLU-
vtIsbR8gfHg4GADw#q=digital+audio+tape+meaning
MIDI Midi 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.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MIDI
MIDI was used in my work when I used the MIDI keyboard
for making my own sounds from scratch and then add effects
to them to make the sounds change from when they started.
Software
Sequencers
Software sequencers usually have more features and
have the advantage of showing you a lot more
information at once because they use the computer's
screen and aren't locked into the knobs or buttons or
display of a hardware sequencer.
http://www.wannaplaymusic.com/get-
started/keyboard-terminology
Software Plug-
ins
Software Plug-ins is a software component that adds a
specific feature to an existing software application.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plug-in_(computing)
Software Plug-ins were used in my work with work when
changing my original sounds to the new sounds with the
different VST plugins to change the sounds by
Pitch,Volume,Sound and many more included in the plug-ins.
MIDI Keyboard A MIDI keyboard is typically a piano-style user MIDI keyboard instrument was used in my work to make

5. Salford City College
Eccles Sixth Form Centre
BTEC Extended Diploma in GAMES DESIGN
Unit 73: Sound For Computer Games
IG2 Task 1
5
Instruments 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.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MIDI_keyboard
sounds in reaper using the MIDI keyboard by using it like a
normal keyboard for making sounds.
AUDIO
SAMPLING
File Size
Constraints -
Bit-depth
Bit depth is the number of bits of information in each
sample, and it directly corresponds to the resolution
of each sample.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Audio_bit_depth
Bit depth was used in my sound creations by rendering out
the final renders with 16-bit PCM as the default setting for
the bit-depth.
File Size
Constraints -
Sample Rate
Sample Rate 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.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sampling_(signal_proces
sing)
Sample rate was used also in the rendering the files into
.WAV files at a default standard rate speed 44100 Hz.