DAW NESC Flashcards
Function of a microphone
A microphone takes the pattern whether being vocal patterns or musical instruments and converts it into energy
What are the 3 types of microphones
Dynamic, Condenser, Ribbon
Another name for a dynamic mic
Moving Coil
Another name for condenser mic
Capacitor Mic
What is a dynamic mic
Microphones that convert sound into an electrical signal by means of electromagnetism.
What is a condenser mic
A mic used in studios for detail and accuracy, accomplished with a lightweight membrane. It also has a 360 deg. pick up pattern.
What is a ribbon mic
a light metal ribbon is suspended between the poles of a magnet. When the ribbon vibrates, it creates a voltage that corresponds to the changes in the air velocity of the sound source
What is a cable tester
an electronic device used to verify the electrical connections in a signal cable or other wired assembly.
XLR stands for…
External Live Return Connector
What is a midi jack
a 5 pin jack
Another name for DI Box
Direct Box
What is a DI Box’s function
converts the unbalanced, high impedance signal output of an instrument to a balanced low impedance mic-level signal.
Audio interface function
convert microphone and instrument signals into a format your computer and software recognize.
Midi Interface function
provides MIDI In/Out to and from a computer or MIDI-equipped hardware via standard 5-pin MIDI jacks.
What is a Headphone Distribution Amplifier
hardware that allows connection of multiple headphones, with the ability to adjust and eliminate volumes to certain ones.
What it a Standard Home DAW
hardware device which allows mixes to be made, addition of effects etc. However it is not as user friendly as compared to computer based DAW’s.
Midi Controller function
tosequence music and play virtual instruments on your Mac or PC.
What does USB stand for…
Universal Serial Bus
What is a microphone
A microphone is an instrument for converting sound waves into electrical energy variations which may then be amplified, transmitted, or recorded.
The quality of a mics pickup depends on…
placement, distance, instrument, acoustic environment, mic’s operating system, design characteristics, quality
What is the good rule
Good musician + good instrument + good performance + good acoustics + good mics + good placement = good sounds
What is a power supply of a microphone
+/- 48 V (DC)
What does DSP stand for…
Digital Signal Processor
Another word for volume
Amplitude
microphone pre amp function
amplifies signals and boosts it up to an acceptable level
Function of a capacitor
stores and discharges
How does the proximity effect occur
The proximity effect occurs due tophase and amplitude variations of the sound waves arriving at the two sides of the microphone’s diaphragm.
Modern condenser mics and some ribbon mics don’t require batteries but requires
phantom power
What does MIDI stand for
Musical Instrument Digital Interface
What does LED stand for
Light Emitting Dilute
What does UHF stand for
Ultra High Frequency
What does VHF stand for
Very High Frequency
Mixers uses what kind of cord or wire
Firewire
What is a cardioid pickup pattern
a cardioid polar pattern is least sensitive at the rear (180 degrees off-axis)
What is a supercardioid pickup pattern
a supercardioid mic is least sensitive at 125 degrees
What is a hypercardioid pickup pattern
hypercardioid is sensitive at 110 degrees
Microphone directionality can be classified into two catergories which are
Omnidirectional and directional
Omnidirectional polar pattern function
An omnidirectional polar patternpicks up sound in a 360-degree radius, it is equally sensitive to sound at all angles, making it effiicient for studio recording.
Directional polar pattern function
A polar pattern graphshows the variation in sensitivity 360 degrees around the microphone assuming that the microphone is in the centre and that 0 degrees represents the front.
What is frequency response
the measurement of it’s output over the audible range.
Frequency range of humans
20Hz - 20,000Hz
What might a low cut switch be needed for
Guitar, other musical instruments that buzz or hum
What is transient response
measure of how quickly a mic’s diaphragm will react when it is hit by an acoustic wavefront
A microphone’s output characteristics refer to its measured
Sensitivity, Equivalent Noise Rating, Overload, Impedance
What is a mics sensitivity rating
the output level (in volts) that a microphone will produce
What is the equivalent noise rating of a mic
the device’s electrical self-noise
Describe a microphones overload characteristics
a microphone is limited at low levels by its inherent self-noise, it’s also limited at high sound-pressure levels (SPLs) by overload distortion
What does PFL stand for
Pre Fader Listen/Level
What does AFL stand for
After Fader Listen/Level
A balanced cable is…
Positive, negative and ground
An unbalanced cable is….
Positive and negative
AUX is used to…
send signals to monitors
Dial out means
increasing volume for incoming signal
What is feedback
an event that occurs when the output of a system is used as input back into the system as part of a chain of cause and effect
What is the colouring range for a dynamic mic
5k -10k
Function of a pad switch
reduce signal from microphone
Function of phase switch
change the polarity
What is Reason’s NN-19
a quick and easy to use sampler that’s perfect for creative sampling work
What is Reason’s NNXT
highly advanced sampler with an impressive list useful features to help you build your own stunningly realistic instrument patches
What is Reason’s Redrum
drum machine with a built-in pattern sequencer
What is Reason’s Kong
Build your drum sounds based on any of the nine different drum modules
What is Reason’s RV7000
provides reverb
What is Reason’s Subtractor
makes it easy to create anything from warm pads to rumbling bass
Microphone Pre Amp function, which is suitable and why
used to boost its signal to acceptable levels (often by 30 to 70 dB). Specifically, outboard mic preamps are chosen instead for their low-noise, low-distortion specs and/or their unique sound
The warmer the compressor…
the better the performance
What is good recording level
4.5dB - 6dB
What is SPL
Sound pressure level
What does DAT stand for
Digital Audio Tape
DAT function
an audio plug-in software interface that integrates software synthesizers and effects units into digital audio workstations
What does VST stand for
Virtual Studio Technology
VST function
record at lower, equal or higher sampling rates compared to a compact disc
Active vs Passive monitors
active monitors simply have a built-in amp and therefore need no external amp to drive them, and that passive monitors need an external amp to drive them.
Gate function
Filters out unwanted noise
Phantom Power function
supplies power to Condenser, DI Box (Active), Ribbon Mics (New)
Mic/ Line function
regulates incoming signal
Fire wire function
allows connection to laptops and SOME interfaces
High pass filter function
filters out frequency from a specific value
Another name for high pass filter
Low cut switch
Select function
allows you to deal with that exact channel
Solo function
listen to that channel ONLY
Mute function
stop channel from playing
Channel fader function
controls volume of channel
Four fundamental styles of microphone placement
- Distant miking
- Close miking
- Accent miking
- Ambient miking.
Describe distant miking
One or more mics can be positioned at a distance of 3 feet or considerably more from the intended signal source. Great for large groups and acoustics
Describe close miking
Mic is often positioned about 1 inch to 3 feet from sound source. This creates a tight and present sound quality and effectively doesn’t pick up the acoustical environment.
Describe Accent Miking
A microphone that has been placed within a reasonably close range to an instrument or section within a larger ensemble (but not so close as to have an unnatural sound) is known as an accent pickup
Describe Ambient miking
Places the pickup at such a distance that the reverberant or room sound is equally or more prominent than the direct signal. Great for picking up audiences and for live concerts
What are stereo miking techniques
the use of two microphones in order to obtain a coherent stereo image
Name the stereo miking techniques
Spaced pair, X/Y, M/S, Decca Tree
What does VU stand for?
Volume Limit
Phase switch function
Changes from positive to negative
Direct out function
give an access straight to audio interface to hardware: used for recording purposes
What is a signal processor’s function
signal processor to change, augment or otherwise modify an audio signal in either the analog or digital domain
Plug-in function
computer software thatadds new functions to a host program without altering the host program itself
Difference between time base and dynamics
Time base - reverbs, echoes, delays, flangers, phasers
Dynamics - equalizers, limiters, compressors, gates, expanders
What does ROM stand for
Read Only Memory
What does RAM stand for
Random Access Memory
Why is insert routing used
often used to alter the sonic or effects characteristics of a particular track or channel signal
What is a de-esser
used to extract sibilance
What is sibilance
a hissing quality of sound, or the hissing sound itself
Devices that offer an external “key” or “sidechain” input can be quite useful, such as
- A gate which might take control of the key
- A vocal track could have a vo-coder for a robot-like sound
- An external keyed input can be used to make a mix “pump” or “breathe” in a dance production
Why is send routing used
instead of inserting a signal-changing device directly into the signal path, a portion of the signal (which is essentially routed through an effects “aux” mixer path) is “sent” to an effects device
Three types of equalizers
Graphic eq, parametric eq, semi parametric eq
Parametric equalizers
lets you control three aspects: level (boosting or cutting decibels), the exact frequency, and the bandwidth or range (also known as Q or quotient of change) of each frequency
Semi Parametric Equalizers
isa parametric equalizer that has one or more features missing
Graphic Equalizers
a high-fidelity audio control that allows the user to see graphically and control individually a number of different frequency bands in a stereophonic system
Some examples of signal processors
Equalizers, Compressors and Phasers
QF or Q stands for
Quality Factor
Function of a band pass filter
a device that passes frequencies within a certain range and rejects frequencies outside that range
What is gain
the ability of a two-port circuit to increase the power or amplitude of a signal from the input to the output port by adding energy converted from some power supply to the signal
