The part of the channel that controls the volume. Faders are always a straight line, in contrast to knobs/pots, which are always circular.
When a signal is sent through an amplifier and into a microphone, which picks up the sound and sends it back through the amplifier, and so on. The loop of sound creates high pitched whines. Also refers to the parameter on a delay that adds more repetitions of the sound.
First Frame Of Action. This defines the starting point of an atmos mix.
An audio filter is a frequency dependent circuit, working in the audio frequency range, 0 Hz to 20 kHz. Audio filters can amplify (boost), pass or attenuate (cut) some frequency ranges.
A flanger is a type of audio effect that creates a distinctive “swooshing” or “jet plane” sound. It is created by combining a source audio signal with a slightly delayed, modulated version of itself.
A word used to describe a piece of gear that has no coloration to the sound; what comes in is what comes out. Most digital gear has a flat response, whereas most analog gear does not.
“Flying the hook” is when you take the first recorded hook and copy and paste it throughout the song in the appropriate places. This is achieved by setting the correct tempo of the song before beginning recording and then using the grid to copy and paste the hook section so that it falls directly on the beat the exact same way in every section of the song.
When a sound is produced by an instrument, a series of harmonics are created that determine the tone of that sound. The lowest (and loudest) of those frequencies is the fundamental. It is the primary harmonic of that sound.
This is a synonym for volume, though it’s often used as another word for distortion.
Gain staging is the process of making sure the audio is set to an optimal level for the next processor in the chain. Set to a level that minimizes noise and distortion.
A harmony is a term used for a vocal double that is singing a different note that accompanies the lead vocal or is performed with a different tone or inflection. Often used to accompany a lead vocal and to create chords by singing different notes within different vocal takes.
This is a mode within Dolby Renderer that sends a 2 channel stereo signal that includes audio cues intended to place the input channels in a simulated virtual soundstage. It allows playback simulation of the 3D sound stage created within the Dolby Atmos mix.
The amount of volume a channel can take before distorting at 0db. The louder the sound, the less headroom it has. For example, if a sound is peaking at -1db, it has 1 db of headroom.
Dolby Atmos height virtualization is a digital signal processing solution that leverages Dolby's deep understanding of human audio perception to create the sensation of overhead sound from the listener-level speakers.
The unit of measurement for frequencies. After 1,000Hz, the unit is measured in Kilohertz, or kHz.
The section of the frequency spectrum above 8kHz.
The Hook, or Chorus, is the “catchy” part of the song. The part that “hooks” the listener. This part of the song is usually repeated throughout the song and often contains the name of the song within the lyrics expressed in the hook.
The process of transferring files/session data into your session from an external location, such as a hard drive or a folder location on your computer.
This is a version of the song that does not contain any vocals, it only plays the instruments of the composition. This can be used to record vocals onto during the recording phase and is often required as an alternate version to turn into labels for final file delivery. This version is commonly printed in the mix stage and sent to mastering with the other versions of the song to later be delivered in master form to the label.
LUFS stands for Loudness Units Full Scale and Integrated LUFS is the average loudness of your entire played piece.
A control on a compressor that changes how variable the severity of compression is once the threshold has been passed. A “soft” knee makes the compression less obvious, whereas a “hard” knee makes the compressor more obvious.
The amount of delay between the input and the output of a signal. Latency usually refers to the delay that occurs when someone tries to record something when there are too many plugins on the session or the buffer size is too big. The input (the instrument) is delayed so that the output (the recording) is several milliseconds behind, causing a frustrating delay in a performer’s headphones, which can throw off the rhythm and timing of the performance.
Recording several copies of one musical part to be performed on top of each other. A more extreme version of doubling.
This is the main vocal take, it is the most prominent vocal in the song that communicates the lyrics to the listener. It is often accompanied by backing vocals for support.
Refers to the overall volume levels/faders of the sound elements in a song.
