On this page, you will find some articles on certain topics in sound design and audio engineering. I wrote those articles, because i believe that a solid understanding of the underlying principles of sound and music is a major benefit when using audio processing software. I wrote the articles in the style of short memos, each on one topic at a time and I hope, those memos will give the reader insights which enable them to use audio software more successfully in order to create better music.
Signals, Power and RMS
Explains, what signals are in general and how their power and RMS-value is defined.
Pan Rules
Introduces the two most important pan-rules, namely: linear and constant power.
Amplitude and Decibels
Explains, what amplitude is and how the ubiquitous decibel is defined.
Frequency and Pitch
Explains, what frequency is and how our tone system is derived from that.
Sinusoids and the Frequency Domain
Gives a brief overview over sinusoids, their use in additive synthesis and scratches at the
surface of fourier analysis.
Filter Basics
A basic introduction into the rich and diverse field of filters and how they are used in audio
engineering. Filters are very important devices and when you look closer, they pop up almost
everywhere (not only, but also, in the audio processing domain).
Digital Signals - Sampling and Quantization
Gives an overview over the sampling theorem, aliasing, quantization noise and dynamic range of
digital signal processing system.
Stereo Processing
Discusses various aspects that arise specifically in the context of stereo signals such as
correlation, stereo-width, mono-compatibility, mid/side-processing and stereoization.
Waveshaping
Explains the signal processing technique of waveshaping which is the basic technique for
nonlinear distortion devices.