Definition of Sound
Sound is a vibration of a substance, such as wood,
water, air or any other
Material. When these substances vibrate, or rapidly
move, they produce sound.
Perception of Sound
The perception of sound in any organism is limited to a
certain range of frequencies. For humans, hearing is normally limited to
frequencies between about 20 Hz and 20,000 Hz (20 kHz), although these limits
are not definite. The upper limit generally decreases with age. Other species,
have a different range of hearing. For example, dogs can perceive vibrations
higher than 20 kHz, but are deaf to anything below 40 Hz. As a signal perceived
by one of the major senses, sound is used by many species for detecting danger,
navigation, predation, and communication.
Waveform
properties
Longer Wavelengths are harder to hear
And less frequent than lower wavelengths.
Sound is measured in hertz, which is how many
wave peaks go by in one second. People can
hear sounds that range from about 20 to about
17,000 hertz.
Decibels
Decibels are the unit used to measure the intensity of a
sound. The Decibel scale can be
Quite difficult to read because Human ears are so
sensitive. Your ears can hear things from scratch your arm to a jet taking off.
The
Abbreviation for Decibels is dB.
Emotion & Mood
Sound is the easiest way to show emotion and the mood of
a story, for example rainfall
sound can represent that it is a dark and gloomy day or
thunder which can represent
A scary environment or a dark environment. Also, the way
a character speaks will show his
Emotion and his tone of voice will show us what type of
mood he is in. For example Mr.
Burns from the Simpsons, he’s always shouting at
Smithers when things goes wrong and
Expresses his madness by setting the “hounds” on people
who visit his mansion.
Perception
“The perception of sound in any organism is limited to a
certain range of frequencies. For humans, hearing is normally limited to
frequencies between about 20 Hz and 20,000 Hz (20 kHz), although these limits
are not definite. The upper limit generally decreases with age. Other species
have a different range of hearing. For example, dogs can perceive vibrations
higher than 20 kHz, but are deaf to anything below 40 Hz. As a signal perceived
by one of the major senses, sound is used by many species for detecting danger,
navigation, predation, and communication”.
Volume, Tempo
& Timbre
Tempo is how fast the beat is, such as a fast paced beat
would be preferred by Rappers. A slow tempo beat would be for slow songs that
try to represent a Sad scenario.
Volume is how loud or quiet the music is, for example the louder a
sound, the more energy it has. This
means loud sounds have a large amplitude.
Timbre is the quality of a musical note or sound or tone
that distinguishes different
types of sound production, such as voices and musical
instruments, string
instruments, wind instruments, and percussion
instruments.
Sound as Information
Voice recordings are used in films and games a lot to
narrate the storyline, tutorials, guides, Objectives or even to tell you that
you have failed the mission. Sound in the form
Of information can be very useful and is needed in every
game. It can also be used in films as for example, someone talking about their
past.
Audio Enviroment
Audio in games is just as important as graphics and game
play because
The audio can tell you information such as objectives,
it can tell you where people are if
You hear footsteps, which is really good for competitive
gaming, it also gives a realistic feel
To a game. For example in Battlefield you can hear
bullets fired, which then gives you an
Indication of where the enemy is located in an
environment. Another example is birds making
Noises if you are in a jungle.
Audio Sources
Audio is used /can be played through Speakers,
Televisions, Computers, Sat Navs, Phones, watches, Hand-Held Consoles etc...
For example a iPhone, it has a speaker at the bottom of
the phone.
