Foundations of Sound
What is the definition of sound?
a type of energy that is created by vibrations that travel through a medium, like air or water, and are perceived by the brain
Frequency (which is measured in Hertz) describes how many _____ of sound per second are in a wavelength.
Cycles
Which part of the sound system is considered the “muscle” of the sound system?
Amplifier
You are trying to record vocals into a mic but the mic is really picking up the plosives from the voice in the recording. What piece of equipment would help you get rid of those plosives?
Pop Filter or Windscreen
What are the two distinct roles of the Sound Designer in American Theatre?
Sound Score Designer & Sound Reinforcement System Designer
What is the approx. speed of sound?
approx. 1125 L/ second in air
What word describes the volume of sound in decibels (dB)?
Amplitude.
List all 8 parts of Isaiah’s sound system in order
Input Source, Cables, Interfaces, Mixer, Processors, Amplifiers, Loudspeakers, Ears
What are the 4 types of sound mixer processing we talked about in class?
Reverb, Dynamics, Delay & Special Effects.
List all the roles on a sound team for a musical
Sound Designer, Production Sound Engineer, Audio 1/A1, Audio 2/A2, & Audio 3/A3
What is defined as the audible frequency range humans can hear?
20 Hz to 20,000 Hz
If I am describing the distance between matching phases of a wave’s cycle, what aspect of sound am I describing?
Wavelength
If I wanted to take an instrument or an iPod and turn it into a balanced signal, what type of connector would I use to do that?
TRS (Tip Ring Sleeve)
Isaiah is using a condenser microphone but it is not the mic is not sending any signal to the mixer. He asks you to turn on phantom power. Will this help? Yes or No?
Yes. Condenser mics require phantom power in order to pick up signal.
What MUST a sound designer do regardless of their role?
Contribute to the overall storytelling of the production.
A classic sound envelope contains 4 segments. What are they?
Attack, Decay, Sustain, Release
What is Timbre?
It is what gives a sound its character using its pitch and intensity. It is why a piano and a flute can play the same note but sound different.
Tell me the two different types of EQ used on most mixing consoles.
Graphic EQ and Parametric EQ
What are the 4 factors that go into the directionality of sound?
Frequency, Arrival Time, Acoustics, Physiology (make-up) of the ear.
If I am mainly responsible for composing music or creating the setting, what type of sound designer am I?
Sound Score Designer
Low frequencies are easier to control than high frequencies. True or False? (Bonus: explain why?)
False. High frequencies are smaller than low frequencies thus they are easier to manipulate because they move through air easier to reach our ears where as low frequencies are already large and because of that they require more volume to reach our ears.
Name at least 4 out of 7 aspects of sound we discussed in class.
Amplitude, Envelope, Frequency, Wavelength, Timbre, Directionality & Rhythm.
If the show I am mixing is too loud, where should i turn down the volume first to minimize the noise?
The Amplifier(s)
If I am talking about the Envelope of a sound, what am I describing?
The sound’s volume over time.
List 3 of the steps for designing a play. (Bonus: List all steps 7 in order.)
Create a concept, Create a cue sheet, Find or create your sound effects, Create your sound system, Build Qlab file, Set sound levels, OPEN Show!