Brainscape's Knowledge GenomeTM


Top Flashcards (Certified)
All Flashcards

Comprehensive Exams > Synthesis > Flashcards

Synthesis Flashcards

1
Q

Aftertouch

A

Allows a player to modify a tone as it is being held by applying pressure to a key while it is down

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

Amplifier

A

Controls the loudness/amplitude of a synthesizer by shaping the amplitude of a patch over time

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

Attack

A

Determines the amount of time it takes for loudness to go from silence to maximum level

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

Band pass filter

A

Passes a specific frequency band while blocking frequencies above and below this band

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

Center frequency

A

Band-pass: frequency at which there is no attenuation
Band-reject: frequency at which there is maximum attenuation

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

Cents

A

Subdivision of one semitone into 100 parts

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

Controller

A

Takes control of another module via a control signal

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

Cutoff frequency

A

The frequency at which a low-pass or high-pass filter reaches -3dB of attenuation

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

Decay

A

Determines how quickly a sound begins to die away after the attack stage is completed

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

Envelope generator

A

Used to produce envelopes as control signals on a synthesizer

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

Filter

A

A circuit or device that passes certain frequencies and blocks others

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

Filter envelope

A

Controls a filter’s cutoff or center frequency over time

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

Filter resonance

A

Boosts the source amplitude at the cutoff frequency

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

Filter slope

A

Rate of attenuation per octave

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

Fine tune

A

Adjusts the pitch of an oscillator by cents

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

Coarse tune

A

Adjusts the pitch of an oscillator by semitones

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
17
Q

Amplitude modulation

A

A repetitive change in volume (used to create tremolo)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
18
Q

Frequency modulation

A

Repetitive change in pitch (used to create vibrato)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
19
Q

Frequency

A

The high and low of a sound (notes or hertz)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
20
Q

Hard sync

A

Allows you to change timbre by syncing two oscillators; forces one oscillator to restart its cycle in synchronization with the start of another oscillator’s cycle

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
21
Q

Harmonics

A

Integer multiples of a fundamental

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
22
Q

Hertz

A

Speed of oscillation; 1 Hz=one oscillation per second

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
23
Q

FM synthesis

A

One oscillator (modulator) becomes the control signal for another oscillator (carrier)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
24
Q

High pass filter

A

Lets high frequencies through while blocking low frequencies

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
25
Keyboard tracking
Keyboard sends control voltage signal to oscillator measured at 1 volt per octave; as you play each adjacent key, the voltage is changed by 1/12th of a volt (12 volts per octave)
26
Loudness
Musical property for amplifiers; the soft and loud of a sound
27
Dynamics
Musical context for loudness/amplitude (piano, forte, etc.)
28
LFO
Low frequency oscillator; range of <1Hz to 20Hz; repetitive continuous waveform used for effects
29
Low pass filter
Lets low frequencies through, blocks out high frequencies
30
Modifier
Receives and processed an audio signal
31
Subtractive synthesis
Sound is created by taking a waveform rich in harmonics and using a filter to subtract unwanted harmonics
32
Arpeggiator
Uses MIDI or control voltages to cycle through a series of notes according to clock rate and note division
33
Foot controller
Sends MIDI control messages to control other instruments and gear
34
Modular synthesis
Sound is created by using separate modules for different functions
35
Modulation wheel
Moved from front to back like a pitch wheel, but applies no modulation at the bottom and increases amount of modulation as you move it up
36
Multimode filter
Filter that provides more than one response (ex. Switchable between high pass, low pass, band pass, etc.)
37
Musical intervals
The distance between two notes in semitones or whole steps
38
Notch filter
Blocks a band of frequencies and passes frequencies above and below it
39
Noise generator
Generates a random signal that includes all frequencies
40
Overtones
Frequencies above a fundamental that may or may not be integer multiples (also called partials)
41
Oscillator
Generates a repetitive electronic signal in the form of a periodic waveform
42
Pink noise
Noise signal that has equal energy per octave
43
Pitch
The high and low of a sound; musical context for oscillators
44
Pitch bend wheel
Changes pitch in small steps to imitate acoustic instruments (16,384 positions)
45
Pitch envelope
Oscillator pitch follows envelope, increasing from initial frequency; amount control affects range of pitch
46
Portamento
Notes glide smoothly from one note to the next
47
Pulse wave
Variable waveform; harmonic content is changed by adjusting pulse width of the pulse wave using the pulse width control
48
Pulse width
Width of a pulse wave; the time a pulse wave is “on”
49
Release
Amount of time it takes in ms or seconds for loudness to go from level at time of key off (when you lift the key) to silence
50
Ring modulation
Frequencies of 2 oscillators are combined to produce an audio signal that is the sum and difference of the 2 original frequencies
51
Sample and hold
Measurement of incoming voltage is sampled, held until next measurement is taken
52
Sawtooth wave
Has odd and even harmonics; bright and buzzy sound
53
Sine wave
Only has the fundamental frequency (first harmonic only)
54
Single-trigger
Envelope generators are triggered when a key is pressed, but not retriggered when other keys are pressed until the first key is released
55
Multi-trigger
Envelope generator will retrigger the attack stage with every keystroke, whether previous keys have been released or not
56
Source
The start of the audio signal path
57
Spectrum
Scientific context of timbre/spectrum; harmonics
58
Square wave
Only has odd harmonics; each harmonic is 1/n the amplitude of the fundamental
59
Triangle wave
Only has odd harmonics; each harmonic is 1/n squared the amplitude of the fundamental
60
Sustain
The level of loudness held from the end of the decay stage until key is released
61
Timbre
Tone quality of a sound; color
62
Velocity
The speed with which you strike a key
63
Control signal
Used for one module to control an aspect of another module
64
White noise
Random signal that includes all frequencies; equal energy per bandwidth

Comprehensive Exams (25 decks)

Brainscape helps you reach your goals faster, through stronger study habits.
© 2025 Bold Learning Solutions. Terms and Conditions