Glossaire

Aliasing (Audio)

Audio Aliasing

Distortion occurring when audio frequencies above the Nyquist limit are sampled, producing false lower frequencies.

Audio Codec

Software that encodes raw audio into a compressed format and decodes it back for playback (e.g. MP3, AAC, FLAC).

Audio Fingerprint

Acoustic Fingerprinting

A compact digital summary of an audio signal used to identify songs or detect duplicate content.

Bit Depth (Audio)

Audio Bit Depth

The number of bits in each audio sample, determining the dynamic range and noise floor (e.g. 16-bit, 24-bit).

Bitrate

Débit binaire (Taux de données)

Le nombre de bits traités ou transmis par seconde dans un flux audio ou vidéo, qui détermine directement la qualité et la taille du fichier du contenu multimédia.

Channel

Canal (Chemin du signal audio)

Un flux unique et indépendant de données audio au sein d'un enregistrement. L'audio mono a un canal, le stéréo a deux canaux (gauche et droite), et le son surround utilise plusieurs canaux pour une immersion spatiale.

Chorus Effect

Audio Chorus Effect

An effect that duplicates a signal with slight pitch and timing variations to simulate multiple voices or instruments.

Clipping

Écrêtage (Distorsion audio)

Une forme de distorsion audio qui se produit lorsqu'un signal dépasse le niveau maximum que le système peut représenter, entraînant un aplatissement des formes d'onde et des artefacts sonores désagréables.

De-esser

Audio De-esser

A specialized compressor targeting sibilant frequencies (4-10 kHz) to reduce harsh 's' and 'sh' sounds in vocals.

Dithering (Audio)

Audio Dithering

Adding low-level random noise when reducing bit depth to mask quantization distortion and preserve detail.

Dynamic Range

Audio Dynamic Range

The difference between the quietest and loudest parts of an audio signal, measured in decibels.

FLAC

Free Lossless Audio Codec

An open-source audio codec that compresses audio without any loss in quality, reducing file sizes by 50-70%.

Loudness War

The trend of increasing audio loudness in mastering at the expense of dynamic range, countered by LUFS standards.

Pitch

Audio Pitch

The perceived frequency of a sound, determining how high or low a tone sounds to the listener.

Codec

Codec (Codeur-Décodeur)

Un composant logiciel ou matériel qui compresse (encode) et décompresse (décode) des données audio ou vidéo selon des algorithmes mathématiques spécifiques, équilibrant qualité, taille de fichier et vitesse de traitement.

Sample Rate

Fréquence d'échantillonnage

Le nombre de fois par seconde qu'un signal audio analogique est mesuré (échantillonné) et converti en une valeur numérique, déterminant la plus haute fréquence pouvant être capturée fidèlement.

Waveform

Forme d'onde (Représentation visuelle audio)

Un graphe visuel montrant comment l'amplitude d'un signal audio varie dans le temps, affichant la forme de l'onde sonore depuis le silence jusqu'aux pics de volume.

Equalization

Égalisation (Réglage de la balance fréquentielle)

Le processus d'amplification ou d'atténuation sélective de plages de fréquences spécifiques dans un signal audio pour façonner son caractère tonal et sa clarté.

Fade

Fondu (Transition de volume audio)

Une augmentation progressive (fondu en ouverture) ou une diminution progressive (fondu de fermeture) du volume audio sur une durée spécifiée, créant des transitions douces entre le silence et le son.

Noise Reduction

Réduction de bruit (Nettoyage audio)

Le processus de suppression ou de réduction des sons de fond indésirables (souffle, bourdonnement, ronflette, bruit de fond) d'un enregistrement audio tout en préservant le signal désiré.

Compression (Audio)

Dynamic Range Compression

Reducing the volume difference between the loudest and quietest parts of an audio signal.

Mono

Monaural Audio

Audio reproduced through a single channel, where all sound comes from one source.

PCM

Pulse-Code Modulation

The standard method of digitally representing analog audio signals by sampling amplitude at regular intervals.

Spectrogram

Audio Spectrogram

A visual representation of audio frequencies over time, showing the spectrum of a signal.

Tempo

Audio Tempo

The speed or pace of an audio track, measured in beats per minute (BPM).

Reverb

Reverberation

The persistence of sound in a space after the original sound stops, simulated digitally for spatial effects.

Limiter

Audio Limiter

A compressor with a very high ratio that prevents audio from exceeding a set maximum level.

Delay

Audio Delay Effect

An effect that records and plays back audio after a set time interval, creating echo and rhythmic repetitions.

LUFS

Loudness Units Full Scale

A standardized loudness measurement reflecting perceived volume, used for broadcast and streaming normalization targets.

Noise Gate

Audio Noise Gate

A processor that silences audio below a threshold level, eliminating background noise between sounds.

Sidechain

Sidechain Processing

Using one audio signal to control the processing of another, commonly used to duck music under voiceover.

Peak Level

Audio Peak Level

The highest instantaneous amplitude in an audio signal, used to prevent clipping and set headroom.

RMS Level

Root Mean Square Level

An average audio level measurement that better represents perceived loudness than peak level readings.

Stereo Imaging

Techniques for widening, narrowing, or repositioning the perceived stereo field of an audio mix.

Frequency Spectrum

Audio Frequency Spectrum

The range of frequencies present in an audio signal, typically from 20 Hz (bass) to 20 kHz (treble) for human hearing.

Harmonic Distortion

Total Harmonic Distortion

The presence of frequencies that are integer multiples of the fundamental, sometimes added intentionally for warmth.

Nyquist Frequency

Half the sample rate, representing the highest frequency that can be accurately captured in digital audio.

Audio Watermark

Audio Watermarking

Embedding imperceptible identifying data into an audio signal for copyright tracking and content identification.

Crossfade

Audio Crossfade

A smooth transition between two audio clips where one fades out while the other fades in simultaneously.

Psychoacoustics

The study of how humans perceive sound, informing audio compression, spatial audio, and loudness standards.

Spatial Audio

3D sound technology that positions audio sources in virtual space around the listener using HRTF and head tracking.

Normalization

Normalisation (Ajustement du niveau audio)

Le processus d'ajustement du volume global d'un enregistrement audio de sorte que son point le plus fort atteigne un niveau cible spécifié, garantissant un volume cohérent entre différentes pistes ou fichiers.

Mid-Side Processing

Mid-Side Audio Processing

A technique separating stereo audio into center (mid) and sides signals for independent processing.

Stereo

Stereophonic Audio

Audio using two independent channels (left and right) to create a sense of spatial width.