Sound Design Basics, Four Main Types of Synthesis
Short video to run through sound, how synthesisers make sound, the 4 main types of synthesis and hopefully demystify sound design and synthesis :)
Some Terms
Oscillator
Frequency (Hz) and pitch (notes) – A=440Hz
Amplitude – volume
Fundamental – part of a sound that gives it the pitch
Harmonics – multiplications of the fundamental x2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 etc, in mathematical harmony to the fundamental
Overtones – any sound above the fundamental, harmonics are overtones
Timbre – quality of a sound, given by its overtones
What’s in a Sound?
Sound is made up of vibration. The number of times per second something vibrates translates through our ears to our brain as pitch.
The most basic sound is a sine wave.
All sound is a combination of sine waves, in ever increasing complexity.
We perceive the pitch of a sound by its fundamental. This is often the lowest frequency part of the sound, but it is the highest in amplitude.
Synthesis
There are 4 main types of synthesis:
Wavetable
Subtractive
FM
Additive
There are a lot of other types of synthesis. The easiest way to understand sound design though is to break it down into its simplest form.
We synthesise a sound by adding things and taking things away. We use an envelope to shape the sound (ADSR).
Sound Waves
Sine, triangle, saw, square.
All of these sound types (apart from the basic sine) are a result of adding sine waves together. They get the name because of the shape they show when put through an oscilloscope.