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THD Analyzer
A total harmonic distortion analyzer calculates the total harmonic content of a sinewave with some distortion, expressed as total harmonic distortion (THD). A typical application is to determine the THD of an amplifier by using a very-low-distortion sinewave input and examining the output. The figure measured will include noise, and any contribution from imperfect filtering out of the fundamental frequency. Harmonic-by-harmonic measurement, without wideband noise, can be measured by a more complex wave analyser. Another application is measurement of the effectiveness of an electronic filter with extremely narrow passband, such as a notch filter in a parametric equalizer. Types of THD meter There are several types of distortion analyzers: # Fundamental suppression # Heterodyne type # Tuned circuit # Spectrum analyzer Fundamental suppression analyzer This type of THD analyzer filters out the fundamental frequency of a signal with a notch filter, leaving only distortion products pl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Harmonic
A harmonic is a wave with a frequency that is a positive integer multiple of the ''fundamental frequency'', the frequency of the original periodic signal, such as a sinusoidal wave. The original signal is also called the ''1st harmonic'', the other harmonics are known as ''higher harmonics''. As all harmonics are periodic at the fundamental frequency, the sum of harmonics is also periodic at that frequency. The set of harmonics forms a '' harmonic series''. The term is employed in various disciplines, including music, physics, acoustics, electronic power transmission, radio technology, and other fields. For example, if the fundamental frequency is 50 Hz, a common AC power supply frequency, the frequencies of the first three higher harmonics are 100 Hz (2nd harmonic), 150 Hz (3rd harmonic), 200 Hz (4th harmonic) and any addition of waves with these frequencies is periodic at 50 Hz. In music, harmonics are used on string instruments and wind instrum ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Meter
The metre (British spelling) or meter (American spelling; see spelling differences) (from the French unit , from the Greek noun , "measure"), symbol m, is the primary unit of length in the International System of Units (SI), though its prefixed forms are also used relatively frequently. The metre was originally defined in 1793 as one ten-millionth of the distance from the equator to the North Pole along a great circle, so the Earth's circumference is approximately km. In 1799, the metre was redefined in terms of a prototype metre bar (the actual bar used was changed in 1889). In 1960, the metre was redefined in terms of a certain number of wavelengths of a certain emission line of krypton-86. The current definition was adopted in 1983 and modified slightly in 2002 to clarify that the metre is a measure of proper length. From 1983 until 2019, the metre was formally defined as the length of the path travelled by light in a vacuum in of a second. After the 2019 redefiniti ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alignment Level
The alignment level in an audio signal chain or on an audio recording is a defined anchor point that represents a reasonable or typical level. It does not represent a particular sound level or signal level or digital representation, but it can be defined as corresponding to particular levels in each of these domains. Example For example, alignment level is commonly 0 dBu (Equal to 0.775 Volts RMS) in broadcast chains and in professional audio what is commonly known as ''0 VU'', which is +4 dBu (equal to 1.227 Volts RMS) in places where the signal exists as analogue voltage. Under normal situations, the "0VU" reference allowed for a headroom of 18 dB or more above the reference level without significant distortion. This is largely due to the use of slow responding VU meters in almost all analogue professional audio equipment which, by their design, and by specification responded to an average level, not peak levels. It most commonly is at −18 dB FS (18& ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Loudspeaker Measurement
Loudspeaker measurement is the practice of determining the behaviour of loudspeakers by measuring various aspects of performance. This measurement is especially important because loudspeakers, being transducers, have a higher level of distortion than other audio system components used in playback or sound reinforcement. Anechoic measurement One way to test a loudspeaker requires an anechoic chamber, with an acoustically transparent floor-grid. The measuring microphone is normally mounted on an unobtrusive boom (to avoid reflections) and positioned 1 metre in front of the drive units on the axis with the high-frequency driver. While this can produce repeatable results, such a 'free-space' measurement is not representative of performance in a room, especially a small room. For valid results at low frequencies, a very large anechoic chamber is needed, with large absorbent wedges on all sides. Most anechoic chambers are not designed for accurate measurement down to 20 Hz a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
ITU-R 468 Noise Weighting
ITU-R 468 (originally defined in CCIR recommendation 468-4, therefore formerly also known as CCIR weighting; sometimes referred to as CCIR-1k) is a standard relating to noise measurement, widely used when measuring noise in audio systems. The standard, now referred to as ITU-R BS.468-4, defines a weighting filter curve, together with a quasi-peak rectifier having special characteristics as defined by specified tone-burst tests. It is currently maintained by the International Telecommunication Union who took it over from the CCIR. It is used especially in the UK, Europe, and former countries of the British Empire such as Australia and South Africa. It is less well known in the USA where A-weighting has always been used. M-weighting is a closely related filter, an offset version of the same curve, without the quasi-peak detector. Explanation The A-weighting curve was based on the 40 phon equal-loudness contour derived initially by Fletcher and Munson (1933). Originally inco ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Audio Quality Measurement
Audio system measurements are a means of quantifying system performance. These measurements are made for several purposes. Designers take measurements so that they can specify the performance of a piece of equipment. Maintenance engineers make them to ensure equipment is still working to specification, or to ensure that the cumulative defects of an audio path are within limits considered acceptable. Audio system measurements often accommodate psychoacoustic principles to measure the system in a way that relates to human hearing. Subjectivity and frequency weighting Subjectively valid methods came to prominence in consumer audio in the UK and Europe in the 1970s, when the introduction of compact cassette tape, dbx and Dolby noise reduction techniques revealed the unsatisfactory nature of many basic engineering measurements. The specification of weighted CCIR-468 quasi-peak noise, and weighted quasi-peak wow and flutter became particularly widely used and attempts were made ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Distortion
In signal processing, distortion is the alteration of the original shape (or other characteristic) of a signal. In communications and electronics it means the alteration of the waveform of an information-bearing signal, such as an audio signal representing sound or a video signal representing images, in an electronic device or communication channel. Distortion is usually unwanted, and so engineers strive to eliminate or minimize it. In some situations, however, distortion may be desirable. For example, in noise reduction systems like the Dolby system, an audio signal is deliberately distorted in ways that emphasize aspects of the signal that are subject to electrical noise, then it is symmetrically "undistorted" after passing through a noisy communication channel, reducing the noise in the received signal. Distortion is also used as a musical effect, particularly with electric guitars. The addition of noise or other outside signals (hum, interference) is not considered di ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Instrumentation Amplifier
An instrumentation amplifier (sometimes shorthanded as in-amp or InAmp) is a type of differential amplifier that has been outfitted with input buffer amplifiers, which eliminate the need for input impedance matching and thus make the amplifier particularly suitable for use in measurement and test equipment. Additional characteristics include very low DC offset, low drift, low noise, very high open-loop gain, very high common-mode rejection ratio, and very high input impedances. Instrumentation amplifiers are used where great accuracy and stability of the circuit both short- and long-term are required. Although the instrumentation amplifier is usually shown schematically identical to a standard operational amplifier (op-amp), the electronic instrumentation amplifier is almost always internally composed of 3 op-amps. These are arranged so that there is one op-amp to buffer each input (+, −), and one to produce the desired output with adequate impedance matching for the f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wien Bridge
The Wien bridge is a type of bridge circuit that was developed by Max Wien in 1891. The bridge consists of four resistors and two capacitors. At the time of the Wien bridge's invention, bridge circuits were a common way of measuring component values by comparing them to known values. Often an unknown component would be put in one arm of a bridge, and then the bridge would be nulled by adjusting the other arms or changing the frequency of the voltage source. See, for example, the Wheatstone bridge. The Wien bridge is one of many common bridges. Wien's bridge is used for precision measurement of capacitance in terms of resistance and frequency. It was also used to measure audio frequencies. The Wien bridge does not require equal values of ''R'' or ''C''. At some frequency, the reactance of the series ''R''2–''C''2 arm will be an exact multiple of the shunt ''R''''x''–''C''''x'' arm. If the two ''R''3 and ''R''4 arms are adjusted to the same ratio, then the bridge is ba ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pre-amplifier
A preamplifier, also known as a preamp, is an electronic amplifier that converts a weak electrical signal into an output signal strong enough to be noise-tolerant and strong enough for further processing, or for sending to a power amplifier and a loudspeaker. Without this, the final signal would be noisy or distorted. They are typically used to amplify signals from analog sensors such as microphones and pickups. Because of this, the preamplifier is often placed close to the sensor to reduce the effects of noise and interference. Description An ideal preamp will be linear (have a constant gain through its operating range), have high input impedance (requiring only a minimal amount of current to sense the input signal) and a low output impedance (when current is drawn from the output there is minimal change in the output voltage). It is used to boost the signal strength to drive the cable to the main instrument without significantly degrading the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). Th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Attenuator (electronics)
An attenuator is an electronic device that reduces the power of a signal without appreciably distorting its waveform. An attenuator is effectively the opposite of an amplifier, though the two work by different methods. While an amplifier provides gain, an attenuator provides loss, or gain less than 1. Construction and usage Attenuators are usually passive devices made from simple voltage divider networks. Switching between different resistances forms adjustable stepped attenuators and continuously adjustable ones using potentiometers. For higher frequencies precisely matched low VSWR resistance networks are used. Fixed attenuators in circuits are used to lower voltage, dissipate power, and to improve impedance matching. In measuring signals, attenuator pads or adapters are used to lower the amplitude of the signal a known amount to enable measurements, or to protect the measuring device from signal levels that might damage it. Attenuators are also used to 'match' impedance b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Negative Feedback
Negative feedback (or balancing feedback) occurs when some function (Mathematics), function of the output of a system, process, or mechanism is feedback, fed back in a manner that tends to reduce the fluctuations in the output, whether caused by changes in the input or by other disturbances. Whereas positive feedback tends to lead to instability via exponential growth, oscillation or chaos theory, chaotic behavior, negative feedback generally promotes stability. Negative feedback tends to promote a settling to List of types of equilibrium, equilibrium, and reduces the effects of perturbations. Negative feedback loops in which just the right amount of correction is applied with optimum timing can be very stable, accurate, and responsive. Negative feedback is widely used in mechanical and electronic engineering, and also within living organisms, and can be seen in many other fields from chemistry and economics to physical systems such as the climate. General negative feedback ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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