MUS1331 Final Exam Questions

What makes a computer a computer?
What is a transistor, what did it replace, and why is it the most important invention of the 20th Century?
How many cycles (steps of instructions) per second can a quad core 2.4 GHz processor perform?
Define memory (RAM), explain its function, and discuss how it differs from storage.
When working in an application, when do you save your work?

Describe the difference between “open” and “proprietary” file formats and how that plays into “digital obsolescence”.

In what type of format is everything encoded to transfer data between connections of the internet? How does the information physically travel down a copper wire (Ethernet)? How do bits physically travel down a “glass wire”(fiber optic

Provide a drawing that illustrates a time-domain waveform representation of a sound wave (label the following on your drawing: compression, rarefaction, zero crossing, amplitude, and wavelength).
What unit is used to indicate a ratio of the following?:
- what humans perceive as silence to how loud a sound seems to be to a human
Provide a range of examples of things/environments that create different loudness levels (from nearly silent all the way to the threshold of pain for humans) … use the unit from the previous question.
What is the frequency range of human hearing?
Define complex tone (or complex wave form) by comparing it to a sine wave.
How is a spectrogram (frequency domain) different than a waveform (time domain)? (use the word timbre and at least one of the following words in your answer = harmonics, overtones, and/or partials)

Oscillator = What is an oscillator? List a few basic waveforms created by different oscillators.
Amplitude = Explain what amplitude is.
Envelop = Explain what an amplitude envelop is (using the term ADSR).
Filter = List some examples of audio filters.
Modulation = Define modulation and give an example of how an LFO can be used in modulation (hint = tremolo and vibrato).

What is proper gain staging (or proper gain structure) for live sound? (talk about the steps you would take to find the proper level for each part of the system — from mic to speaker)
What is feedback and what are some ways to avoid/lesson it?

Why are MusicXML files so useful?
What type of graphic file do you export from notation software for use in word processor (such as Microsoft Word) or a graphics application (such as Adobe Illustrator) so that it prints crisply and sharply no matter how large the image is made?

Define sample rate (define what a 'sample' is in your answer).
Define bit depth.
Write the following out with blanks filled in:
- An analog signal is a _________ signal; analog signal values are known for _________________.
- A digital signal is a ________ signal; digital signals are only known at ___________________.
What is the difference between lossy and lossless audio files (provide an example for each file type).
Discuss the difference between a MIDI file and a WAV file. What type of information is stored in each file?

How do the acoustics and noise present in the recording space effect mic placement when recording? (For instance: Where would you place the mic if you didn’t like the space and didn’t want the characteristics of the space to be apparent in the recording?)
Explain proper gain structure (or staging) in the recording process. What two levels are you looking for on the level meter when you are recording?

Explain proper gain staging in the mixing processes. What plugin should you add to every track in the very beginning of the mixing process [in order to keep *all* faders initially at 0db … or -6dB if you choose that technique]?
How does normalization work?
How does a compressor work? (be sure to include the terms “threshold” and “compression ratio”).

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