Amplitude Envelope

The term Amplitude Envelope can be described as the shape of the differences in amplitude, or the "bigness" of a wave, of a sound over its lifetime. Each Amplitude Envelope has a peak where the amplitude of the sound becomes increasingly easier to hear until it reaches its loudest portion, also known as the attack. Although we can not visibly see sound waves and amplitudes in real life, it is easier to picture by using an analogy. Many of us are familiar with sounds we hear in music or movies or tv shows, the attack can somewhat be analogous to a suspense buildup of sound in these media forms. When suspense becomes increasingly glaring to the viewer, the sound is often very strong or loud, much like the peak of an amplitude, which forms the attack, in the Amplitude Envelope. After all the action settles, the sound becomes less and less audible until it ultimately dies out. If the viewer of the suspense were to chart their emotional journey throughout the movie or show, it would form a line graph with peaks and valleys - very similar to what we consider the shape of the amplitude envelope over time. So what can we gain from studying an Amplitude Envelope? We can determine how the sound changes over time from being quiet to loud to quiet again and we can perceive the relation occurring throughout its lifetime.

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