Walk the Walk: Audio and Video Terms

From AAD to Voice Coils (we don't have any "Z" terms yet), this glossary will break-down the alphabet soup and "audiophile-speak." Credit for some terms: TheWhippinpost, Aaron Miller, Audio Concepts

Ambience
The acoustic characteristics of a space with regard to reverberation. A room with a lot of reverb is referred to as being live; whereas a room with little o...
Sun, 12 Oct, 2014 at 12:50 PM
Ampere (a)
The unit of measurement for electrical current in coulombs per second. There is one ampere in a circuit that has one ohm resistance when one volt is applied...
Sun, 12 Oct, 2014 at 12:52 PM
Amplifier
A device which increases signal level (increases it's amplitude). Amplifiers typically increase voltage, current or both.
Sun, 12 Oct, 2014 at 12:52 PM
Amplifier Classes
Audio power amplifiers are classified primarily by the design of the output stage. Classification is based on the amount of time the output devices operate ...
Sun, 12 Oct, 2014 at 12:55 PM
Amplifier, Power
An amplifier without tone controls, usually with a higher power output than a line amplifier or pre-amp. Commonly used to drive loudspeakers.
Sun, 12 Oct, 2014 at 12:56 PM
Amplitude (amp)
The level (perceived as audible volume) of an electrical or acoustic signal. Shown as the value of the vertical axis on a typical graph of a sound wave.
Sun, 12 Oct, 2014 at 1:00 PM
Analog
An electrical signal analogous to the original sounds in non-digital form. For example, LPs and cassette tapes store audio in an analog form. Any quantity w...
Sun, 12 Oct, 2014 at 1:02 PM
Anamorphic
Process that horizontally condenses (squeezes) a 16:9 image into a 4:3 space, preserving 25 percent more vertical resolution than letterboxing into the 4:3 ...
Sun, 12 Oct, 2014 at 1:03 PM
Aperiodic
Refers to a type of bass-cabinet loading. An aperiodic enclosure type usually features a very restrictive, (damped), port. The purpose of this restrictive p...
Sun, 12 Oct, 2014 at 1:03 PM
Aperture Grille
In a color picture tube (Cathode Ray Tube, CRT), a shadow mask consisting of a metal sheet with thin vertical openings instead of circular holes.
Sun, 12 Oct, 2014 at 1:04 PM