|
3 | 3 | By Arden Butterfield, Josh Rohs, Travis J. West & Marcelo M. Wanderley |
4 | 4 | with contributions by Laurent Tarabout |
5 | 5 |
|
6 | | -Copyright CIRMMT/McGill University, 2026, based on IDMIL's [Digital Audio Workbench] |
7 | | -(https://idmil.github.io/DigitalAudioWorkbench/). |
| 6 | +<img src="images/example-canvas.png"> |
| 7 | + |
| 8 | +Copyright CIRMMT/McGill University, 2026, based on IDMIL's |
| 9 | +[Digital Audio Workbench](https://idmil.github.io/DigitalAudioWorkbench/). |
8 | 10 |
|
9 | 11 | Sampling, quantization, antialiasing, and delta-sigma modulation are interrelated topics with applications in digital |
10 | 12 | audio. In these workbenches, we aim to provide a playground that helps students gain intuitive understanding of these |
11 | 13 | topics, by letting students both see and hear the consequences of their choices of sampling rate, delta-sigma step, or |
12 | 14 | filter order on a variety of test signals. |
13 | 15 |
|
| 16 | +Digital Audio Workbench 2 is hosted at https://idmil.github.io/DigitalAudioWorkbench-Tutorial/. |
| 17 | + |
14 | 18 | ## Overview of Modules |
15 | 19 |
|
16 | 20 | Unlike the original Digital Audio Workbench, this version separates the process into modules, each with its own |
17 | 21 | parameters and visualizations. The signal can be thought of as cascading through the modules in order, and can be |
18 | | -listened to at multiple steps along the way. |
| 22 | +listened to at multiple steps along the way. Modules can be collapsed using the button in the upper right. |
19 | 23 |
|
20 | 24 | ### Input Module |
21 | 25 |
|
22 | 26 | Aliasing artifacts created by sampling and quantization are highly dependent on the frequency and timbre of the input |
23 | 27 | signal, so a variety of signal parameters are provided to the user. Input signals include alias-free saw waves, square |
24 | | -waves, and triangle waves, a variety of other tones generated through additive synthesis, as well as |
| 28 | +waves, and triangle waves, a variety of other tones generated through additive synthesis, as well as sample playback |
| 29 | +of real recordings. |
| 30 | + |
| 31 | +### Filter Module |
| 32 | + |
| 33 | +Two filters are currently available: a truncated sinc Finite Impulse Response (FIR) filter, and a Butterworth Infinite |
| 34 | +Impulse Response (IIR) filter. Both filters are locked to the Nyquist limit, or half of the sampling rate, as the cutoff |
| 35 | +frequency. The filter order can be changed by the user, from 0 up to 200. At higher orders, the Butterworth filter |
| 36 | +becomes unstable, likely due to an accumulation of floating point errors. |
| 37 | + |
| 38 | +### Sample Rate Module |
| 39 | + |
| 40 | +In this module, the filtered audio from the previous step is sampled at a regular sample rate, as set in Hertz by the |
| 41 | +slider. |
| 42 | + |
| 43 | +### Dither/Quantization Module |
| 44 | + |
| 45 | +When audio is converted to digital, it is often stored as a fixed-point binary number, which at low precision can add |
| 46 | +additional audible artifacts to the sound. By default, these artifacts sound as inharmonic spikes in the frequency |
| 47 | +domain, but these spikes can be smoothed out into flatter noise with the addition of noise before quantization, called |
| 48 | +dithering. |
| 49 | + |
| 50 | +### Reconstructed Module |
| 51 | + |
| 52 | +Finally, the digital audio must be played back, which requires a second filter to smooth the waveform between the |
| 53 | +samples to prevent imaging. |
| 54 | + |
| 55 | +## Further Developments |
| 56 | + |
| 57 | +Several potential further developments of the Digital Audio Workbench 2 are outlined below. |
| 58 | + |
| 59 | +- Implementation of more filter types, or implementation of a Butterworth filter without the instability at high frequencies. |
| 60 | +- Option to decouple the filter frequency from the sampling rate. |
| 61 | +- Fix visual aliasing bug at high delta-sigma sampling rates and steps. |
| 62 | +- Modernize graphic design. |
| 63 | +- Improved code organization. An attempt was made late in the process to refactor the code into module classes, but |
| 64 | +was not completed and the changes were left on the `section-refactor` branch. Depending on future directions with the |
| 65 | +project, this refactor may or may not make sense. |
| 66 | +- Add tooltips to the modules with connections to sampling theory and practice, or suggestions of things for students |
| 67 | +to try. |
| 68 | +- Screen reader accessibility testing and improvement. |
| 69 | +- Find ways to support sample rates that are not divisors of the Web Audio sample rate (96000 Hz). |
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