INTRODUCTION
Digital media is taking over, literally. It already took over the music industry, and on February 17, 2009 it will conquer broadcast television by congressional mandate. Many digital media consumers are bewildered by an abundance of confusing terms and trapped by digital media’s overwhelming market share. This paper will attempt to shed some light on the inner workings of this enigma by explaining why audio compression is used, and comparing the most common digital audio codecs used in online music sales.
AUDIO COMPRESSION BASICS
Programs that compress are called encoders, and programs that decompress are referred to as decoders. The acronym codec stands for compression and decompression. Almost all audio
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However, scientific studies must be more rigorous.
The ABX Test
An ABX test is a double-blind test (both the proctor and the examinee do not know which sample is which) used to determine whether the difference between two samples is discernable. Steven Hill and Rod Elliot provide a fairly concise summary:
“An ABX test allows the listener to select either A or B as many times as they like, and ultimately decide which of these is X, where X is randomly selected by the equipment to be either A or B, and the responses are logged for correlation when the test is complete.”
To clarify the quote above, imagine 3 glasses: one has bottled water (A), one has tap water (B), and a third unlabeled one that is either bottled or tap water (X); Your job is to try all three as many times as necessary to determine whether X is A or B. Repeat this with a large, random sample and you have a decent ABX test.
Digital Audio Jargon
Common terms used to describe audio files are:
• Bit rate or Bitrate: the number of bits used to represent the sample per second (there are 8 bits in a byte).
• Sampling rate: indicates the number of times per second original audio data was collected (sampled). Common sampling rates are 44,100 samples per second (Hz) for CD audio, 48,000 Hz for DVD movies and 96,000 to 192,000 Hz for DVD audio (DVDA).
• Digital Rights Management (DRM): Is a method
For every subtest (except for part A of Subtest 6) each response is given a score of 3 when the response is correct, 2 when the response is partially correct, self-corrected, or correct but accompanied by irrelevant or tangential information, 1 when the response is an error, perseverated, or confabulated, or 0 when the response is denied or unintelligible, or no response is elicited. These scores are in conjunction with the diacritical notations so as to better describe the examinees performance.
| Validity of experiments are normally high as the variables are controlled except for the variable being tested.
All audio is recorded is analogue and needs to be converted to digital. In order to do this a technique known as sampling is used. Here is a picture of how sampling works. The red line is the original analogue audio. The gray blocks are each sample of the audio. The more samples there are the higher quality or more true to the original it will be.
The ages of this high school students were between fifteen and sixteen. The high school students were being tested to that researchers could evaluate the ability of the BAM and the BESS. The Bess or the Balance Error Scoring System is most commonly known as the low-technology balance assessment. There are three standing positions in which are performed with the patients eyes close. The three standing positions are the double stance, Single leg and the tandem. These three position are performed on two different surfaces. One is the normal hard ground and the second is done on a foam pad. Then they are tested on how many mistakes were made during. The BAM or also known as the Balance Accelerometer Measure is an intermediate technology that measures a person’s balance with a belt that is can be worn outside the
Analysis involves assessing a print to determine if it can be used for a comparison. If the print is not
(ii) Test the hypothesis that the coefficient on bdrms is equal to O. Use a two-sided alternative and a 10% level of significance. (2 marks)
and ultimately to be able to identify an unknown substance based on our studies and tests using the
similar test settings available in the literature [Daniels et al., 1995,Bano et al., 2009,Capozzoli et al., 2012].
1Split Testing: Experiments with two variables, one controlled and one varied; also known as A/B testing.
In 2000 the digital music was the next big thing in how consumers listen to music. The technological shift in music changed how the relationship is between the artists, recording companies, promoters and music stores on how they operate today. In the late 90’s and early 2000’s Peer-to-peer (P2P) networks allowed free exchange of music files with companies like Napster and Kazaa was a big step that allowed consumers to store large libraries of music. With the cost of hard drive space going down; it allowed for pocket-sized computers to store more information in a smaller space that open the door for apple to step in with the unveiling of the iPod and iTunes. These systems made it possible for storage and playback that gave consumers the
No one can deny that technology is actively changing the music industry. Production, distribution and sales of music have been affected dramatically within the last 10 years along with artists, composers, and technicians. Most of the changes have been great for consumers, but vastly negative for professionals in the music industry, however a few artists have found ways to adapt to the changing atmosphere of digitally downloaded music and use it to their advantage. We’ve seen music change form from physical, tangible products like records and CD’s to electronic single tracks stored in an invisible cloud. Two major factors in this sudden revolution are online music stores (specifically iTunes) and file sharing websites that allow music to be downloaded illegally.
Introduction: Setting the trend for the future, the distribution and consumption of recorded music transformed dramatically with the launching of Apple’s iTunes in 2001. The proliferation of online music subscription services and other music sharing services exerted a great pressure on the conventional music distribution business model. Combined with this transformation, piracy of digital music had a profound impact on the whole industry. These worsening conditions in the market place for recorded music forced both established and upcoming new artists to experiment with new ways of selling their music.
When speaking economically, the digital music sector of the international music industry is undoubtably the most important sector in the industry. Within the last decade, music has seen cardinal changes in the way both major and independent labels distribute their products. An industry that once relied on Payola 's and mass distribution of physical records and CD 's now relies heavily on the power of the internet. The first instance of mass distribution of music through the internet was by the service Ritmoteca.com in 1998 [1]. Ritmoteca had a library of over 300,000 songs, offering individual songs for 99 cents each and albums for $9.99. After signing distribution deals with many major music labels such as Warner
In the midst of the United States’ “dot com bubble” (years 1997-2000), there was a surge in technology that brought about file sharing and digital downloads. Threatening the survival of the music industry and introducing a unique set of challenges for the industry to overcome. To remain relevant in the new global market of digital music online, the music industry would have to evolve and change with the introduction of each new facet technology had to offer. The introduction of digitally compressed music files, so easily attainable for a small fee or downloaded legally (pirated) for free, made the music industry reevaluate how to make a profit and protect copyrights. Social media created a visible opportunity for both consumers and artists to maintain digital relationships while providing a platform for consumers to follow and discover new musicians and bands, naturally, making the internet a promotional medium for artists. As the corner record shops closed to make way for virtual storefronts and instant downloads; the internet, digital downloading, and social media made an enormous impact on the music industry that has changed the way consumers purchase, source, listen to, and produce music today.
ways, often depending on the style of music that they are producing, their preferred method of