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Question about how analog audio recording works

Hello!

My wife and I are high and having a discussion about how sound is recorded on records. I have an, I think, more than average understand of how sound and recording/playback works so I was trying to explain how grooves on the record represent sound waves.

What we don't understand is how polyphony is physically represented. So I can see how a single sine can easily be represented on a record. But when you're talking several sounds at once, some on the same pitch some now, dozens of timbres happening all at once, how do we differentiate those sounds on a physical medium like vinyl, or how do we represent it digitally? Is it literally nothing more than 1s and 0s? That'd be sick

Anyway, I hope this makes sense. Thanks!

maynovent

Showing 1 response by atmasphere

atmasphere's avatar
atmasphere
11,588 posts
 

I've wondered this same thing about speakers. How does a single driver replicate sounds of different freq. at the same time without stepping on itself and smearing one or the other? 

@dweller Full range drivers are not an example. They fall all over themselves all the time due to breakups and something called the Doppler Effect. Finally, 'full range' drivers don't exist. All of them will need a subwoofer and a tweeter (to fix beamy-ness); in essence 'wide range midrange driver' is a far more accurate description.

 

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