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 2 responses by dweller

@maynovent - 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? 

The ideal Freq. range for a midrange is 200-2000HZ (range covered by the human, singing, voice). How can a physical object vibrate at both 200HZ and 2000Hz? I know it's true, I just don't know how. And that's O.K....