Entry Guide

Are you interested in audio but not sure where to start? Then you've come to the right place. Whether it's music production, sound design or simply a better understanding of sound – in this guide, we'll give you a concise and easy-to-understand introduction to the world of audio that you can build upon.

What is Audio?

Audio is essentially nothing other than "audible sound." As soon as we perceive something with our ears—be it music, speech or a noise—we speak of audio. Technically speaking, audio is the electrical or digital representation of sound. Everything we see in a DAW, record with a microphone or hear through headphones is based on these signals. It's always about sound and how we create, process and reproduce it.

How does Sound work?

Sound is vibration. When something vibrates, it sets the surrounding air in motion. This movement—the sound wave—reaches our ears and is perceived as a tone.

Now, what is a sound wave?

A sound wave is nothing more than the movement of air molecules triggered by a vibration. For example, when you strike a guitar string, it begins to vibrate. This vibration causes the surrounding air to pulsate, causing waveforms to spread out and reach your ear.

Frequency – how high or low a tone sounds

Now it gets technical: Frequency indicates how often a sound wave oscillates per second. The higher the frequency, the higher the pitch. The lower the frequency, the lower the pitch. The whole thing is measured in Hertz (Hz). A bass drum beat has a deep sound and is often around 50 Hz while a high-pitched female voice usually ranges between 600 and 4000 Hz.

Amplitude – how loud or quiet a sound is

Amplitude describes the "amplitude" of the sound wave. The greater the amplitude, the louder we perceive the sound. This is important to understand why volume is not the same as level—but more on that in a moment.

From air to audio

Understanding our hearing is crucial, because our ears are truly marvels. And when we work with audio they are our most important tool.

The ear as a microphone

The human ear is roughly composed of three parts: the outer ear (receiving sound), the middle ear (conducting sound) and the inner ear (converting it into nerve impulses). All of this happens extremely quickly, within a few milliseconds. Our brain assembles these impulses which we perceive as "sound."

Why do we hear some sounds better than others?

Our hearing is non-linear and quite complex. We are particularly sensitive to frequencies between 2 and 5 kHz – this is where speech intelligibility for example lies. The so-called Fletcher–Munson curves show that we perceive deep bass and very high treble sounds more quietly when the overall volume is low, which is why quiet music can sometimes seem unbalanced.

What does “listener fatigue” or “listening habit” mean?

After extended sessions, our hearing can become fatigued. Sounds then sound muffled and volumes are misjudged. This is called listener fatigue and can develop if you work overtime and don’t take breaks.

At the same time, we quickly become accustomed to poor soundscapes and listening situations which is referred to as listening habits. Our hearing therefore has something like a memory and this is especially important when learning mixing or mastering.

Why you should train and protect your hearing as an audio engineer

A trained ear is worth its weight in gold. But at the same time, it's also very vulnerable. Constant exposure to noise can lead to permanent tinnitus or even complete hearing loss. Therefore, wear hearing protection at loud concerts and take breaks during long studio sessions.

What is loud, what is quiet?

Understanding volume is.. not that easy – Loud is not always loud because there are actually different ways of measuring and perceiving volume.

What is a decibel (dB)?

A decibel (dB) is a logarithmic unit that indicates how strong a signal is compared to a reference value. For example a conversation is around 60 dB SPL while a construction site is around 100 dB SPL. In-ear headphones can easily reach 110 dB, which is definitely damaging to hearing over time.

Difference: Loudness vs. Level

The so-called level measures the objective strength of a signal (e.g., in dBFS or VU). Loudness on the other hand describes how loud we perceive something. Therefore, two songs with the same peak level can feel very different and differ significantly. Loudness also depends on the frequency spectrum and the song's dynamics.

What units of measurement for volume are used in the recording studio?

The most commonly used units for volume in the studio are:

  • dBFS (Decibel Full Scale): for digital levels
  • VU (Volume Units): for analog level display
  • LUFS (Loudness Units Full Scale): for perceived loudness, important for mastering
  • RMS (Root Mean Square): average level, e.g., relevant for mixing

Mono or stereo – what's the difference?

If you listen to music with headphones a lot, you may have noticed that sometimes a sound only comes from the center or only from the left or right. Simply put, this is the key difference between mono and stereo: whether the sound is perceived from only one direction (mono) or spatially distributed from multiple directions (stereo).

Mono: Everything from one direction

  • Mono means one channel, one signal. Everything is reproduced equally through both speakers. This can be useful for speech, podcasts or club sounds.

Stereo: Space, depth and width, phantom center

  • Stereo uses two channels—left and right. This creates a sense of space, making sounds appear wider, deeper and more realistic. Particularly interesting is the so-called phantom center: When a signal is equally loud on both channels, it appears to be coming from the center even though there's no speaker there.

Why this is important when making music and mixing movies

In music production, stereo helps to place instruments in the mix and in film, it is crucial for spatiality and sound effects: a car driving from left to right only seems truly believable in a stereo or surround mix.

Home Studio: What you really need


..and what you don't need. Beginners definitely don't need a high-end studio but a few of these basics are required.

Must-Haves:

Optional:

Not absolutely necessary to start:

Start small. You can always upgrade later.

Careers & Jobs

The audio industry is diverse and offers something for almost everyone to work.

Music Production: Beats, Recording, Mixing

  • Here you work in the studio, producing songs, recording vocals or mixing tracks for artists.

Postproduction: Film, Advertising, Voiceover, Dubbing

  • Sound for moving images: You edit dialogues, sound effects or atmosphere for film and TV.

Sound design & games: creative and technical

  • Here, soundscapes for games, installations and product design are created. Technical understanding and creativity go hand in hand.

Live Sound & DJing: Among People

  • If you don't want to sit in the studio then live performance is your thing: FOH mixing, monitoring or DJing will get you to events and stages.

Recommendations for a good Start

At audio.tips, we know how overwhelming getting started can be, so we encourage you to stay curious and use our content to learn.

Read our other guides on audio engineering or learn directly with our tutorials. Step by step, interactive and at your own pace.

Coachings & Courses

Mastering your craft starts with the right education. Explore leading institutions offering professional training in music production and audio engineering. Browse our list of recommended courses and mentoring programs to find the perfect environment for your skill development.

Read more

Select Level ➭