Uses for Recordings

Author: N.H. Crowhurst

Applications for recording: Hi-Fi system, motion picture, computer memory unit, aircraft vibration analysis, industrial process control

Recording plays an important part, not only in audio for high-fidelity purposes, but also in the many other applications for which modern audio equipment is used. It can be regarded as a storage medium in which long sequences of audio waveforms can be indefinitely preserved for reproducing at a later date.

In the case of high fidelity, this audio waveform sequence may be a complete musical performance. For computer and other industrial applications, the sequence may be any audio waveform combination representing information. It may be a record of the vibrations that occur in different parts of a supersonic missile in flight or a record of the progress of a certain industrial process that requires careful comparison of the results of the process in successive hour periods. By recording the data during a complete hour and then comparing the result with the corresponding data exactly one hour later, the process could be continually controlled. A variety of media are used for storing audio material: disc, tape, wire, and film.