Thread: Channels

Briefly, speakers are devices that recreate a sound by converting electric signals into vibrations in the air with the use of an elastic diaphragm. The vibrations are translated into sound by the human ear. The human ear is capable of distinguishing vibrations ranging from 20 Hz to 20000 Hz. (1 Hertz (Hz) denotes one vibration per second).

A sound source can be recorded with many devices, and the stream recorded by each device is called a channel. Single-channel sound is called Mono, whereas two-channel sound (one each for the left and right sides) is called Stereo. Stereo playback creates a sense of space and direction due to the differences in the playback from each channel. A playback with five or more channels (4.1) is called multichannel.