DAFX
by Udo Zölzer · first published 2011
100% recommend
Why HN recommends it
Covers fundamental audio DSP building blocks in a reference-style format pairing text with MATLAB code; recommended for readers who want to implement audio effects like envelope followers and VAD-style processing.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
"This book investigates digital signal processing, its application to sound, and how its effects on sound can be used within music. The first edition developed in association with the annual International Conference on Digital Audio Effects, and this book have been critical in the advancement of the field, both in research and industry. Rapid development in different fields of Digital Audio Effects has led to new algorithms, and this new edition will combine these with improved presentation of the basic concepts and discussion of the related technology. It will cover filters and delays, mod
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…application. A lot of Voice Activity Detection (VAD) works this way; it's just a matter of tuning the coefficients and thresholds for your input. Also useful reference for envelope following are the DAFX text [2], Will Pirkle's textbook on audio in C++ [3] and Zölzer's text [4] [1] https://github.com/m-hilgendorf/rusty-compressor [2] https://www.amazon.com/DAFX-Digital-Effects-Udo-Z%C3%B6lzer/... [3]…
on “Audio Processing for Dummies” ↗…https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=20491766 —— Last note! Another synth maker personally recommended the same DSP book as noted in the comment above (on Modwiggler), so it’s probably worth checking out! Udo Zolzer's "DAFX"
on “Ask HN: How to get started with audio programming?” ↗…you could go with pretty much any of the other resources the others have mentioned here. My personal faves are the Steven Smith DSP book, Julius Smith's resources (with its runnable MATLAB scripts), and DAFX book by Udo Zolzer.
on “Ask HN: How to get started with audio programming?” ↗DAFX by Zölzer covers all the fundamental audio DSP building blocks. The book is eponymous with the annual international audio DSP conference.
on “Ask HN: What are the best textbooks in your field of expertise?” ↗…good reference. A con is the examples are in matlab, but it's clear enough between the text and matlab code to write your own implementation. Also [2] is a decent book for overall dsp concepts. [1] DAFX - Digital Audio Effects (Second Edition) Edited by Udo Zölzer https://dafx.de/DAFX_Book_Page_2nd_edition/index.html [2] Understanding Digital Signal Processing, Richard Lyons
on “Ask HN: Where are the good resources for learning audio processing?” ↗