Yamaha's alternative to Roland's GS system for enhancing the General MIDI protocol so as to provide additional banks of patches and further editing facilities.

The acronym stands for 'Serial Advanced Technology Attachment' and is a computer interface employed for connecting standard ATA hard drives to a computer motherboard. The SATA interface supersedes the PATA (parallel ATA) interface which has been used since the 1980s. A variant of the SATA interface, called eSATA (with the 'e' standing for 'external'), permits the connection of external hard drives. It uses a slightly different connector but is otherwise a very similar interface.

An electronic circuit capable of generating a control signal which represents the envelope of the sound you want to recreate. This may then be used to control the amplitude of an oscillator or other sound source, though envelopes may also be used to control filter or modulation settings. The most common example is the ADSR generator.

The way in which the amplitude of a sound signal varies over time.

An audio processor designed to brighten audio material using techniques such as dynamic equalisation, phase shifting and harmonic generation.

A system that modifies a signal prior to recording or transmission, and subsequently restores the signal on playback or reception.

see Back Electret.

An additional dedicated mixer input channel, usually with minimal facilities, designed to accommodate the output from an external effects unit. (cf. Aux Return)

An interface system, usually involving separate send and receive connections, which allows an external signal processor to be connected into the audio chain. (cf. Insert Point)

A treatment applied to an audio signal in order to change or enhance it in some creative way. Effects often involve the use of delays, and include such treatments as reverb and echo.