Polarity

Overview

The term "Polarity" as applied to audio is used to describe the relationship of the electrical audio waveform to the original acoustic waveform. The audio waveform is considered to have "correct polarity" if the positive voltage section of the waveform corresponds to the positive air pressure section of the acoustic waveform. It is possible for the polarity of the waveform to be "inverted" by audio circuitry or connections. The audibility of polarity inversion can vary greatly with program material and the listening environment.

History

In the early days of audio, it was widely held that signal polarity was "not important" because inverting the polarity had no obvious audible effect. As audio technology progressed, advances such as the elimination of transformers and the development of "DC" audio circuitry made the effects of incorrect signal polarity more apparent. As a result; correct signal polarity is more likely to be maintained throughout the recording process. Signal polarity is somethings refereed to as "absolute phase"

Basics

The effect of incorrect signal polarity is that the speaker cone will move away from the listener when the original acoustic wave had a positive pressure and towards the listener when the acoustic pressure was negative.

[Category:Terminology]