DSP & Professional Audio

Digital signal processing, mics, and acoustic echo

Audio is where commercial AV gets technical. Understand digital audio and DSP fundamentals — sample rates, gain structure, dB and headroom — then microphones, routing, automixing, equalization, and acoustic echo cancellation. Finish with safe commissioning and tuning.

Key Competency

Design and safely commission a small-room audio DSP path.

AV Institute · Week 4DSP & Professional Audio

Practical Lab

Design a Small Conference Room Audio Signal Path

Est. 90 minCompetency: Design the audio path for table/ceiling mics, conferencing, and speakers.

Learning objectives

Choose mics, DSP blocks, amplification, and speakers for a room.
Draw the audio signal flow including AEC reference.
Specify the processing order and gain targets.

Lab brief & instructions

Design the audio for a small conference room: table/ceiling mics, far-end conferencing, ceiling speakers, and amplification or active speakers as appropriate.

Deliverables

1A signal-flow drawing: mics → preamp → AEC (with reference) → automix → codec TX; RX → limiter → amp → speakers; content → codec TX.
2Mic choice and placement notes.
3Processing order and gain targets (nominal + ~20 dB headroom).
4A choice of active speakers vs amp + passive speakers with a reason.

Active vs passive

Active speakers have built-in amps — simpler for small rooms. Passive speakers with a separate amp suit larger rooms or when you want centralized control. Pick one and justify it.

Implementation checklist

✓Signal flow drawn with AEC reference.
✓Mic type and placement specified.
✓Processing order and gain targets stated.
✓Active vs passive speaker choice justified.

Downloadable study guide

study-guide.txtcopy-paste ready

01. Lab flow: mics → preamp → AEC → automix → codec TX; RX → limiter → amp → speakers.
02. Include the AEC reference (far-end RX).
03. Justify active vs passive speakers for the room size.