MPEG-4 Structured Audio

MPEG-4 Structured Audio is an ISO/IEC standard for describing sound. It was published as subpart 5 of MPEG-4 Part 3 (ISO/IEC 14496-3:1999) in 1999.[1][2][3][4]

It allows the transmission of synthetic music and sound effects at very low bit rates (from 0.01 to 10 kbit/s), and the description of parametric sound post-production for mixing multiple streams and adding effects to audio scenes. It does not standardize a particular set of synthesis methods, but a method for describing synthesis methods.

The sound descriptions generate audio when compiled (or interpreted) by a compliant decoder. MPEG-4 Structured Audio consists of the following major elements:

MPEG-4 Structured Audio was cited by CNN as one of the top-25 innovations to arise at the Media Laboratory.[6]

  1. ^ ISO (1999). "ISO/IEC 14496-3:1999 - Information technology -- Coding of audio-visual objects -- Part 3: Audio". ISO. Retrieved 2009-10-06.
  2. ^ ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 29/WG 11 (1998-05-15), ISO/IEC FCD 14496-3 Subpart 5 - Information Technology - Coding of Audiovisual Objects – Low Bitrate Coding of Multimedia Objects, Part 3: Audio, Subpart 5: Structured Audio, Final Committee Draft, N2203SA (PDF), retrieved 2009-10-10{{citation}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  3. ^ D. Thom, H. Purnhagen, and the MPEG Audio Subgroup (October 1998). "MPEG Audio FAQ Version 9 - MPEG-4". chiariglione.org. Archived from the original on 2009-09-26. Retrieved 2009-10-06.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  4. ^ Heiko Purnhagen (2001-06-01). "The MPEG-4 Audio Standard: Overview and Applications". Heiko Purnhagen. Retrieved 2009-10-07. [dead link]
  5. ^ Scheirer, Eric D.; Ray, Lee (1998). "Algorithmic and Wavetable Synthesis in the MPEG-4 Multimedia Standard". Audio Engineering Society Convention 105, 1998. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.35.2773. 2.2 Wavetable synthesis with SASBF: The SASBF wavetable-bank format had a somewhat complex history of development. The original specification was contributed by E-Mu Systems and was based on their "SoundFont" format [15]. After integration of this component in the MPEG-4 reference software was complete, the MIDI Manufacturers Association (MMA) approached MPEG requesting that MPEG-4 SASBF be compatible with their "Downloaded Sounds" format [13]. E-Mu agreed that this compatibility was desirable, and so a new format was negotiated and designed collaboratively by all parties.
  6. ^ "THE BIG I: MIT Media Lab Turns 25". CNN. Archived from the original on January 2, 2013.