of frequency- and phase-modulated waveform envelopes. Formal representation In this simple wave equation is the amplitude (or peak amplitude), is the oscillating variable, is angular frequency, is time, and are arbitrary constants representing time and displacement offsets respectively. Units The units of the amplitude depend on the type of wave, but are always in the same units as the oscillating variable. A more general representation of the wave equation is more complex, but the role of amplitude remains analogous to this simple case. For waves on a string, or in a medium such as water, the amplitude is a displacement. The amplitude of sound waves and audio signals (which relates to the volume) conventionally refers to the amplitude of the air pressure in the wave, but sometimes the amplitude of the displacement (movements of the air or the diaphragm of a speaker) is described. The logarithm of the amplitude squared is usually quoted in dB, so a null amplitude corresponds to −∞ dB. Loudness is related to amplitude and intensity and is one of the most salient qualities of a sound, although in general sounds it can be recognized independently of amplitude. The square of the amplitude is proportional to the intensity of the wave. For electromagnetic radiation, the amplitude of a photon corresponds to the changes in the electric field of the wave. However, radio signals may be carried by electromagnetic radiation; the intensity of the radiation (amplitude modulation) or the frequency of the radiation (frequency modulation) is oscillated and then the individual oscillations are varied (modulated) to produce the signal. Transient amplitude envelopes A steady state amplitude remains constant during time, thus is represented by a scalar. Otherwise, the amplitude is transient and must be represented as either a continuous function or a discrete vector. For audio, transient amplitude envelopes model signals better because many common sounds have a transient loudness attack, decay, sustain, and release. Other parameters can be assigned steady state or transient amplitude envelopes: high/low frequency/amplitude modulation, Gaussian noise, overtones, etc. Amplitude normalization With waveforms containing many overtones, complex transient timbres can be achieved by assigning each overtone to its own distinct transient amplitude envelope. Unfortunately, this has the effect of modulating the loudness of the sound as well. It makes more sense to separate loudness and harmonic quality to be parameters controlled independently of each other. To do so, harmonic amplitude envelopes are frame-by-frame