Complex sound

We have already discussed the simplest sound, a sine wave, created by a source vibrating in simple harmonic motion. But all natural sources vibrate at a combination of frequencies simultaneously producing more complex waveforms (timbres). Such complex waveforms can be thought of as comprising a number of individual sine waves of differing frequencies which interact and interfere with each other in a complex process of summing and canceling (phase) producing a single more complex waveform pattern. Harmonics in a complex (square wave) electronically created (oscillators) sound

Harmonics
In sounds with a definite overall pitch (such as those that musical instruments produce) each individual vibration (sine wave) is known as a harmonic. To illustrate how harmonics combine to create a complex wave, it is practical to use the example of the square wave. The diagram below shows some (3) of the individual harmonics required to create a square wave (you actually need at least 20 harmonics to approach a squareish shape). Because the harmonics are simple integer multiples of the fundamental harmonic frequency (3x, 5x etc) it is simple to calculate how they combine to create an overall wave, or timbre. You simply move along the timeline, adding together the positive (compression) and negative (rarefaction) values of the waves at regular intervals.

Sample MP3
Square wave 1KHz

Fundamental / 1st harmonic

In a complex sound, the vibration with the highest amplitude (the loudest) and lowest frequency (bassiest) is known as the fundamental. It is also known as the 1st harmonic.

Subsequent harmonics
Additional harmonics, each with a successively lower amplitude and higher frequency, will be named the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, etc harmonics.

Pitch
Sounds which have a definite pitch are distinguished by a repetitive waveform. No matter how complex the waveform is it repeats its pattern at regular intervals.

Overall frequency / pitch

Although complex waves are made from harmonics at many frequencies they have an overall frequency or pitch. This overall frequency is usually determined by the frequency of the fundamental or 1st harmonic. Higher harmonics are often referred to as "overtones" by musicians. 1) A single snare hit

2) A lead vocal recording (2 bars)

Timbre
The relationship of fundamental and harmonics create the character of a sound, and is known as its timbre. Natural sounds sources produce enormously complex waveforms made from many hundreds or thousands of individual harmonics. No matter how many harmonics a sound comprises, they are all represented by one single pattern of compression and rarefaction, a single wave of energy. It can be difficult to comprehend how so much harmonic information can be contained in this way, but we know from experience that it is so. For example, when you listen to music on your MP3 player you will be hearing thousands of individual harmonics contained in a wide variety of instruments all produced by the 2 (left and right) simple vibrating transducers (loudspeakers) in your earphones..