Gamers have traditionally used joysticks for controlling games. It is a device that allows control of two different axes simultaneously. Certain synthesizer manufacturers have utilized the principle instead of using separate modulation and pitch wheels, but the main usage of the device is now beginning to appear in surround sound production.

The kilohertz is a unit of alternating current or electromagnetic wave frequency equal to one thousand hertz. The unit is used in measurements of bandwidth, but in audio can also refer to the pitch of a particular tone.

Term is used in reference to a synthesizer or sampler that uses sample data for the raw building blocks of the sound generation. It is a means to assign each sample to a particular key or range of keys. So a piano keymap would theoretically have each tone from the entire piano keyboard mapped to exactly the same keys on the synthesizer or sampler.

Liquid Crystal Display. A technology used for displays in notebook and other small computers, all the way to advanced VGA computer screens. It is also found on lower cost electronic music devices. LCD's are generally manufactured utilizing a single crystal plate and a specific pattern of electRODE .

Light Emitting Diode. A semiconductor device that emits light when an electric current passes through it. Used for status lights or bar graph meters in many audio devices, LED's are also found everywhere from watches to laser disc players. Some LED's emit infra red energy and are found in remote control devices and wireless headphone systems.

Low Frequency Oscillator. An oscillator that is designed primarily to operate below the threshold of human hearing (though not exclusively) and to provide modulation function. Often found in synthesizers and effect devices.

An optical cable. The term was originally coined by Alesis to differentiate between their 8-channel protocol and the 2-channel optical connectors found on CD players and DAT recorders. The actual fiber optic cable used is the same in both cases, only the form of the transmission is different.
(See ADAT Optical)

A stereo microphone technique in which two coincident bidirectional microphones are angled 90 degrees apart (45 degrees to the left and right of center).

"bus bar" in audio refers to an electrical term "bus bar" which is essentially a conductor carrying a common signal/path.

An input to a program bus, usually used for effects returns.