The unique texture or character of a sound that distinguishes it from others, even if they have the same pitch and loudness. Timbre is shaped by the harmonic content and the relative amplitudes of those harmonics.
Examples:
- A flute and a violin playing the same note at the same volume sound different because of their distinct timbres.
- A sawtooth wave has a bright, brassy timbre due to its dense harmonic content, while a sine wave has a pure, smooth timbre because it lacks harmonics.
Timbre is what makes sounds feel expressive, textured, or rich, allowing instruments, voices, and synthesized tones to have their own identity.
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