Zero-crossing rate

The zero-crossing rate is a measure that tells us how often a sound wave changes from being positive to negative or vice versa. It's like counting how many times you switch from walking forward to walking backward when you're playing a game of tag with your friends.

In sound waves, we can see this switch happening when the wave goes through the middle line. When the wave is above the middle line, it is positive. When it is below, it is negative. So every time the wave crosses that middle line, we call that a "zero-crossing."

Now, let's say we're listening to a song. The zero-crossing rate would tell us how often the music changes from being loud to quiet or from one type of sound to another. It's like counting how many times you and your friends switch from sprinting to walking during the tag game.

Musicians and sound engineers use the zero-crossing rate to figure out how to make music sound good. By knowing how often the sound is changing, they can adjust things like volume, pitch, and tempo to make sure it all sounds just right.

So, in summary, the zero-crossing rate counts how many times a sound wave changes from being positive to negative or vice versa, like counting switching between walking and running during a game of tag. It helps musicians and sound engineers make the music sound good by adjusting things like volume, pitch, and tempo.