Kompandingiga

Kompandingiga is a term used in some languages to describe the signal processing technique known in English as companding. It refers to the deliberate compression of a signal’s dynamic range before analog-to-digital encoding and the subsequent expansion after digital-to-analog reconstruction. The aim is to improve the effective resolution for low-amplitude signals and to reduce the audible impact of quantization noise in limited-precision systems.

The process involves two main steps: a forward compressor that maps input amplitudes to a narrower range, typically using a nonlinear (often logarithmic) relationship, followed by quantization of the compressed signal. At the receiver, a corresponding expander reverses the mapping to restore the original dynamic range. This approach allows more quantization levels to be allocated where the signal is small, improving perceived quality without requiring higher bit depth.

Common implementations of companding in telecommunication and audio systems include A-law and μ-law companding, standardized in ITU-T recommendations for PCM digitization. These schemes are widely used in digital telephone networks to balance bandwidth efficiency with signal quality. Companding is also applied in various audio codecs and data links where dynamic range and quantization constraints are significant.

See also: dynamic range, quantization, mu-law, A-law, nonlinear quantization, adaptive compression.