What does ADSR stand for?

What Is an ADSR Envelope?

An ADSR envelope is a type of envelope control mechanism commonly found in the synths and samplers used in electronic music. ADSR stands for the envelope’s four stages of modulation:

  • Attack
  • Decay
  • Sustain
  • Release

These stages control the level of the sound from the moment you press a key until you release it.

Stages of an ADSR Envelope

When we talk about stages it means the modulation over time of the played sound.

  1. Attack: The attack phase begins the moment a key is pressed. This phase determines how quickly a sound reaches full volume before entering the decay phase.
  2. Decay: The decay phase determines the length of the drop from the peak level to the sustain level of a sound.
  3. Sustain: The sustain phase does not specify a length of time. Instead, it determines the volume change of a sound for the entire hold time between the decay and release phases.
  4. Release: The final phase determines the speed at which a sound ends from the moment you release the key.

Demonstration

Download this Ableton Project:

ADSR Project

These are the ADSR controls in a simpler:

often you see an ADSR Envelope displayed as a curve like here on the Controls tab of the Simpler Device:

Now what?

Enough Theory! This is especially useful to make percussive sounds even snappier!