(n.) A specification that enables a common playback experience on different delivery platforms when a General MIDI file is played. The DLS file, consisting of samples, is transmitted along with a MIDI sequence, so that a wavetable synthesizer can use the sample provided rather than one resident in its memory. Only sound cards and equipment with RAM available for storing samples to be played with a sequence can take advantage of this technology. Level 1 of the specification supports hardware with a wavetable engine that plays samples with loops. It provides 24 voices minimally at a sample rate of 22 kHz, with 512 kilobytes (KB) of storage reserved for samples. A full package may include up to 120 melodic instruments, eight sound effects (SFX), and 47 percussion sounds in a set on MIDI channel 10. This standard is implemented by the Yamaha XG and Roland GS formats.
downloadable sound [DLS]
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