Final answer:
A device that creates and controls sounds electronically is known as a function generator, while a device that amplifies signals is called an amplifier. An oscilloscope can display the characteristics of sounds produced by a function generator, and circuits with RC filters can remove unwanted frequencies.
Step-by-step explanation:
A device that creates sounds electronically through the use of voltage-controlled amplifiers and filters is known as a function generator. These generators are capable of producing sounds of different frequencies and amplitudes. They work by allowing you to control the loudness and frequency of the sound being produced.
When connected to a speaker, a function generator sends electric signals with controlled variations that can be picked up by a microphone and displayed or analyzed using an oscilloscope.
An amplifier, on the other hand, is any electric device that amplifies a signal. For example, a junction transistor in an audio amplifier can use a small initial voltage, controlled by sound waves hitting a microphone diaphragm, to modulate a larger electric current that eventually drives a loudspeaker.
This amplified current replicates the sound waves in a much more powerful form, hence amplifying the sound that we hear.
More complex sound equipment might have various components such as resistors, capacitors, diodes, and transistors. These parts work together to amplify small signals for devices like earbud speakers, but they can also serve in more diverse applications ranging from alarm clocks to advanced computing devices.
The oscilloscope can help visualize these electric signals, and RC filters within these circuits can remove unwanted frequencies, or 'noise', from the signals.