Well, I would do a search for a glossary of terms on this website, but here is a brief definition for you.
1. A compressor is a dynamic processor that is very much like a person with their finger on the fader bar. When the music gets loud, that person pulls the fader down until it is quieter. On a compressor, you can tell it when to pull the fader and how much, in reference to the input level.
2. An equalizer is a tool that allows you to boost or cut the levels of specific (or range of) frequencies in a sound. For example, if you boost at 80hz on a bass guitar track, well it sounds bassier.
3. Monitor (v) means listen. A monitor on stage is a speaker pointed at your head so you can hear the music too. If your lucky, you can get a mix that you want in it, so you only hear say the guitars and the vocals. A "reference" monitor is a speaker specially designed to reproduce sound that is sent to it, EXACTLY, with a flat frequency response. This means that the speaker doesn't add or subtract frequencies from the siganl it recieves. It is important to have good reference monitors when recording so you know what's really going on tape.
These are pretty vague descriptions, but it's a start.
Conrad Josepi
