dBFS (decibels relative to full scale) measures level in a digital system against the highest level it can represent, which is 0 dBFS. Every other digital level is a negative number below it.
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Headroom is the gap between the level a signal normally runs at and the loudest level the system can handle before it clips. Here is what it means in analogue gear, in a DAW and on Spotify.
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LUFS is the unit loudness meters use to say how loud a whole track or programme sounds, measured with the ITU-R BS.1770 algorithm. Broadcasters aim at -23 LUFS under EBU R128; Spotify turns playback to -14 dB LUFS.
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Sample rate is how many times per second a digital system measures an audio signal, written in hertz or kilohertz. It sets the highest frequency a recording can hold: just under half the sample rate.
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A sidechain is a second input that tells a processor when to act, without being heard itself. Pumping kick-and-bass is one use of it; the term means the input, not the effect.
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