ardour-tutorial/content/getting-started/overview-of-the-interface/index.en.md

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title = "Overview of the Interface"
description = "Basics of Ardour's user interface"
chapter = false
weight = 3
#pre = "<b>1. </b>"
+++

This section will give you an overview of the basic interface of Ardour.

We will take a look at the **Editor Window** and the **Mixer Window**. Later
chapters will give more detailed information on each feature listed here.

The Editor Window
-----------------

When you create a new session, Ardour opens an empty new window called
the **Editor Window**. The Editor Window is the most important window in
Ardour, as this is how you will control the program as well as see and
edit the audio you have recorded or imported.

![Empty Session](en/Ardour6_Empty_Session.png)

At the top of the Editor Window are several main areas: the **Transport
Menu**, the **Clocks**, the **Edit** **Modes/Cursor Modes** menu, the
**Snap Mode** menu and the **Auxiliary Controls**. Below that area is
the Main Canvas, which contains the **Tracks** and **Busses** used in
the Session. The **Mixer Strips** for the Tracks appear on the left, and
a set of tabs allowing for an overview of the **Regions**,
**Tracks/Busses**, **Snapshots**, **Edit Groups** and **Chunks** appear
on the right. The very bottom of the window is the **Summary** view,
which is a miniature timeline view allowing for quick navigation through
the session.

We will introduce these controls briefly here and cover them more
extensively in dedicated chapters later on.

### Transport Menu

![Transport Menu](en/Ardour6_Transport_Menu.png)

The **Transport Menu** controls include the following buttons:

-   MIDI Panic
-   Enable/Disable audio click (metronome)
-   Rewind
-   Fast forward
-   Loop playback
-   Play range/selection
-   Play from playhead
-   Stop
-   Record-enable 
-   Jog/shuttle controls

### Clocks

![Clocks](en/Ardour6_Clocks.png)
 

The main **Clocks** are located next to the transport controls. Clocks
in Ardour can display time in 4 different formats: Time Code,
Bars:Beats, Minutes:Seconds, and Samples. Right-click on the clock to
select a format. You can also turn the clock off. The reason for having
two transport clocks is that it allows you to see the playhead position
in two different time units without having to change any settings.

Please see the [**Setting Up the Timeline**](../setting-up-the-timeline) chapter for more details on the
Clocks.

### Edit Modes and Cursor Modes

![Edit Modes](en/Ardour6_Edit_Modes_Cursor_Modes.png)

The **Edit Modes** and **Cursor Modes** controls define the behavior of
the main canvas and the different functions the cursor can have. There
are three Edit Modes in the drop-down menu: **Slide**, **Ripple**, and **Lock**. To the right of the Smart button are the
Cursor Modes:

-	**Smart Mode** (shortcut *"Y"*)
-   **Grab Mode** (shortcut *"G"*)
-   **Range Mode** (shortcut *"R"*)
-   **Cut Mode** (shortcut *"C"*)
-   **Stretch Mode** (shortcut *"T"*)
-   **Audition Mode**
-   **Draw Mode** (shortcut *"D"*)
-   **Internal Edit Mode** (shortcut *"E"*)

Most of them are discussed in the **Working With Regions**
chapter. The last two are discussed in the **Using Automation** chapter.

The **Smart Mode** is actually a combination of Grab Mode and Range Mode. When enabled, the mouse behaves as if it is in "Range Mode" in the upper half of a region, and in "Grab Mode" in the
lower half.

### Snap Options

![Snap](en/Ardour6_Snap_Options_and_Nudge_Controls.png)

The **Snap Options** menu controls the **Grid**, **Grid Points** and
**Edit Point**. Please see the chapters on **Setting Up the Meter**,
**Using Ranges** and **Working With Regions** for more details.

### Zoom Options

![Zoom Options](en/Ardour6_Zoom_Options.png)

In between **Cursor Modes** and **Snap Options** are the **Zoom
Options**. Here you can define the behavior of zooming operations. You
have standard **Zoom In** and **Zoom Out** buttons, plus a third called
**Zoom to Session** (useful for having a quick overview of your entire
session: it zooms it to fit the available space on the screen).

{{% notice tip %}}
Use the shortcuts **=** (the equal sign on your main keyboard) for zooming, and
**-** (the dash key on your main keyboard) for zooming out.
{{% /notice %}}

The drop-down menu controls the **Zoom Focus**. It defines the focus
point of zooming operations. Try zooming in and out
with a different Zoom Focus each time. For example, choosing Playhead
will cause zoom to behave in relation to the position of the
Playhead. Mouse will take your current mouse position as the reference,
and so on.

The following drop-down menu and the last two buttons control "vertical zoom." They allow you to
expand and shrink all tracks and busses vertically. Use the drop-down menu to choose a specific number of tracks you want to fit on the screen. Use the buttons to shrink or expand all tracks (or only selected tracks, if a selection is made).

### Auxiliary Controls

For further information on other buttons and displays on the main
interface, please refer to the [Ardour Manual](http://manual.ardour.org/ "Ardour Manual").

Main Canvas
-----------

The main canvas is just below the top rows of controls described above.
It basically comprises the **Rulers**, the space where **Tracks** and
**Busses** are displayed, and a **Summary** view at the bottom.

At the very top of Ardour's Editor Window (to the right) you will find useful information such as sample rate of the session, available recording time, and DSP use.

### Rulers

Right-click on the names of rulers and you will see a menu with all the
possible rulers at your disposition. You may uncheck rulers that you
don't need in order to save screen space. More information on these
operations can be found in the **Setting up the Timeline** and **Setting
up the Meter** chapters.

![Ardour Overview Rulers](en/Ardour6_Overview_Rulers.png)

### Tracks and Busses

Just below the Rulers is where Tracks and Busses are displayed. In the
example below, you can see one Bus called "*Master*" and one Track
called "*MyTrack*". MyTrack also contains one region, which
represents an audio file with a drawing of its waveform. More
information on Tracks and Busses can be found in the **Creating a Track
or Bus** chapter.

![Ardour Track](en/Ardour6_Track.png)

### Editor Mixer

The Editor Mixer is located at the left of the Edit Window. It displays
the **Mixer Strip** of the currently selected Track or Bus. It controls
the volume, Plugins and Routing for the Track or Bus to which it
corresponds. You can toggle to view or hide the Editor Mixer by clicking
on the menu *View* > *Show Editor Mixer* (shortcut *"Shift"* + *"E"*).
This Mixer is covered in the **Using the Mixer Strip** chapter.

![Editor Mixer](en/Ardour6_Editor_Mixer.png)

### Regions, Tracks/Busses, Snapshots, Groups, Ranges, Marks

The space on the right of Ardour's Editor Window can have 5 different
functions, depending on which tab is currently selected: **Regions**,
**Tracks/Busses**, **Snapshots**, **Track & Bus Groups**, and **Ranges
and Marks**. Regions is the tab selected by default. This part of the
Editor Window is commonly referred to as **Regions List**. Regions
represent audio files stored on the hard drive which can be dragged from
the Regions List directly onto a track in the main canvas. More
information on Regions can be found in the **Working With Regions**
chapter. The Tracks tab is covered in the **Arranging Tracks** chapter,
and Snapshots are discussed in the **Saving Snapshots** chapter.

![Region List](en/Ardour6_Region_List.png)

Mixer Window Controls
---------------------

The second window, the **Mixer Window**, can be viewed by going to the
main menu and clicking *Window > Mixer*.

![Mixer Window](en/Ardour6_Mixer_Window_1.png)

The main function of the Mixer Window is to display all the Mixer Strips
for the various Tracks side by side for easy reference. This window is
mainly used during the **Mixing** process, and it also provides access
**Plugins** and other **Routing** features. See the chapters on
**Understanding Routing**, **Mixing** and **Using Plugins** for details.

![Mixer Window](en/Ardour6_Mixer_Window_2.png)

This window also contains a listing of the available Mixer Strips in the
upper left hand corner. The check boxes in this area can be used to view
and hide the Mixer Strips of the different Tracks. Finally, there is an
area for managing **Groups**.

Switching Between Windows
-------------------------

You can use the key combination **Alt + M** (**Control + M** on a
Mac) in order to toggle which window is on top: Editor or Mixer.

Continuing
----------

The next chapter will explain how to start a fresh new project.

Next: [Starting a session](/en/starting-sessions/starting-a-session)