201 lines
8.7 KiB
Markdown
201 lines
8.7 KiB
Markdown
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title = "The mixer strip"
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chapter = false
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weight = 1
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+++
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_Mixing_ is the process of converting multiple tracks into a stereo or a
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multi-channel mix where all the instruments can be heard clearly.
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## Mixing Tools
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_Levels_, _panning_, _equalization (EQ_), and _compression_ are the main tools
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used to achieve a good mix. In addition to these core tools, a wide range of
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plugin effects can also be used to enhance the sound, such as _reverb_ and
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_delay_.
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## Introducing the Mixer Strip
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The _mixer strip_ is the vertical column that contains various controls related
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to signal flow. Each track and bus in Ardour has its own mixer strip. The mixer
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strip is also the main tool we will use in the process of mixing our Tracks. In
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this chapter, we will get a general overview of the mixer strip, with each
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section described. We will also provide references to chapters containing
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information specific to each aspect of the mixer strip.
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## The Mixer Strip from Top to Bottom
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Mixer strips can be accessed from both the _Editor_ window and the _Mixer_
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window (shortcut **Alt+M** to toggle between the two). Mixer strips in either
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window (_Editor_ or _Mixer_) mirror each other: any actions performed on a mixer
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strip in the _Mixer_ window will be reflected in the corresponding mixer strip
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in the _Editor_ window, and vice-versa. The editor window and _Mixer_ window are
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more fully explained in the _An Overview of the Interface_ chapter.
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In the _Editor Window_, you can see the mixer strip of the currently selected
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track on the left side of the window. If you don't see it, hit **Shift+E** to
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display the Editor's mixer strip.
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### Overview
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Here we see the entire mixer strip, as it would appear in either the _Editor_
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window or the _Mixer_ window.
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### Regular & Narrow Modes
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The mixer strip can be switched between the regular width and a more narrow
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width to conserve space. The very top part of the mixer strip, pictured below,
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switches between regular and narrow modes using the left button. The button with
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an eye icon hides the mixer strip entirely (you can re-enable it later).
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You can easily spot differences between narrow and regular modes: shorter
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captions on buttons, no legend for the peak meter etc.
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### Track Name and Routing Button
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Continuing from top to bottom, the next section of the mixer strip contains
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three narrow regions. The first of these regions shows the name of the track
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(that's the word "Audio 1" in the image below). The next region, named "1" in
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the image below, is a button which allows access to the input routing. Please
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see the _Understanding Routing_ and _Recording Audio_ chapters for more
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information on input routing. The last narrow region controls phase reversing
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(we won't go into details on this topic in this tutorial).
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### Processor Box
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The large black region at the bottom of this section is the _processor box_.
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This is where you can add plugins, for example. The signal flow in the mixer
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strip is top-to-bottom. It starts with the input on top, the topmost plugin in
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the box is the first one in the effects chain, the one in the bottom is the one
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applied last.
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The processor box will always contain a blue fader processor. This indicates
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where in the processor chain the main channel fader is located — this is the
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fader shown in the lower half of the strip. Please see _Using Plugins_ and
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_Using Sends_ for a detailed discussion of this area.
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{{< figure src="en/ardour7-inline-views-and-controls.png" alt="Inline view and controls" >}}
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There are additional views and controls possible in the processor box, as seen
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on the screenshot above:
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1. _Inline displays_. Some plugins can display a mini-overview of their
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settings, e.g. an equalizer can display a preview of how various frequency bands
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are affected. And some plugins are written with just this objective in mind — to
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provide a quick overview of something in the mixer strip. Ardour comes with two
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such plugins, an inline scope and an inline spectrogram.
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2. _Plugin controls_. It's possible to add controls to various plugins in a
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mixer strip. That way, for the settings that you tweak most often, you don't
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need to open a plugin's window every time, you can just drag a slider left and
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right with your mouse or scroll the mouse wheel when hovering a control. Press
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**Ctrl** to make smaller increments when dragging or scrolling.
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To control both these features, use _Controls_ submenu in the right-click menu
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of a plugin. As inline displays are enabled by default, all you can do is
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disable it (and then enable back). To enable a control for a plugin, simply click on its name in the menu.
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{{< figure src="en/ardour7-plugin-controls-submenu.png" alt="Controls submenu in Ardour 7" >}}
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{{% notice tip %}}
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To enable multiple controls for a plugin, the most convenient way is to open the
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right click menu, hover a control and press **Spacebar** on your keyboard, hover
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the next control, press **Spacebar** again etc.
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{{% /notice %}}
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The next portion of the mixer strip includes controls for panning, record, mute,
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and solo, among others.
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### Panning
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Panning commonly has to do with placement of sounds anywhere between left and
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right speakers to help separating instruments from one another by placing them
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in different parts of a virtual room.
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Depending on the amount of channels in a track, Ardour will provide a dedicated
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user interface to control panning. In the screenshot below, a mono track is on
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the left and a stereo track is on the right:
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{{< figure src="en/ardour7-mono-vs-stereo-panning.png" alt="Mono vs. stereo panning" >}}
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Please refer to the _Panning_ chapter for more information.
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### Soloing and Muting
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Tracks and busses can have two additional related states: soloing and being
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muted.
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Any track or bus on _mute_ will be inaudible through the _Master_ bus or the
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_Audition_. The track mixer also contains a miniaturized **Mute** button, in
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between the **Record Arm** button and the **Solo** button. Right-clicking on the
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**Mute** button gives you advanced options for the behavior of the mute button.
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{{< figure src="en/ardour7-mute.png" alt="Mute button in on and off states" >}}
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When a track or a bus is _soloing_, all the other tracks and busses are
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inaudible through the _Master_ bus or the _Audition_, unless you solo them. So
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if you need to play just two tracks out of eight, you don't have to mute six
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other tracks, you only need to solo those two. Please note that soloing a bus
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will not silence any tracks and vice-versa.
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{{< figure src="en/ardour7-solo.png" alt="Solo button" >}}
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When any track or bus is on solo, the _solo indicator_ in the _Auxiliary
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Controls_ menu will flash red. Clicking the solo indicator while it is flashing
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will deactivate every solo in the session.
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{{< figure src="en/ardour7-soloing-flash-button.png" alt="Soloing" >}}
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### Arm Record
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The _Rec_ button arms the track for recording, as seen in the _Recording Audio_ chapter.
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{{< figure src="en/ardour7-arm-rec.png" alt="Arm for recording" >}}
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### Fader, Fade/Peak Meters
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The most prominent control present in a mixer strip is the _fader_, used to
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adjust the overall gain for the corresponding track or bus. The _peak meter_
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shows the _peak value_ of the selected track, and is located directly to the
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right of the fader. Each peak meter consists of one _bar graph_ in the case of a
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mono track, and two bar graphs in case of a stereo track. The small rectangular
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field above the meters shows the highest peak value that has been played on that
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track so far.
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By clicking the right-hand button at the bottom of the mixer strip (it reads
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"post" in the image above), you will be able to select the _metering point_, for
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example the direct "in" from the sound card, the "pre" Fader signal, or the
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"post" fader signal.
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As you can see in the image below, there is a smaller version of the mixer strip
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in each track, called the _track mixer_, which contains a horizontal fader, a
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vertical peak meter, as well as miniature buttons for arm record, mute, and
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solo. They all mirror those found in the mixer strip for that track.
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Please refer to the chapter on _Mixing Levels_ for more detailed instruction
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about using the fader and peak meters.
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### Routing
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Finally, we reach the bottom of the mixer strip. Here we find the **Output
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Routing** button, marked as "Master" in the earlier screenshot, because it
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connects to a bus called "Master". This was discussed earlier in the
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_Understanding Routing_ chapter.
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## Continuing
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Now that we've had a look at the main areas of the mixer strip, we can proceed
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to the _Mixing Levels_ chapter to see how we can start to use it.
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Next: [MIXING LEVELS](../mixing-levels)
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