manual/include/signal-routing.html

<p>
  Ardour does most of its internal <dfn>signal routing</dfn> via JACK:
  all track and bus inputs and outputs are JACK ports, as are sends and
  inserts, which means they can be tapped into by other JACK clients.
  Only the signal flow inside a track or bus (i.e. from <a
  href="@@processor-box">processor to processor</a>) is
  handled internally.
</p>
<p>
  By default, Ardour will automatically create the following connections:
</p>
<ul>
  <li>
    <dfn>Track inputs</dfn> are optionally auto-connected to hardware inputs, in round robin
    order, depending on the setting chosen in the
    <a href="@@newopen-session-dialog"><kbd
    class="menu">Session &gt; New Session</kbd> dialog</a>.
  </li>
  <li>
    <dfn>Bus inputs</dfn> are left disconnected.
  </li>
  <li>
    The number of <dfn>track and bus outputs</dfn> are equal to the number
    of inputs of the master bus.
  </li>
  <li>
    Track and bus outputs are always auto-connected to the master bus inputs.
  </li>
  <li>
    Master bus outputs are connected to hardware outputs.
  </li>
</ul>
<p>
  This configuration is sufficient to do basic tracking and playback of many
  sessions without any adjustment by the user. Changing these connections
  is generally not necessary and often leads to problems.
</p>
<p>
  However, for many workflows during mixing, more complicated signal routing
  is required. Ardour offers many possibilities for connecting things to fit any
  particular workflow.
</p>