> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.gridshift.studio/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# Track Mix
> Every track has volume, stereo width, mono-below, pan, a tone filter and a clipper or limiter in the Inspector's Mix section. Select the track, press ⌘1 and click the Mix header to expand it.
## Set the volume
Drag the vertical fader at the top of the Mix section. It snaps at 0 dB. Press `⌥N` (**Normalize Volume**) to set the fader so the peak reaches 0 dBFS. The switch next to the readout flips the display between the **peak history** and the **spectrum analyzer**.
## Change the stereo width
Click the arrow on the **Mix** header to show every row: width, mono, pan, the mix filter. Drag the width row. Click its label, or right-click the row, to switch between **Width** and **Mid/Side**.
## Make the low end mono
Drag **Mono below** to set the cutoff. Click its label for **Mono**, **Mono L** or **Mono R**, and Option-click to turn it off.
## Pan a track
Drag the panner left or right; it snaps at L50, Center and R50. Click its label to switch between **Balance** and **Stereo Pan**.
## Shape the tone with the mix filter
Click the mix filter's label, or right-click the row, and pick a mode such as **Lowpass 24**. Turn the knob; the row's readout says what it sets.
## Clip or limit the output
Pick a curve or limiter from the clip type dropdown, or press `⌃` with a number key. The volume fader sits before the clipper: push it up to drive the track into the ceiling, pull it down to drive it less. Drag the ceiling line in the signal history down, or press `⌃-`, to set the ceiling below 0 dB.
## Good to know
* **The controls follow the signal.** Below the volume fader, which stays pinned at the top, they appear in the order the signal passes through them: stereo width, mono-below, pan, mix filter, clip type.
* **Group, Return and Master tracks carry the same controls**, right under the track name. Balancing many tracks at once is on [Group Mix and Master Mix](/mix/group-and-master-mix.md).
* **Normalize needs peak data.** Play the track first.
* **The mix filter sits at the end of the channel**, just before the clip curve. A filter after a clipper re-creates the very peaks it just removed, which would turn the ceiling from a guarantee into an estimate.
* **Clipping curves add harmonic character at zero latency; limiter modes control peaks without coloration.**
> **Details**
>
> * The fader moves on its own during playback when volume [automation](/mix/automation.md) is active.
> * `⌥`-click or right-click any slider to reset it: volume to 0 dB, pan to center, stereo to 100 % (Width) or center (Mid/Side).
> * The stereo row is one control, and automation treats it as one: a single lane drives it, listed under the name the row shows, **Width** or **Mid/Side**. Switching the reading re-reads the lane in the new one; it stays neutral where it was neutral.
> * Both readings write the same Mid and Side gains. That is what [MIDI bindings](/controllers/midi-bindings.md) and the Mid/Side palette commands address, so a controller bound to the mid alone keeps working in either mode.
> * Switching the stereo reading converts the setting: the stereo impression is kept and only the overall level moves, by up to 3 dB. The two readings meet only at the neutral position.
> * Mono below tightens the stereo low end without affecting the rest of the spectrum.
> * At 0 the mix filter is neutral in every mode and out of the signal path, so switching shape never changes the sound on its own.
> * The highpass and lowpass sweeps run the full audible band. Double-click the slider to type an exact value.
> * An old **Band** mode is kept: a track saved with it sounds as before, and the menu shows it under **Current** until you pick another mode.
> * **Peak history** (the level over time) is the display's default view. A stereo peak meter with a dB scale sits beside it.
> * **Peak** and **Gain** (current volume in dB) sit above the meter and the fader. Click **Peak** to reset it.
> * Hover the panel for loudness in its bottom-left corner: **Int.** (integrated) and **Short** (short-term) in LUFS, and **Ceil.** with the ceiling when it is below 0 dB.
> **Settings**
>
> | Control | Range / modes |
> | - | - |
> | Volume fader | −48 dB to +12 dB, snaps at 0 dB |
> | **Width** (default) | 0 %–200 %: 0 % is mono, 100 % untouched, 200 % doubles the sides |
> | **Mid/Side** | 100 M – C – 100 S: full left is the center alone, full right the sides alone |
> | Mono below | 20 Hz to 1 kHz. **Mono** (default) sums L+R below the cutoff, **Mono L** / **Mono R** use one channel |
> | Pan | Full left to full right, snaps at L50, Center, R50. **Balance** (default) adjusts left/right volume, **Stereo Pan** crossfades between channels |
> **Mix filter modes**
>
> 31 modes in five groups. Each mode decides what the knob means.
>
> | Group | Modes | The knob sets |
> | - | - | - |
> | **Sweeps** | **Highpass 12** (default), **Highpass 24**, **Lowpass 12**, **Lowpass 24**, **Bandpass Wide**, **Bandpass Tight**, **Notch Wide**, **Notch Tight**, **Acid**, **Drive**, **Scream** | A frequency. Highpasses sweep up from 20 Hz, lowpasses down from 20 kHz (12 and 24 are the slope in dB per octave); bandpasses and notches move a band of fixed width. Acid is a resonant lowpass, Drive a lowpass behind saturation, Scream a resonant highpass with drive |
> | **Trims** | **Mud** (250 Hz), **Boxy** (450 Hz), **Honk** (1 kHz), **Harsh** (3.1 kHz), **Ess** (7 kHz), **Damp** (high shelf from 4 kHz), **Air** (high shelf from 12 kHz), **Warmth** (low shelf from 150 Hz) | How much cut or boost: down to −12 dB (Ess −15 dB), up to +6 dB for Air and +4.5 dB for Warmth |
> | **Tilt** | **Dark**, **Bright** | How far the spectrum tilts around 700 Hz, up to 6 dB at each end |
> | **Curves** | **Smiley**, **Telephone**, **Pultec**, **DI Box** | How much of a fixed curve: lows and highs up with mids down, the telephone band, the Pultec low-end boost-and-cut, a clean bass DI |
> | **Sources** | **Kick**, **Snare**, **Bass**, **Vocal**, **Tops**, **Acoustic** | How much of a starting curve for that kind of track |
> **Clip curves and limiters**
>
> | Mode | `⌃` key | Character |
> | - | - | - |
> | **None** (default) | `` ` `` / `^` | Bypass, no clipping |
> | **Hard** | `1` | Aggressive digital clipping, peaks sliced flat |
> | **Hard (Edge)** | `2` | Hard clipping with smoothed entry and exit on the clipped edges |
> | **Hard (Erosion)** | `3` | Edge clipping that leaves deliberate grit on the clipped samples |
> | **Quintic** | `4` | Gentle soft clip with smooth saturation onset |
> | **Cubic** | `5` | Classic soft clip, warm and musical, predominantly odd harmonics |
> | **Hyperbolic Tan** | `6` | Analog-style saturation, smoothest transition into limiting |
> | **Algebraic** | `7` | Moderate soft clip, between Arctangent and Cubic |
> | **Arctangent** | `8` | Gentle saturation, preserves dynamics, minimal coloration |
> | **Limit** | `9` | Zero-latency peak limiter, stereo-linked gain reduction, \~100 ms release |
> | **Limit (Lookahead)** | `0` | Peak limiter with a short lookahead buffer for a smoother response. Adds minimal latency, compensated automatically |
> **Keys**
>
> | Action | Shortcut |
> | - | - |
> | Normalize Volume | `⌥N` |
> | Volume up / down (fine) | `=` / `-` (`⌥=` / `⌥-`) |
> | Clip mode | `⌃` + `` ` `` … `0` |
> | Ceiling ±1 dB (±0.1 dB) | `⌃=` / `⌃-` (`⌃⌥=` / `⌃⌥-`) |
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