MixPad allows you to build a live effect chain on each track. A live effect chain means that any effect you apply will be applied during playback, which eliminates the need to wait for your audio to render with the effect. To create or edit an effect, simply click the Fx button in the track control panel. MixPad will present you with a window showing the list of effects currently applied to the selected track. Click Add Effect to add a new effect, the new added effect will be highlighted which means it is selected and the checkbox before the effect indicates that it is enabled. If you select an existing effect, you can see and edit all the effect’s properties. Select an effect and click Remove Effect to remove the effect from the chain. If you untick the checkbox next to an effect you can disable the effect but still keep it in your chain.

Once you setup the effect chain, you can save that effect chain to a file by clicking on Save Effect Chain. You can also load effect chains into a track by clicking Load Effect Chain.

Effects

AM Radio

This effect emulates the sound produced by AM Radio. There are no editable parameter for this effect.

Amplify

To 'amplify' is to increase the loudness or volume. The volume is entered as a percentage: 100 being no change, 50 being -6dB softer or 200 being +6dB louder.

Chorus

The chorus sound effect is used to make one voice or instrument sound like 3 voices or instruments by playing the original with variably-delayed and slightly pitch-changed copies of the original.

Note: Chorus is a very useful way to make a mono source sound stereo. You should convert your file to stereo before applying the chorus effect.

Compressor

The compressor sound effect limits the volume levels of a sound recording so that it stays within a certain loudness range. An example of where it is used is in TV broadcasting, where it ensures that the volume levels of ads are perceived as being louder than the television program itself, without any change in the actual broadcast volume.

It also has a use for recording audio from one medium to another, where the two mediums are not capable of handling the same range of volume levels (e.g., A CD can handle a much greater range than a cassette tape).

The "Threshold" setting works by detecting when the sound recording volume exceeds a defined decibel level. It then gradually attenuates the sound to bring it down below the dB level, and does it in such a way that the listener will not be aware the attenuation is occurring.

The "Ratio" setting limits the amount the volume level of the recording increases at any one time. If, for example, you wanted the volume levels of a recording to only increase by at most 1/4 of the amount they would normally increase, then this would correspond to a Ratio of 4:1. So if the recording volume level increased by 8dB, then you would only hear a 2dB volume increase.

The "Limit" setting defines at what maximum decibel level the sound recording will be allowed to rise up to. So if, for example, the Limit was set to 0dB, then you will never hear the volume level of the recording get louder than 0dB. The Limit setting has similarities to the Threshold setting, but the main difference is that the Threshold does allow sounds to go above the defined decibel level (for a short time), whereas the Limit does not.

You will find that the minimum Limit volume you can set is the same as the maximum Threshold value. This basically means that, in any situation, the sound will start to attenuate at the threshold level, but will never be heard louder than the limit.

Distortion

While normally we do everything to reduce distortion, sometimes you want to add it. It is popular for use with guitars. The distortion is measured between 0.0 (off) and 1.0 (clipping). The level where it kicks in can also be specified in dB. For a more consistent sound, you should apply Dynamic Range Compression first before you add distortion.

Echo

An echo is a repeat of the sound after a short time. It can sound like the person or instrument is in a large stadium or is shouting between two mountains. Specify the duration and amplitude of the echo. The duration is the length of time after which the sound repeats - usually this is between 400 and 1000ms. The amplitude can be between 1 - 99% (99 being a very loud echo).

Phaser

A phaser is a sweeping effect achieved by filtering the signal creating a series of peaks and troughs in the frequency spectrum. Specify the delay and gain using the editable parameters which has a minimum and maximum value of 0 ms to 10 ms and 0% to 100% respectively.

Flanger

A Flanger sound effect is created by mixing a slightly delayed signal that is slowly modulated over time with the original. You specify the starting delay time (default 5ms), the frequency of modulation in times per second (default 0.5Hz which is 2 seconds) the depth of modulation (default 70%) and the wet dry gain (100% for wet, 0% for dry).

Telephone

This effect emulates the sound produced by a telephone. There are no editable parameter for this effect.

Tremolo

The tremolo sound effect is similar to the vibrato effect, except that the amplitude pulsates rather than the pitch. The higher the Frequency (Hz) set, the more often the pulsation will be heard, and the higher the Depth (%), the deeper the fluctuation in volume.

Wah-Wah

As the name suggests, the effect modulates a specified frequency band within the sample, which results in the characteristic "Wah wah" sound. The effect is a bandpass filter with its center frequency (not to be confused with the center frequency parameter, below) alternating between a min frequency and max frequency (specified by the center frequency and depth parameters) and from max frequency to min frequency. The frequency of alternating direction is represented as a triangular wave with a frequency specified by the wah frequency parameter.

Resonance: also known as Q or emphasis, this parameter controls the resonant peak of the bandpass filter. This value determines the sharpness of the wah-wah effect. Higher values produce more resonant/peaky tones.

Depth: this parameter determines the frequency range swept by the bandpass filter. Its range is specified as a percentage of the range (0 to center frequency). If the value of the percentage of the range (0, center frequency) is specified as X, the min and max frequencies are (center frequency - X) and (center frequency + X).

Center Frequency: This parameter is the center frequency of the bandpass filter sweep, and is used to determine the min and max frequencies as mentioned above.

Wah Frequency: This is the frequency of alternating the direction of the sweep, or the frequency of the wah-wah sound. It is the frequency of the triangular wave described above.

High-Pass Filter

A high-pass filter (sometimes called a low cut filter) removes all low frequencies below a specified Hz. This is useful if you want to make your recording sound 'clearer' or less 'muddy'. It is very usual to use a high-pass filter of about 300Hz on all voice recordings to improve intelligibility.

Low-Pass Filter

A low-pass filter (sometimes called a high cut filter) removes all high frequencies above a specified Hz.

Reverb

Reverb is many small randomized reflections of a sound that come after a set time. It is most noticeable in when someone is speaking in a room, hall, etc. When you record in a studio, there is usually very little reverb which can make the recording sound flat. Adding reverb to your tracks can help to make the recording feel more 'live.' The reverb level is the amplitude - 99 is very wet, 0 is dry. The time can be between 100 and 800ms - 200ms sounds like a small room or 800ms sound like a large hall.

Equalizer(Visual, Graphic, Parametric)

Please refer to topic "Equalizer".

Pitch Correction

Pitch correction is a powerful tool that can be used to make minor adjustments to a voice's pitch. Load a voice clip, select the part of the clip that needs to be adjusted, click the Pitch Correction button on the toolbar to open the pitch correction window.

In the Pitch Correction window, you can see the voice in notes. If needed, add some node points to the pitch line by clicking it, and drag the points to increase or decrease the pitch at the desired places. Remove a node point by right-clicking it. Changes will be applied before playback or when the dialog is being closed.

Please refer to topic "Pitch Correction Window".

Surround Sound

Please refer to topic "Surround Sound".