# Mixing and panning tracks

## Using the Track Controls

You can adjust volume and panning per track on the left-hand side of any track:

![The Track Control Panel features a Volume Slider (+ to -) and a Panning Slider (L to R)](https://2387260374-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F-MhmBVzGzh8SctWQ6jPR%2Fuploads%2F0aIyyPMpPBgxoqE7V6rO%2Fimage.png?alt=media\&token=8afc9918-4bc6-4921-ba91-e49a4c103e0c)

{% hint style="info" %}
**Note:** If you collapse a track or make it vertically smaller, Audacity will hide the pan and volume sliders from view. To see them again, expand the track by dragging down on it's lower edge.
{% endhint %}

## Using the Mixer Board

You can access the Mixer Board via **View > Mixer Board**.

![](https://2387260374-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F-MhmBVzGzh8SctWQ6jPR%2Fuploads%2F3K7our4QH9Akv7IYq4AB%2Fimage.png?alt=media\&token=d36d81b9-8e19-41c4-b857-141dd42b865b)

This shows all track controls side-by-side, with a volume slider on the left per track, as well as per-track volume meters. 

By default, the icon for each track is the Audacity logo, but it can be changed if the track name contains the following keywords:

{% tabs %}
{% tab title="Misc. instruments" %}

* **acoustic piano, acoustic pno** = acoustic piano
* **back vocal, back vox, bg** = backing vocal
* **electric piano, electric pno, key** = electronic keyboard
* **loop** = loop track
* **sax** = saxophone
* **synth** = synthesizer
* **trumpet, horn** = generic brass instrument
* **turntable** = record player
* **vibraphone, vibes** = vibraphone
* **vocal, vox** = lead vocal
  {% endtab %}

{% tab title="String instruments" %}

* **acoustic guitar, acoustic gtr** = acoustic guitar
* **electric bass, bass, bs** = electric bass guitar
* **electric guitar, guitar, gtr** = (standard) electric guitar
* **string, violin, cello** = generic stringed instrument

{% endtab %}

{% tab title="Percussion" %}

* **clap** = handclaps
* **drums, dr** = drum kit
* **kick** = kick drum
* **perc** = percussion
* **snare** = snare drum
* **tambourine, tambo** = tambourine
  {% endtab %}
  {% endtabs %}

## Rendering the mix

Once you have your changes to mixing, panning and other real-time effects final and want to apply them onto the waveform itself, you can render the mix using **Tracks > Mix > Mix and Render**. This replaces all selected tracks with the mix. If you have used many tracks and real time effects, this may considerably improve performance. 

{% hint style="warning" %}
**Caution:** When rendering, all tracks are added onto each other, which may cause clipping. If this happens, undo the mix and lower the volume for all of your tracks. 
{% endhint %}

{% hint style="success" %}
**Best Practice:** If you have a several stereo tracks, but don't need a stereo-effect for them (ie. any left/right panning), consider mixing down to mono using **Tracks > Mix > Mix Stereo Down to Mono**. Exporting a mono track to a lossy format (like MP3) will let you have a higher quality at the same bitrate, or let you use a lower bitrate (and thus lower file size) at the same bitrate.
{% endhint %}


---

# Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation

If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question.

Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter:

```
GET https://support.audacityteam.org/audio-editing/mixing-and-panning-tracks.md?ask=<question>
```

The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language.
The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation.

Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.