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The Master Bus

Every track in a multitrack session is mixed into the Master bus, and the master bus is what you hear and what you export. It sits at the right hand side of the mixer, next to the auxiliary bus.

Master Controls

Master bus controls and meters

  • 1 - Vol. (-60 dB to +12 dB)

    The level of the final mix. This is the last gain stage before the output, so watch the meters here rather than on individual tracks when checking for clipping.

  • 2 - Pan

    The placement of the final mix. In a session with a surround or immersive rendering format, this is a surround pan control rather than a rotary knob, exactly as on the tracks (see Working with Tracks).

    Master bus pan in Surround and Immersive formats

  • 3 - The processing chain button

    Opens a Processing Chain that is applied to the complete mix. This is where mastering processors belong — a Dynamics or Multiband Dynamics processor, an Equalize, and a Limit at the end of the chain.

  • 4 - Mono output

    Sums the master output to mono. Use it to check the mono compatibility of the mix: parts that disappear or change level when you engage it are cancelling out, which is worth fixing before delivery.

    The mono check is applied by the master bus itself and is not a monitoring-only setting, so remember to switch it off again before you export.

  • 5 - The master level meters

    Show the output level of the complete mix. The Loudness Meter and the other real-time analyzers also monitor the master output, so they show the mix with the master processing chain applied.

The Master Bus and Export

Export Audio File... renders the master bus, with the master processing chain applied, over the whole duration of the session and in the channel format of the session. See Saving, Loading and Exporting.

Because the export is taken from the master bus, anything you want in the delivered file has to be audible in the master bus. A soloed track or a muted one is exported exactly as you hear it.