Docs / Getting Started / Interface Tour

Interface Tour

This tour covers the Advanced console — the full mixing desk. New to audio, or just want the easy, mostly-automated view? See Simple mode, and switch between the two with the Simple / Advanced toggle in the menu bar.

One window, five zones. From top to bottom:

The whole Aura Mixer window: menu bar across the top, monitor bar below it, then the mixer (input channels on the left, VCA groups in the middle, output buses on the right), the config screen for the selected strip beneath, and the engine status bar at the very bottom.
The five zones of the window — menu bar, monitor bar, mixer, config screen, status bar.

① Menu bar

Five entries, each opening a window:

EntryOpensWhat for
ScenesScenes / SnapshotsSave and recall complete mixer setups (6 slots, import/export).
WorkshopWorkshopBrowse and install community presets and packs; manage your installed library (rename / delete / import / export). Per-processor presets are saved and applied straight from each panel's PRESET ▾.
ChannelsChannel ManagerAdd, remove and reorder inputs, outputs and VCA groups.
RoutingRouting matrixThe big grid: which inputs feed which outputs.
SettingsSettingsDriver mode, buffer size, theme, startup behaviour, About.
Account (far right)Account windowSign in, manage your license and devices, upgrade to Premium. A PRO badge shows when Premium is active. See Accounts & Premium.
Close-up of the menu bar: Scenes · Workshop · Channels · Routing · Settings on the left, Account button (with a PRO badge when Premium is active) on the far right.
The menu bar — five entries on the left, account on the far right.

When a new version is available, a blue ⬆ Update badge appears next to Settings — click it to review and install (Updates).

Between Settings and the account button sits the Simple / Advanced view toggle — flip to the easy, mostly-automated view anytime (see Simple mode). It's the same mixer either way; switching loses nothing.

② Monitor bar

Your "control room" — it decides what you hear, without touching the mix anyone else receives.

  • MONITOR dropdown — pick which bus you're listening to (Main L+R, any physical or virtual output).
  • ● CLR SOLO — lights up when any channel is soloed anywhere; click to clear all solos at once.
  • VOL fader + readout — your listening volume only. Double-click resets it.
  • DIM — instantly drops monitoring by −20 dB (toggle). For when someone walks in mid-session.
  • 🎬 Scene chip — shows the active scene's name, if one is loaded.
  • OUT — the device the Main bus is playing to (configure it in Main L+R → SETUP).
  • ▶ / ⏹ + status dot — start/stop the audio engine. Green dot = running. A appears here if the engine hits an error — hover it for details.
Close-up of the monitor bar: MONITOR dropdown, ● CLR SOLO indicator, VOL fader with dB readout, DIM toggle, Scene chip, OUT device, and the ▶ / ⏹ play-stop button with engine status dot at the far right.
The monitor bar — your "control room" sits between the menu and the mixer.

③ The mixer

The heart of the app, in three sections from left to right:

Input channel strips

One strip per source. Top to bottom:

  • SELECT — opens this channel in the config screen (④).
  • M / S — mute and solo.
  • Name + icon, with a colour tag you can customise.
  • Type badgePHYS (mic/line-in/virtual cable), LOOP (whole device), APP (single application). More in Input Channels.
  • EQ / FX / SP — badges for the active specific processors.
  • Fader + dB scale + VU meter — level control and live metering. Surround sources show one meter bar per speaker channel.
  • dB readout — the fader's exact position.

Fader gestures: drag to set; scroll the mouse wheel for fine moves; double-click to reset to 0 dB. These gestures work on virtually every slider and knob in the app — and clicking a value lets you type one in.

A row of input channel strips, each showing SELECT, M / S buttons, name + icon + colour tag, type badge (PHYS / LOOP / APP), processor badges (EQ / FX / SP), the fader with its dB scale, VU meter, and dB readout.
Input channel strips — one per source, every gesture lives top to bottom.

VCA groups

Group faders. A VCA strip moves the level of every channel assigned to it — proportionally, without rerouting any audio. Classic use: one "GAME" fader for five game-related channels.

The VCA groups section in the middle of the mixer — group strips with linked input channels lighting up to show which channels follow each group.
VCA group strips — one fader rides many channels, no rerouting.

Output buses

Same strip anatomy as inputs, but each represents a destination: the Main L+R master, your headphones, or a virtual output feeding OBS or Discord. Each bus carries its own independent mix.

The output buses section on the right side of the mixer — Main L+R plus extra buses (e.g. Stream, Headphones), each with its own fader and meter.
Output buses — each carries its own independent mix to a destination.

④ Config screen

Press SELECT on any strip and this area shows everything about it. Two parts:

Left panel — dynamics. Always visible for the selected strip:

  • For an input channel: GATE and COMP (noise gate and compressor), each with presets, RESET and an ON switch.
  • For an output bus: LIMITER and DELAY.

Right panel — tabs. Depending on what's selected:

SelectedTabs
Input channelHOME · EQ · SENDS · FX · SPATIAL · SETUP
Output busHOME · EQ · SENDS · SETUP
VCA groupHOME · MBR (members) · SETUP
The config screen with an input channel selected — left panel showing GATE and COMP (each with their PRESET ▾ / RESET / ON switch), right panel showing the tab row HOME · EQ · SENDS · FX · SPATIAL · SETUP.
The config screen for the selected strip — dynamics on the left, tabs on the right.

Quick orientation:

  • HOME — the channel at a glance: input/output meters, GAIN and PAN knobs, phase invert, pad, a clickable signal-flow strip showing which processors are active, and PEAK/CLIP counters.
  • EQ — parametric equalizer with a draggable curve, up to 12 bands.
  • SENDS — fine level control of this strip's feeds to buses.
  • FX — the insert effects rack (reverb, delay, de-esser, noise suppressor…).
  • SPATIAL — stereo width, balance, Haas delay and binaural HRTF positioning.
  • SETUP — the source/destination device, channel mode, calibration and housekeeping.

⑤ Status bar

One line of engine vitals, updated every second:

Running | 48000 Hz | Latency: 10.0 ms | CPU: 2.3% | Ovr: 0 | Und: 0
  • Latency — buffer-induced delay, set by the buffer size in Settings → Audio.
  • CPU — how much processing the DSP engine is using.
  • Ovr / Und — overruns and underruns: moments where audio data arrived too fast or too late. Occasional ticks are harmless; steadily climbing numbers mean crackles — see Crackling and latency in Troubleshooting.
Close-up of the status bar at the very bottom of the window, showing the live engine vitals string (Running | 48000 Hz | Latency | CPU | Ovr | Und).
The status bar — one line of engine vitals at the bottom of the window.
stuck? ask on Discord
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