MixPad Professional Audio Mixer Editor's Review

Mix digital tracks with this easy to use Windows application.

Anybody who has made music or likes to mix tracks of any kind needs a decent mixer. With the introduction of computers to the masses, more and more people are bringing audio mixing to their bedrooms and basements. This is one reason why I like MixPad Audio Mixer. It’s a multitrack mixing suite for Windows.

MixPad Audio Mixer is a digital multitrack mixing suite. It can mix and process more than 100 tracks at once in most audio formats, and it can also extract audio from video files as well as rip CDs. Its media-player-like buttons and time indicators give MixPad's interface a familiar feel. The main window displays each track horizontally within its own control console. The setup options involve selecting a recording device and output folder, while the Audio options included sample rate and other specifications.

Each track in your mix can be comprised of a number of different clips. You can view the clips in each track by selecting the optional Clip Manager on the View menu opened a right-hand panel. MixPad can manage dozens of tracks and clips, so this is a handy feature and it can toggle it closed when you don't need it.

MixPad's extensive zoom and expand controls let you view entire audio clips or individual passages of a clip in tiny fractions.  The Pan slider can shift the sound of a particular track from the right to the left channel or vice-versa. Pressing the Fx button allows you to string together a chain of effects to apply in sequence. We were also able to change tracks' playback speed to synchronize speed and pitch.

App Pro’s: Extensive controls, Clip manager

App Con’s: 14 day trial, expensive for an app you may not use everyday, basic knowledge of track mixing is required to gain the most value from the tool

Conclusion: MixPad Audio Mixer provides professional level tools that should be easy enough for just about anyone with a reasonable amount of audio mixing knowledge to use to create professional sounding mixes. The app is easy enough to use and understand, but unless you're looking for something for a specific event – a big party, wedding or other gathering – or are a semi-serious/semi-professional DJ, its somewhat elevated cost and short trial may reduce its overall appeal and value.