mixing console

audio technology

Also known as: mixer, mixing desk

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Last updated

July 19, 2026

Quick Summary

A mixing console, also known as a mixing board, is a control panel used to combine and adjust audio signals for performances or recordings. In motion-picture production, this process is called mixing, rerecording, or dubbing. It involves combining various sound elements, such as dialogue, music, and sound effects, which are often recorded separately and then layered together.12

A sound mixer controls the volume and tone of sounds picked up by microphones to achieve desired effects for recording. Modern mixing consoles, especially in film, can handle numerous tracks, allowing for precise adjustments to loudness and sound quality. Advances in technology, including computerized consoles, enable mixers to correct mistakes without redoing entire segments, significantly improving the efficiency and quality of the final audio mix.32

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Technological innovations of the 20th century
Through the use of a playback mixing console (also called a mixer or a mixing desk), the sound operator could direct the sound for a particular cue to its appropriate location at a specific loudness level. It therefore became possible for one operator to run all of the sound cues…
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Through the use of a playback mixing console (also called a mixer or a mixing desk), the sound operator could direct the sound for a particular cue to its appropriate location at a specific loudness level. It therefore became possible for one operator to run all of the sound cues…
Read More