Variety Of Sound has released preFIX, a pre-mixing and audio alignment tool which typically takes place upfront the mixing process. It's available for Windows as a VST effect plug-in and it is free.

preFIX provides a clever tool-set to clean-up, fix and align audio tracks (typically taken from recordings) concerning overall frequency correction, phase alignment, spatial stereo field corrections and routing. It contains a complete gate/expander solution with a dedicated and comprehensive sidechain filtering path as well.

Highlights:

• Smoothest audio frequency filtering.
• Comprehensive gate and expander audio treatments.
• Detailed phase corrections.
• Easy routing and stereo imaging changes.
• Plug-in specification:
  • Win32 / VST compatible.
  • State-of-the-art digital signal processing.
  • Performance-critical parts are written in assembler.
  • Completely SSE optimized.

Features:

• Main audio path filter:
  • Baxandall style shelving filter with pristine audio quality.
  • Smooth Butterworth high- and low-pass filter with switchable characteristics (12 and 24dB per octave).
  • Both are oversampled and match their analog model curve behavior.
• Sidechain path EQ and filter:
  • Whole spectrum "tilt style" balancing filter with adjustable center frequency.
  • Smooth Butterworth high- and lowpass filter with switchable characteristics (12 and 24dB per octave).
  • A dedicated parametric peaking EQ.
  • Internal/external sidechain switchable.
  • Sidechain listening option.
• Gate/Expander:
  • Adjustable threshold between -80 and +6dBFS.
  • Freely adjustable knee from hard- to soft-knee behavior up to 1:2 downward expander mode.
  • Range limiting option (floor).
  • Channel link switchable.
  • Envelope follower section with attack, hold and release control.
  • Attack timing features console style peak timings as well as two RMS modes.
  • Additional gate pre-open timing option.
• Phase alignment:
  • Analog style step-less signal phase corrections.
  • Detailed options for adopting phase response curve regarding polarity, frequency center and width.
  • Additional digital signal delay option.
  • Phase control switchable to channel 1, 2 or both.
• Advanced control:
  • Detailed output channel routing with six different modes.
  • Stereo image rotation option visually supported by a goniometer.
  • Output level control with special mono mode to mix in channel 1 and 2.