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→Input Monitoring
There is often an <u>input monitor</u> button per track. This sends the input stream from the audio track to the software output ''when the track is record armed''. Essentially, what you hear before you press record is exactly what will be recorded.
Hardware interfaces generally provide a ''[[Interface Setup#Inputs/Mixer|software mixer'' ]] to control the hardware. This determines where each hardware input is routed in software. It also usually includes an option to enable ''<u>direct'' monitoring</u> (or ''<u>hardware monitoring'' </u>) of any of its inputs. This routes the audio going into that input directly to the output without having to be routed through the computer's operating system and other software. '''The advantage of direct monitoring is that there is minimal latency.''' For non-acoustic instruments that use heavy audio processing like electric guitar, this is a very good thing. Trying to play guitar but not hearing your playing until a 10th of a second or more throws off the feel and timing of the player.
When trying to set up your DAW and track inputs, hardware direct monitoring can be misleading. The sound from the hardware direct monitor might be fine, but the track you want to record that audio might be set incorrectly, so that it only records noise, the wrong audio source, or silence. Rather than trying to record a test clip, then play it back; it's often simpler to disable hardware direct monitoring on the interface and enable software monitoring. This may mean you are hearing more latency, and it is difficult to play in-time while recording; but it will quickly demonstrate if your track is recording correctly. What you hear from the software monitor is exactly what your recording will sound like. You will also hear any processing the DAW performs on the signal, such as level changes, panning, or [[#Inserts|insert plugins]], which are bypassed in direct monitoring.
'''When actually recording, I recommend turning off software monitoring and using your device's hardware direct monitoring to remove the disorienting nature of latency'''. If your interface has very low latency, however, the difference may be negligible. Then, software monitoring is preferable, as it makes sure you don't accidentally record a difficult part perfectly only to later find out you weren't properly set up to record it. ''If both hardware direct and software monitoring are enabled, you may get a phasy or comb-filtered type sound because both sources will be sent to output. They will be slightly out-of-sync, causing the unwanted effect. Make sure to use only one or the other.''
''NOTE: Modern DAW software is equipped to know what the audio latency from your input source is and time-shift the resulting recording so that you never know it existed.'' When recording, you should play in-time with the click track and/or other tracks.