When we use plugins in our mix, we’re either replacing the input signal with our processed signal (regular compression is a good example), or adding to the input signal, which is usually the case with delay or reverb.
DAWs, much like hardware mixing desks, provide us with two systems – inserts and auxiliaries – to achieve these tasks. However, individual DAW plugins often include some kind of wet/dry mix blend. If you couple this with a virtually limitless supply of plugins it becomes perfectly feasible to mix a track and not use auxiliaries at all.
