Diary of VST Connect Pro Project with Encountered Issues

Chewy_Papadopoulos · January 15, 2025, 10:18pm

I have just begun a VST Connect Pro audiobook project between here in Santa Monica, CA and Boston, MA.

I am starting this thread to document the various issues that have consistently come up when working with projects like this. I am NOT starting this thread to spuriously complain about anything other than genuine, practical issues I’ve run into across multiple projects of this nature. I love being able to use VST Connect Pro, and reiterate that I’d be highly motivated to help troubleshoot the issues identified here.

I’ll try to approach this evaluation chronologically.

NOTE: whenever issues have been encountered, I’ve tested connection speeds on both the Studio and Performer sides, and thus far they have consistently reported as running at full potential (200/100 mb/sec on my side, 100/50 on the Performer side). Both sides are using wired connections.

As you’ll see, there were discrepancies between the content and file length on the first day with the HD and local files. That might have been a disaster, but fortunately the local files’ sound was functionally identical to the HD files and I was able to patch them together with no loss of material. Still… not the way we’d like things to go.

This happened for me many times over three different Mac systems (on my end) and both Mac and Windows on the Performer side.

DAY 1

Started with full bars on both Studio and Performer sides. After half an hour or so of recording, connection (as indicated by the green horizontal bars on the Studio side) started to degrade. Sync light remained green until recording stopped/ studio sync lost after approximately 1 hour of recording. Result:

16-bit files recorded directly to Studio computer (me) have all data, glitch-free.

24-bit files uploaded from Performer side (a Windows laptop, but I’ve had this happen on Macs as well) full of dropouts and glitches at point of interruption.

Workaround: Restart Nuendo and Performer Connect. Logging in again seems to reset the connection and recording continues as expected.

OBSERVATION Starting with full connection bars on both the Studio and Performer sides; the connection appears to degrade over time (generally the course of an hour), and is made better by logging off and logging on again. Happens consistently, and has been the case with every lengthy project I’ve done thus far.

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DAY 2

Same situation with the connection bars degrading over time. Repeated process as described above and behavior was just as previously reported.

Made a point of having both myself and the client log off after downloading the HD files for each chapter. With this (inconvenient) protocol implemented, there was no loss of audio.

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DAY 3 is coming up tomorrow; will report issues, if any.

I again offer my strong motivation and desire to pitch in on identifying and helping to cure these issues as reported. I produce and direct a good number of audiobooks–they even took me to the Grammys last year (not proud; just trying to establish bona fides and to promote my sincere wish to participate in making this software as reliable as it can be under the fairly rigorous way I use it). I love the concept and, for most part, the execution of VST Connect Pro. I am not a crank! I’ll keep using it… but these problems have come up over and over again.

Hope somebody finds this useful,
Chewy

DVance · January 16, 2025, 11:28am

That is a very useful contribution!

Chewy_Papadopoulos · January 17, 2025, 5:55pm

Yesterday we wrapped recording and…

DAY 3 was a little more fraught!

Significant problems today getting a decent signal into VST Connect Pro.

Upon first connection, connection bar on Studio side was at about half… then red lights, full signal loss… then the connection seemed to reset itself (for lack of a better explanation, and then full bars on both Studio and Performer side. Which worked great for about 45 minutes until…

Experienced glitching with both status bars full. As always, tested the connection on both sides and they were performing at speed. Upon restarting Nuendo and Performer Connect effective connection was restored.

Ran Onyx on my side, but same thing happened after about an hour of connectivity— became glitchy and restart was necessary.

OBSERVATION

Download of HD files maxes at 1.48 mb/sec, which seems strange considering 200 mb/sec download on my side and 400 on the client end, with 100 mb/sec upload for both.

And so ended this particular project’s VST Connect Pro phase.

Conclusions:

First and foremost: the project got done. Not as elegantly and smoothly as one may have hoped (that “one” being me), but the recording part of this 30+ hours’ worth of recording was completed in a manner that would have otherwise involved a remote studio, Zoom, additional engineer, etc. All in all absolutely worth the trouble.
There are continuing problems with VST Connect/Performer Connect that ought to be examined and dealt with. Even if it’s a matter of implementing a testing function within the plugin and app to identify the source of these issues. As previously noted, I have used VST Connect Pro since the first available version over a variety of platforms, computer installations, software versions and ISP sources. The problems I’ve identified are common to all of them. Again, this is in the context of recording long stretches of narration, sometimes over the course of more than an hour at a time.
The VST Connect documentation is basic, at best. When I’m working with other people I typically refer them to VST Connect In-Depth Information & Troubleshooting to help them understand how this all works. I think it would be great if more of the article’s info were included in the documentation.

Also-- and this may well be user error, and if there’s anybody out there who can correct me if I’m wrong, please do-- but the user guide suggests that there’s an Autosave feature in VST Connect (see excerpt). I have not been able to locate it. Is the guide suggesting that VST Connect settings are saved as part of Nuendo’s autosave feature? Considering that it’s listed in the “settings” section, I assume not. The feature, if it exists, would have been very handy after some of these restarts when the ordering and assignment of inputs got “reorganized” (Mic, Inst and other inputs reordered; they all worked after input reassignment, regardless…then mysteriously returned to their expected positions upon further restarts… no idea why).

And so ends the VST Connect portion of this project.

Again, I have a feeling that there aren’t a lot of us working VST Connect the way I do-- over long sessions, etc. I want very much for this software to be as reliable as it can possibly be. I am available for test-driving this stuff, and my crew of editors, both here in California and overseas are enthusiastic about pitching in as well.

It is true that some of the issues I consistently experience with VST Connect have me pulling my hair out at times-- especially when in the middle of a session with a not necessarily tech-savvy narrator-- but ultimately the software’s allowing me to do things that would otherwise be much more difficult-- and expensive. Let’s fix it! Or… if it’s identifiably user error, let’s find a way of explaining it more clearly.

Any thoughts from anyone on this?

Chewy