Free-G and SLM128 vs Windows 10/Cubase Elements 8

I use Cubase Elements on Windows 10. I have two questions:

  1. Will Sonalksis Free-G work on Win 10? According to the Sonalksis website, it seems to be compatible only with Win 7, not higher.

  2. I installed the SLM128 VST 3 meter. However, it doesn’t show up in Cubase. I’ve checked and it is installed where it should be, in the VST 3 folder in Windows.

Any help would be much appreciated.

Best,

Magnus

No one has any experience of this?

/Magnus

Yes Free-G works fine. It’s useless for automating though since it’s VST2.4, so the automation lane only shows an arbitrary 0-100 scale.

If I want to automate volume post inserts and not via the channel fader I use the gain control of the free BX_Cleansweep which is VST3 so shows you db values when automating.

Hi barryfell,

And thanks for clearing that up regarding Free-G. I will have a look at the BX_Cleansweep, too.

Best,

Magnus

So, is anyone using SLM128 in Cubase (Elements) 8? I am trying to figure out why it doesn’t show up in my Cubase Elements 8.

I would really appreciate any comments here.

/Magnus

To replace both the SLM & Free-G try the HOFA 4U Meter, Fader & MS-Pan

It has EBU, LRA meterng plus a drag+drop analyze peak & EBU R128 level of audio files

Thanks soul patch. I will do as recommended.

Best,

Magnus

Thx for these recs!

Took a look at the HOFA website, seems quite nice.

Is there any downside to downloading this free-ware (HOFA, bx_Cleansweep), maybe in terms of pop-ups, problems running Cubase, etc.? I know in days gone by many people said that freeware came with costs like that … I didn’t know if that was true nowadays, in these cases.

Thanks!

Grab bx_solo while at it, very useful not only for M/S recording, and has a very clean stereo widener.
Then there are real gems like limiter6 that is IMHO one of the best limiters at any price, this one just happens to be free :slight_smile:

Hi peakae - thanks for those recommendations!

I took a look at limiter6 … I will probably download it when I am finished with the project I’m working on, it looks complicated enough that it will take a bit of a learning curve.

For my M/S, I am using the free Voxengo plug-in, not so much for recording, but (for example) on this project moving the piano wide so as to leave space for voice in the middle. Would you know if bx_solo is worth replacing the Voxengo, or are they both doing about the same thing?

Thanks much!

i don’t know if I would replace the voxengo msed (if that is the one you think of) but I like bx_solo for the stereo widener and as a quick mono maker.
Limiter6 takes some getting used to, the compressor part of it can make a huge difference, and is worth spending some time with. It can be demanding on the CPU, I use it mostly on the master bus.
But also the Molot compressor from the same site is worth looking into, it offers something different to what any of the built in Cubase compressors do. I have used those plugins for years without any stability issues, that is my main concern when using free stuff.
Sorry for steering us a little off topic.

Thanks again, Mauri. It’s timely, as I used a brick wall limiter for the first time yours weekend on the master bus. I used the sick Cubase one, no issues, but I’m sure it might sound better with something like Limiter 6.

Back on topic … That free HOFA fader plug-in mentioned above - anybody using it on W10 without stability problems? I always worry about freeware and stability problems …

I use the Hofa 4U plugins with win10x64, no issues. The user interface in the Hofa plugins takes a little getting used to, but they are clearly made by someone that actually use them. Hofa is a studio with some great engineers working for them. They develop, and sell room treatment, do education both online and on site. So the knowledge from the studio, flows into the products they sell. The Goniometer is really nice, and the ProjectTime is really a clever little helper to measure how much time you spend on a project.

Thanks for that, peakae! I’ll probably grab HOFA meter then for my next project. I’m tired of the 0-100 automation of the Free-G ones.