[Solved] Mixing/Mastering with Outboard Gear

Steinberg Lounge
1

Hi,

I couldn’t think of a better place to post this question, let me know if this belongs someplace else. I’m running Cubase 10.5 pro and I’ve been interested in delving into the mastering side of things. So, I have Wavelab Pro 10 as well. I send my mixdowns into Wavelab totally fine. I check my mono mix to make sure everything sounds fine and do the same in mastering, which it does.

Now my problem. I also have an SSL Fusion to add that analog feel and I’m using it for mastering. I have it routed into the FX side of things for Wavelab and everything runs fine, except when I check it in mono everything that I mixed in the Center is just gone. The main vocals I recorded completely disappear in the middle. I’ve been scouring the internet for a few hours and the most I’ve found is an offhand comment in a forum about how “you need to watch out for this”, but no explanation…

Is there an article or something anyone knows about on what I’m doing wrong? Is my mix messed up? Is it a breakdown in the mastering process? I understand the stereo image is probably way too wide, but how else do you handle a piece of outboard gear that uses L/R inputs/outputs? As soon as I remove the Fusion from the mastering chain everything works fine and vocals are back in the middle. All the mastering videos out there are for basic stuff, whereas I want to know why my vocals are fine in mono in my mix and why they disappear when I engage this outboard gear?

Thanks to anyone that knows a resource that I can look up/read.

-Adam

2

If your center signals vanish on monoing, you most probably have some kind of polarity reversal between the left and right channel. This can be caused by a lot of things, like output- / input polarity of the sending or receiving device, but also by using wrong or wrongly soldered cables.

3

I’ve tried chasing down the cable issue. I’m using brand new cables from Mogami and Telefunken and I’m not sure these would have faulty soldering.

I just don’t know if it would have something to do with my original mix down with the vocals being routed into a Stereo group? Would that affect this kind of thing as I bounce the mix from Cubase to Wavelab?

Or should things just kind of work? I notice that from cubase my mix is pretty mid focused, but as soon as I split the signal L/R into the outboard gear suddenly it’s much different than it originally was. Should this be happening?

4

Ok, I chased down the problem with the polarity issue. Everything is fixed. Somehow a button on my interface got flipped.

5

You´re welcome.