Stereo plugins on mono tracks

[TiiTsei]

This is one of my only major gripes with Cubase.

Any plugins inserted onto a mono audio track will result in the plugin being mono as well. For example a ping pong delay or autopan will just be mono, negating its effect. This is especially annoying with guitar or vocals, as there I often want to add some sort of stereo FX right on the track. You can record a mono signal to a stereo track, but then what’s the use of the mono track?

Steinberg, please fix.

[svennilenni]

@TiiTsei

This is one of my only major gripes with Cubase.

Any plugins inserted onto a mono audio track will result in the plugin being mono as well. For example a ping pong delay or autopan will just be mono, negating its effect. This is especially annoying with guitar or vocals, as there I often want to add some sort of stereo FX right on the track. You can record a mono signal to a stereo track, but then what’s the use of the mono track?

Steinberg, please fix.

There is Nothing to fix. A Mono track is mono and therefore anything that happens inside a mono track before the Output is also.

[vinylizor]

It basically comes back to the age old request of not having separate mono and stereo (or surround) tracks - just have tracks which adapt as necessary.

Currently, if you have a mono track with lots of processing and automation, and you decide you want to add a stereo autopanner, you either have to recreate the track on a new stereo channel, or use a stereo group channel to work around the issue.

It’s not end of the world to do this, but having tracks that auto adapt would be cool - so a valid feature request.

[mk1x86]

@Vinylizor

It’s not end of the world to do this, but having tracks that auto adapt would be cool - so a valid feature request.

Or at least allow to change it on the fly…

[Prock]

No need for a mono track… ever. Just record from your mono or stereo input bus to a stereo track.

To fix your vst effect issue just add a stereo audio track to your project and drag the events that are on the mono track to it.

Regards.

[vinylizor]

@Prock

No need for a mono track… ever. Just record from your mono or stereo input bus to a stereo track.

To fix your vst effect issue just add a stereo audio track to your project and drag the events that are on the mono track to it.

Regards.

This doesn’t always work as some mono plugins screw up the LR balance on a stereo track. You can sometimes use the Routing Tab in the Channel Strip to fix plugins that do this by breaking the Right link, but not always.

[Prock]

@Vinylizor

@Prock

No need for a mono track… ever. Just record from your mono or stereo input bus to a stereo track.

To fix your vst effect issue just add a stereo audio track to your project and drag the events that are on the mono track to it.

Regards.

This doesn’t always work as some mono plugins screw up the LR balance on a stereo track. You can sometimes use the Routing Tab in the Channel Strip to fix plugins that do this by breaking the Right link, but not always.

Interesting. I never experienced that. Do you have any examples of VSTs that act this way? I’d like to check it out.

Regards.

[Tarquam]

@Prock

@Vinylizor

@Prock

No need for a mono track… ever. Just record from your mono or stereo input bus to a stereo track.

To fix your vst effect issue just add a stereo audio track to your project and drag the events that are on the mono track to it.

Regards.

This doesn’t always work as some mono plugins screw up the LR balance on a stereo track. You can sometimes use the Routing Tab in the Channel Strip to fix plugins that do this by breaking the Right link, but not always.

Interesting. I never experienced that. Do you have any examples of VSTs that act this way? I’d like to check it out.

Regards.

It’s because mono plugins only handle the left channel

[Prock]

@Tarquam

@Prock

@Vinylizor

This doesn’t always work as some mono plugins screw up the LR balance on a stereo track. You can sometimes use the Routing Tab in the Channel Strip to fix plugins that do this by breaking the Right link, but not always.

Interesting. I never experienced that. Do you have any examples of VSTs that act this way? I’d like to check it out.

Regards.

It’s because mono plugins only handle the left channel

I’ve never heard any issues with any of my VSTs and I never use mono audio tracks. Just confirming… I record a mono source through a mono input bus to a stereo audio track. The mono audio file that gets recorded is exactly the same as if recorded on a mono audio track. All of my mono and stereo VSTs sound fine when inserted on that stereo track and played back.

Again… if you know of a specific mono VST that dosen’t work correctly when inserted on a stereo audio track recorded as previously mentioned please let me know so I try and compare. Thanks.

Regards.

[vinylizor]

Anything by Waves - got the Renaissance Compressor for example?
Put a mono version on a stereo track with a mono audio file. As you increase the gain reduction the signal will track off to the left.

[Prock]

@Vinylizor

Anything by Waves - got the Renaissance Compressor for example?
Put a mono version on a stereo track with a mono audio file. As you increase the gain reduction the signal will track off to the left.

Thank you for your reply. I don’t use any products from Waves. Maybe I have just been lucky with the VST products I own/use.

Just wondering… if you copied that same mono recording to a mono audio track and inserted the same Waves Renaissance Compressor on it, would it work correctly?

Regards.

[LesPaul2550]

(message deleted) no real answers.

[Tarquam]

Really, anything by Waves or UAD that says to be mono. In fact, I think it’s all VST2 plugins, because VST3 supports multichannel as needed

[svennilenni]

@LesPaul2550

In every other DAW I use there are 3 types of plugins. Mono2mono, Stereo2Stereo and Mono2Stereo. So what I’m getting from this thread is that Cubase doesn’t support mono to stereo plugins.

Yes it does. There is just no need for them in Cubase.

[LesPaul2550]

(message deleted) Not getting an actual answer so I’m outta here. “Just learn it” isn’t an answer to the question. Thanks anyway though.

[svennilenni]

@Vinylizor

@Prock

No need for a mono track… ever. Just record from your mono or stereo input bus to a stereo track.

To fix your vst effect issue just add a stereo audio track to your project and drag the events that are on the mono track to it.

Regards.

This doesn’t always work as some mono plugins screw up the LR balance on a stereo track. You can sometimes use the Routing Tab in the Channel Strip to fix plugins that do this by breaking the Right link, but not always.

Just like the other way round, you of course need to use stereo plugins in stereo tracks.

[svennilenni]

@LesPaul2550

Can you explain why I wouldn’t want to use 1/3 of the plugins I own (the other two thirds being the mono2mono and stereo2stereo versions).

Because they are more or less useless. Since in Cubase a Mono track is a mono track, and a stereo track is a stereo track.

@LesPaul2550

I think if you had been able to use Mono2Stereo plugins you’d see why there’s a need for them.

Learn Cubase and you will see why there is no need for them (in Cubase).

@LesPaul2550

One example… Let’s say I track a vocal on a mono track and wanted to put a stereo chorus, reverb or delay on it without having to resort to bussing to another track. In Pro Tools and Sonar I would simply put the mono 2 stereo version of my favorite chorus plugin on the track. The track stays mono but the output immediately switches to stereo with separate left and right pan knobs just as if it had been a stereo track all along. I don’t want to use a true stereo track because it’s a mono source and I think it’s really stupid and a waste of CPU and harddrive space to track mono sources in stereo (if that’s what was suggested in another message above).

Now honestly: A mono track that ouputs a stereo signal is not a mono track - no matter what it says on the label. A Mono track as per definiton has one channel, and therefore can not output a stereo Signal. If it does, it processes two channels. That is not mono.
Apart from that, It is not a waste of Harddisk space, since recording a mono input bus bus will record a mono file, not a stereo file. That´s what was said above. Additionally you can save space since you don´t need 2/3 of your plugins anymore…

@LesPaul2550

I’m not trying to hassle, I’m just trying to figure out why a workflow I’ve been using for about two decades is not possible if I switch to Cubase. Any help would be appreciated.

Because that´s how Cubase (and many Consoles since more than 5 decades) are designed.

[Nuieve]

I don’t know why mono tracks even still exist.

[Prock]

@Nuieve

I don’t know why mono tracks even still exist.

I agree but, if you read further back you will see that some say that certain “mono” VSTs only work properly when inserted on a mono track. For my current use I have never seen/heard of this concern. So for me… I still never use a mono audio track and my mono VSTs work fine when I record a mono source through a mono input bus to a stereo track.

Regards

[svennilenni]

@Prock

I agree but, if you read further back you will see that some say that certain “mono” VSTs only work properly when inserted on a mono track. For my current use I have never seen/heard of this concern. So for me… I still never use a mono audio track and my mono VSTs work fine when I record a mono source through a mono input bus to a stereo track.

Regards

Do you explicitely use mono Plugins?