VST instruments in left channel only

n-Track Studio Discussion Forum
1

mono VSTi’s to use both L & R busses?

2

Just checking out version 4.0 to see if I want to buy it. Love most of it. Intuitive interface etc.

A few stability issues regarding my ASIO drivers, but hopefully not terminal.

My biggest issue at the moment is in using a VSTi drum synth. I can only get it to output to the left channel in the mixer. I’ve tried a couple of VSTi plugins and they seem to have the same problem. I’m wondering if the VSTi setup assumes a stereo signal and there doesn’t seem to be any option to make a mono one use both tracks.

Any ideas? ???

3

Don’t add the VSTi instrument as an effect. Instead, click ‘track / midi / new VSTi instrument channel’ and select it from there.

4

Well, that’s actually what I’ve been doing all along…so, no fix there unfortunately.
:(

5

You are sure there are no MIDI pan events panning things? Just a thought.

6

What version of n-Track? - I’m running 3.3 and it’s fine.

7

Piano VSTi (freeware);
mda Piano VSTi

Test song file (one MIDI track outputting to the piano VSTi);
Test song file

First, save the piano dll into your VST directory, then open the sgw file and hit play and see if it works.

This works fine for me on v3.3

[edit]
Oh just spotted you are trying v4.0 - So I’m not sure if the above will work. If v3.3 is still available for download, try it out in that to see if you have the same problem. It could just be a bug in v4.0[/edit]

8

Sounds like a pan event in the MIDI track to me. (CC#10)

9

As a follow on…

Is that the same idea as with soft-synths (as jhonan says for VST insts)?

I’m particularly new to using them – I tried to add one as an effect but got the track muted.

In general how do you use asuch a thing - a software synth????


- DO you add some midi notes on the track from sowehere else (e.g., a midi file) and then fix the playing parameters from the softsynth????

- what about rhythms?? -

I got to say i dont understand the whole working of it at this point as a begginer…

any pointers welcome


g

10

Soft synths are VSTi as well (assuming they have a VSTi wrapper and aren’t some kind of standalone thing)…

There are two types of VST;

VST - These are effects, things like reverb, compression etc. You insert these into a track.

VSTi - These are instruments, things like piano modules, drums synths, fruity loops, soft synths. Don’t add these like an effect on a track, but instead click 'track / midi / new VSTi instrument channel’

Depending on the type of VSTi, you either send a MIDI channel to it (so the MIDI data goes from n to the VSTi and the audio comes back from the VSTi into n), or if the VSTi is more complex you might find it has it’s own front-end (something like Fruity Loops)

Fruity Loops, for example, is just a VSTi instrument, but it is in fact a whole application. You add it just like any other VSTi instrument in n, but you click on the FL icon to open up FL and let you edit drum tracks etc. The audio goes back into n, like any other VSTi)

Something like a soft synth, or the mda Piano I mentioned above, you add it as a VSTi instrument, and then route a MIDI channel to it. You can also send a MIDI signal directly to it so you can play it directly from your keyboard. So, generally, you record the MIDI from your keyboard into n, and then send the MIDI channel to the VSTi instrument, so the sound you hear is coming from the softsynth.

This is quite difficult to explain, the best way is to try it for yourself. The important thing to remember is the difference between VST (effects) and VSTi (instruments) and how they are used differently in n-Track.

11

Thanks for the test files jhonan. As advertised, they work perfectly.

However the piano VSTi you’ve used is a stereo instrument, which is great, but the one I’m trying to use is mono, and has multiple outputs, which are inconveniently…all mono!!

The VSTi in question is this ers drums and here’s a song created in N 4.0 with a drumtrack in all it’s full casiotone glory leftonly song. If you don’t have 4.0, just create any old drum track and try to use the ers drums VSTi and see if you can get anything but the left channel.

I guess one solution would be to fish around for a VSTi drum instrument that was stereo, but it seems kind of crazy not to be able to use the mono ones, and … I’m in a stubborn mood.

12

oh yeah, and I forgot to say… no midi pan events happening anywhere, it’s just straight down the middle all the way.

13
Quote (safari @ Sep. 15 2004,08:09)
I guess one solution would be to fish around for a VSTi drum instrument that was stereo, but it seems kind of crazy not to be able to use the mono ones, and ... I'm in a stubborn mood.

Well, I tried ersdrums, and you'll be pleased to know you're not going mad. I just can't get the kick to stop panning hard left.

The funny thing is, the crash seems to be panned right. Perhaps the panning is hardcoded into the app or something?

So, I'll tell you what I normally do in a situation where an app just won't do a basic function that I really need. I uninstall it and find something that will! :;):

John.

P.S. Like.... fruity loops perhaps? :-)
14
oh yeah, and I forgot to say... no midi pan events happening anywhere, it's just straight down the middle all the way.
Look at the MIDI Event list to make sure. If there are any other MIDI tracks in the song look at them as well...any tracks on the same MIDI Channel.

Does inserting MIDI Pan events affect the panning at all?

Is the source stereo or mono? If it's a mono-only vst then it is probably sending to just one side. The workaround is to add an effect like MDA Image set to 0 width. That can be used to change stereo spread. In this case it is being used to bring one side to the center.

It probably is something else that MIDI Pan, but I'm try to cover the panning issue completely. I've seen this problem a few times in MIDI apps (vst hard panned is new to me) and it's always been a stray pan event issue. I'm really interested in knowing what it might be.
15

Download the VSTi and try it for yourself;

http://home.swiftdsl.com.au/~jeffweb/VSTi%20stuff/ersdrums_1_1.zip

I tried everything. I checked the MIDI events, I mucked around with panning, (midi panning and audio panning) - I looked at every possible setting in the VSTi, and I even tried sending the VSTi track to Aux1 and panning that way. But nothing worked…

And there’s a point where you have to ask yourself how much more time you want to spend on a problem like this! :)

16

Kick #36 and Snare #38 are panned to the left. Kick #38 is panned over to the right. Other sounds are similarly panned.

This is the way ErsDrums are hard coded. You need to go back the where ever it came from and complain. This isn’t an n-Tracks or MIDI problem.

Thanks for the link, jhonan.

You can center things up using the MDA Image (or other) effect, after the vst. That’ll be your only workaround until Andreas Ersson makes a change.

That said, the hard coded panning COULD be in the soundbank. I suspect this is the case. Other compatible soundbanks might be the ticket.

17

Yep, you do have to ask yourself how long you want to wrestle these things. The mda image effect plug in is a pretty good workaround for the problem, so I’ll go with that for the moment. Having said that, an option to mono a channel in the mixer section of N (like you can with the master channel) would be a handy addition.

Thanks for the input everyone.

18

Thanks man! i got it!!

just to pass on the information,
I made a midi track (just imported a midi file)
did what you said (track/midi/VSTi -> this dpesnt show on the tracks put only on the master mixer)
and then from the midi track pop up menu (left click) i send Output to the soft synth

It’s cool!!!


regards

g