Does this plugin exist?

  • Thread starter Thread starter cfg
  • Start date Start date
cfg

cfg

Member
Is there such a plugin that takes a stereo signal and varies the amount of width down to mono? There is a mono switch on my daw, but I was thinking that it would be interesting to be able to vary the amount of width to a given mix. Maybe there is a way to do it which I'm unaware of.
 
A basic mid-side processor (not necessarily one for mid-side mics) should let you do that. That might be essentially the same as a stereo processor Chili mentions.

In my DAW I can duplicate the track and make one track just the left channel and one track just the right channel, then use the pan knobs to narrow the image.
 
Great. Thanks for the replies. I recently downloaded Voxengo's free mid-side processor and will try that.
 
wAVES - S1 Stereo Imager will do that and more.
 
I don’t think Voxengo’s free MSED will do exactly what you describe. I used to use it regularly for rebalancing an IEM mix I recorded when I was playing at a church 6+ years ago. Great tool but you can’t variably narrow the S component - just change the relative balance and pan of it and the M part. At least IIRC. (Of course they might have updated it’s features since then - guess I should see if there’s an update!)
 
MS processing isn't really necessary. All you really need to do is pan the two existing channels closer to center. In Reaper there's a Width knob on every track that does exactly that. In the default Pan Mode, that knob is "hidden" in the I/O panel, but I use it all the time. If your DAW doesn't have something like that, you might have to split the stereo track to separate mono tracks.
 
cfg said:
Is there such a plugin that takes a stereo signal and varies the amount of width down to mono? There is a mono switch on my daw, but I was thinking that it would be interesting to be able to vary the amount of width to a given mix. Maybe there is a way to do it which I'm unaware of.
Click to expand...

What daw are you using? I feel like this should be built in...

Failing that splitting into two mono tracks (each with a pan knob) works fine, as mentioned.
Stereo imagine plugins, as Chili says, should be able to do it too.
 
You can get iZotope's Ozone Stereo Imager for free here:
Free Product Fulfillment

You'll have to provide an email and make sure to capture the SN so you can authorize it on first use. Does exactly what you want. Here's a stereo track (solo guitar, so not very wide) and you can see a snapshot of the stereo image as on the CD and then when dialed down to mono.

imager-stereo.webp

imager-mono.webp
 
Thanks for all replies. Steenamaroo, I am using Reaper, and it probably has one buried in there somewhere, but I seem to like third party plugins better for some (probably illogical) reason. Thanks Keith, I downloaded the Izotope plugin, and it works great! Although I haven't quite figured out what stereoize is, but I'll have to read the manual.
 
In my old version of Reaper you just right-click the pan knob and select dual pan.
 
Not sure if this is what you're looking for but you could take a look at Boz's Pan Knob plugin... if that's what you're looking for.
 
bouldersoundguy said:
In my old version of Reaper you just right-click the pan knob and select dual pan.
Click to expand...
In default Mono Pan (Stereo Balance) mode, there's a Width knob in the I/O panel for the track. In Stereo Pan mode, the width knob is right there on the MCP with the Pan though the pan knob will work a bit differently. Then there's Dual Pan where you just have a separate Pan knob for each channel right on the MCP.

In Reaper the only reason you might need a plugin for this is if you really want it to come before other plugins on the track. But yes, there is a JS plug that will do it also.
 
Take a look at Sennheisers Ambeo Orbit. Free plugin for binaural mixing. 0-100% width , panning "Anywhere". Mark ..
 
If you wanted it to happen before or even between effects, you can use the plugin routing pins to do it. Then you get to decide if you're throwing away one side or the other or summing them together. If you sum them, you may need to compensate for gain.
 
In Reaper, when you click on the Track Envelope/Automation button, one of the options is 'Width'.

The advantage of using a Width envelope is that you can shape it exactly how you want the track to expands into stereo (or the reverse)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top