Something strange happened to me on the way to the mix bus

[Jules]

So you build your digital mix engine.. and then folks using it get their audio to jump through lots of hoops via plug ins..

Whats the point of a nice audio engine / mixer if plug ins 'mug' the audio along the way..?

My questions are

- Do you see there being good plug ins and bad plug ins?

- Do you think folks will soon be able to see labels for plug ins that say,- 'this is a 64 bit plug in - all the way - from input to output" as a seal of approval? Or something to prove to potential users that audio integrity is as un messed with as possible?

- Say audio is recorded into a DAW system in a very good condition directly from some converters - does the DAW system designer then throw their hands up, walk away and say - "anything that happens from now on - is not my fault"?

- What part can a DAW designer play in helping to preserve sound quality when 3rd party plug ins come into play?

[Justin Frankel]

I usually judge plug-ins by two factors:

1) how they perform. Do they use a lot of CPU? Are they crash prone? Are they stable on SMP systems (*cough*waves*cough*)?

2) how they sound. This isn't an easily quantifiable factor, but more a question of do I like the way it sounds. If a plug-in diminishes the signal to noise ratio, that's not necessarily a bad thing.. it's just a quality of the plug-in. Likewise if an EQ's filter has ripple...

Having said that, if plug-ins and the actual recordings are the parts that define the character of the sound you are making, then the DAW itself can just provide a neutral platform for making that happen.. That's the goal, anyway...

We've joked around with ideas about having algorithms for analog "bleed" between channels etc... but it's probably not really a good idea.

-Justin

[vocalnick]

Originally Posted by Justin Frankel

I usually judge plug-ins by two factors:
We've joked around with ideas about having algorithms for analog "bleed" between channels etc... but it's probably not really a good idea.

I don't know... put rendered woodgrain caps on either side of the mixer and call it "vintage console mode" and I reckon you'd get people to pay for it.

Maybe code up something to simulate scratchy faders/pots as well?