[ardour-users] Mono signals and inserts

[Joe Hartley]

On Mon, 11 Jul 2005 11:52:14 +1000 (EST)
Dr_Steve at aanet.com.au wrote:

> I wanted try using
> JAmin on a single channel using it as an insert. So I added an insert,
> connected everything up the way I thought I should, and had a go. However,
> I started getting a weird stereo effect. What I found was when you add an
> insert the channel becomes stereo (a second panner is created) and the
> JAmin signal was coming back on one channel (left I think) and the dry
> signal was on the other channel (right). Hence, because of the inherent
> time delay generated by JAmin (because of the FFT) a sort of spatialising
> effect was being generated.

I can't comment on the "stereo-ness" of the insert, but I have noticed
something about JAMin:  every time I start it up, it binds itself to
my Alsa playback channels 1 and 2.

Now, there is _never_ a time when I want JAMin's output to go right to
the playback channel, and I frequently forget it's doing this until I
hit "play" and I get a weird phased sound because my output's getting
both JAMin's output directly AND the output from Ardour's master out.

That's when I remember that I have to go in and disconnect the JAMin
to playback 1/2 connections.  Slightly annoying; I wish that JAMin would
not make any connections by default, but I also haven't taken the time to
dig in and find out if I can change that in a preference.  (Usually
because I want to complete the task at hand, and I don't remember to look
the next time I start JAMin and begin making connections.)

Actually, I think I can comment on the "stereo-ness" of the insert; JAMin's
a 2 channel in, 2 channel out effect.  Ardour's got to do something with
the other channel, so it turns your mono track into a stereo, basically.

To get back to mono, you can do what you did, and mute one side, or you
could also embrace it and map your track's output to both of JAMin's inputs.
That'd eliminate the phase effect, as long as you make sure that JAMin's
not also connected to the alsa playback channels.
-- 
======================================================================
       Joe Hartley - UNIX/network Consultant - jh at brainiac.com
Without deviation from the norm, "progress" is not possible. - FZappa