Configuring VST Instruments & Channels

I have Sonar X3 Studio.
I would like some help configuring VST instruments so that I can use just one instance of a player but with multiple tracks. Up to now, I've been loading them as "Simple Instrument Tracks" and if I want to use say, 4 horns, that takes up lots of memory. The other day I tried using the MONO configuration with Miroslav Philharmonik and Garritan Jazz & Big Band 3 with the setup on multiple channels with just one instance of the instrument (I don't remember how it's worded and I'm not at my DAW now, but you know what I mean).   It loaded 32 channels as Miroslav (or Garritan).  When I chose the Stereo configuration it loaded 16.  This makes sense to me, but the channels did not have record arm buttons on them.  Just the Mute & Solo buttons and another button I guess for monitoring, but no Record Arm button.  Could somebody please explain this.  I'd really like to use it this way, but I cannot find any instruction manual or tutorial for it.  I'm tired of my projects using more memory than necessary.
 
Thanks
John B.

You can only record the midi tracks and not the audio track thats routed to the soft synth. You have to create a midi track and set its output to the required soft synth. If it's multi timbral you should also set the channel and then record it. It's pretty simple.

Jeffiphone No! U can't do that on z3ta coz its not a multi timbral vst. Some vst's are multi timbral and they have multiple channels inside them. While using them you can create midi channels for each channels and record them from single instance. Few third party multi channeled vst's are omnisphere, kontakt, battery, etc. As for as Cakewalk plugins Session Drummer 3 has multi outs. But you won't need multiple midi channels to record coz they are just Drum sounds. U can trigger all the channels from single midi track. Let me say a simple way for you to understand. Go to the track view simply right click and click insert from track templates 》Soft synth track templates 》 SessionDrummer 3 and load a template and mess around with it.

If you find yourself using multiple instances of z3ta in your projects and hate the idea of loading them again and again, there is a simple solution for you. I do it always for some of my favourite plugins. Create 8 instances of z3ta and put them all in a task folder. Save the folder as a track template. Next time you load a project just load the track template. You Will load all the 8 instances ready to record in a single click. Try doing it yourself or else let me create a track template and send you.

Yea TTS is multi. It has 16 channels but only 4 outputs. Next time you load TTS don't create a Simple instrument track. In the Insert soft synth options dialog box check Midi source, Synth track folder and All synth Audio Outputs: Stereo. Now create 15 more midi tracks using insert multiple track's. Set the outputs of all the channels to TTS AND set all the midi tracks to different channels from 1- 16 respectively. Place it all in a track folder. Customise the colours and track icons if necessary. Save the track folder as track template. Next time u want to use TTS Just load from track templates in a single click and bang on! U are ready to make music.

I'm still a bit confused.  Could somebody please give me a step-by-step?
Thanks
 
John B.

Thank you so much, declan!
I will print these instructions out and use them next time I work with my DAW.  If I have any further questions I will let you know.
 
John B.

Kylotan
Bear in mind that you may not save much memory this way, if the memory usage is coming from the samples, not the sample player. For this reason, I tend to only use multiple instruments in one instance if I intend to layer them - i.e. I might load a choir and a string section into Kontakt on 2 channels because I want to trigger them both simultaneously from 1 MIDI channel.

Yes.  I appreciate that observation.  Bitflipper said the same thing.  I never considered that it was actually the samples that used so much more memory.  I suspect all of my sample libraries (including the main offender, Miroslav) are 16 bit except my newly aquired Trillian Bass Module, which I suspect is actually 24 bit (if anybody else here uses that please verify that for me, but I know it has a "lite" mode, though).  I brought this up because about a week ago I posted a thread complaining about Miroslav.  I have the "Classic" addition that I got 4 years ago (but updated since).  It's the "Lite" version and I only paid about $30.00 for it at the time.  On my last project I used just a simple string quartet (1 violin, 2 violas, and 1 cello) on a little lick on the last verse.  I loaded a new instance for each and after I worked out the parts I saved them.  These were the only 4 parts on the project, as my modus operandi is to make every separate part a separate project, then export those parts as WAVs and import the WAVs into a final project to mix. 
 
Well, even with only four parts in this project I could not open the Sonar project file for this.  It came up like it was loading for about 5 seconds and then just froze.  I could start a new Sonar project or a previous one with no trouble, but the project with the 4 Miroslav parts just locked.  I can't access it to this day.  I have to open the project in Safe Mode and reload the instruments. 
 
As I said above, maybe it's an IK Multimedia (Miroslav manufacturer) issue. I have to look up my serial number to contact them.  I only have this situation with MP, and it has happened on previous projects where I used it. No other plugin gives me this trouble, but I still have to make the separate project per part because even with a Core i5 I have to watch my memory usage and loading an all WAV project take up considerably less system resources than a MIDI/Audio mix and it's best to have everything WAVs at the end anyway, at least to store them.  But I always keep the MIDIs in case I ever get better sample libraries someday.
 
John B.