Cheap MASTERING-grade stereo spread plugin?

What is the best mastering-grade stereo spread plugin? I need a plugin that I can use at the mastering stage to widen my mix, but I'm hoping to stay under $50. I know for mastering limiter, TB Barricade is a good choice... is there a similar candidate for stereo spread? Any suggestions are welcomed, thanks.

Linear Phase


I'm pretty sure there is one in Sonar already...

http://www.ddmf.eu/product.php?id=5

I've tried some stereo-related plugins, such as Channel Tools, but it doesn't seem like they address the purpose I am needing. This DDMF plugin looks good though, I'll have to look into it...


Meanwhile, any other suggestions are more than welcome

I tried DrMS version 3.3 (since that's the version to use if you dont want iLok). But it constantly crashed Sonar for me. So if anyone of you out there can confirm that it actually works in Sonar X1d 64bit, then I'll have a go at it again. Seems bloody awesome from what I've seen.

/M

vaultwit


What is the best mastering-grade stereo spread plugin? I need a plugin that I can use at the mastering stage to widen my mix, but I'm hoping to stay under $50. I know for mastering limiter, TB Barricade is a good choice... is there a similar candidate for stereo spread? Any suggestions are welcomed, thanks.

The ToneBooster Stereo plugins can help....

There is OmniSone...and it's free...

http://www.toneboosters.com/tb-omnisone/

Stereo plugs that take an existing mono source or anything else for that matter and "widen it" are doing it artificially and the results will be less than perfect. 

Some are downright horrible, sounding more like phase shifters and delays than anything else. 

I use the one in Ozone when I want a bit of spread in the sound without to many noticeable artifacts. All the others I try are not worth the time.

Nugen Audio Stereoizer

Hey dan le,Thanks for the link!,although I spend half my life over there,I missed this one!
Cheers
Bob

Guitarhacker


Stereo plugs that take an existing mono source or anything else for that matter and "widen it" are doing it artificially and the results will be less than perfect. 

Some are downright horrible, sounding more like phase shifters and delays than anything else. 

I use the one in Ozone when I want a bit of spread in the sound without to many noticeable artifacts. All the others I try are not worth the time. 

YES that's a very important point. I am looking for a plugin that takes an existing stereo mix and widens it, NOT something that artificially creates width via delays, phase shifting, etc. Thanks for pointing that out.

dan le


Hi: 
  
Over at Gearslutz, they are giving this one free. 
  
So check it out: 
  
http://www.gearslutz.com/board/new-product-alert/738832-stereochannel-monochannel-free-stereo-gain-staging-balance-vst.html 
  
best 
dan le 
  

This looks promising. Has anyone tried it, and have anything to say about it? Of course I can try it myself since it's free, but just in case anyone has already tried it.

John


Channel tools can do just about everything theses plugins can. 

If on the other hand you need to create stereo from mono try the Nugen plugins. 
http://www.nugenaudio.com/  

Yes Channel Tools is great, but the main thing it is missing is a crossover option. When you spread the stereo width in Channel Tools, it also spreads the low end... I'd like to have a plugin that allows me to widen the mix while keeping the low end tight and narrow.

dan le


I downloaded it yesterday.  Just a .dll and copy it to your plugin folder.  If you don't like it, just delete it.  There is no installation, so it is completely safe.
 
best
dan le
 

I just tried using the StereoChannel plugin on my SONAR X1D and its causing some major problems... freezes, crashes, etc. I tried both 64-bit and 32-bit... Any one know how to fix this?

EDIT: Nvm, it's working. My mistake.

It doesn't satisfy your <$50 criterion, but Ozone's widener is the best I've used. It's basically the same thing as Channel Tools or MSED but with multiple frequency bands. You can also use it to make low frequencies more monophonic while still spreading out the highs, and there are no phase tricks to impair mono compatibility. 

Note that any tool that widens stereo without doing damage does so by emphasizing the L-R differences that already exist in the mix. It won't manufacture L-R differences and it can't stereo-fy something that isn't already stereophonic in nature. Wideners such as Ozone's work best if you give it something to work with, such as wide-panned mix elements that have significant upper-mid and high-frequency content, and opposite-panned delays and reverb.

There are also other tools to help make a mix sound wider such as equalizers and compressors that can do mid-side processing, and limiters that unlink left and right channels. Unfortunately, I do not know of any inexpensive ones.

dan le


Hi:
 
Over at Gearslutz, they are giving this one free.
 
So check it out:
 
http://www.gearslutz.com/board/new-product-alert/738832-stereochannel-monochannel-free-stereo-gain-staging-balance-vst.html
 
best
dan le
 

Hi Dan!
 
Thanks for the heads-up, I have missed this plugin totally! Looks really nice and there are a x64bit version available too!
I need to check this out!