Any plug-in can work in the ProChannel but that is not the issue. The existing FX bin is important for backward compatibility. Cakewalk made a design decision to add the ProChannel in the X series. It would be strange for them to drop the ProChannel at this time. I am not sure

azslow3
"FX bin vs PC" questions.

are real or manufactured.

I really wasn't suggesting dropping it.
 
I was more seeing it as a list of  what's in the PC that you could enable or disable from the FX Bin without having to switch the pc view. PC view would be like an expanded FX Bin. When you drop FX into the bin, they would also show up in the PC. Then the PC clip indicator would be useful for those FX as well.
 
Idk, didn't seem like a foolish thought but people are marking my post as -1 they're so concerned that somehow this might change for the worse.
 
I guess for me, the old FX bin is kinda a waste of space as it is. Just saying.
 
And btw, this wasn't my idea. I just jumped on the bandwagon with Aslow3.

gswitz
I guess for me, the old FX bin is kinda a waste of space as it is. Just saying.

It can be if you don't need it. There is a setting the the Track Control Manager to remove it.

Ah. Good Point, Scook. Thanks!
 
You could have a different FX Bin type Track Inspector item that maps to items in the Pro Channel so you could enable and disable FX in PC without switching to view the PC. Idk, just a thought.
 
You could even show both if you wanted (the old FX Bin and some new Inspector Module that maps to the PC).
 
 

scook
Any plug-in can work in the ProChannel but that is not the issue. The existing FX bin is important for backward compatibility. Cakewalk made a design decision to add the ProChannel in the X series. It would be strange for them to drop the ProChannel at this time.

The idea is not to drop PC concept!
The idea is to make PC act as a  "new version/concept" of FX bin instead of "new feature" apart from FX bin, as it is now.
 
Just imagine you see your old FX bin in PC view, with some plugs already "magically converted" to PC Modules (those which have already implemented PC Interface). And once you get more PC aware modules (or replace PC unaware modules with PC aware in the PC/FX bin) your PC strip gives you all that advantages advertised since PC introduction.
 
At the moment everyone is forced to make a decision: should I stay "old style" without PC or should I use PC and accept the fact all my old projects should be reworked to use it, most of my modules will either stay in "obsolete" FX bin or go into PC FX containers (with extra clicks to open GUI). If merging is somehow implemented, there will be no such question, no extra conversion work. And who knows, may be PC will become a part of VST5 API...

I think one of the advantages of the current system is that you have increased routing flexibility when setting up complex chains, parts of which need to be pre/post

May be I just do not understand something, but from http://blog.cakewalk.com/know-your-signal-flow/ I do not see how ProChannel/FX as separate chains can help with routing (and what is no longer possible once they are merged).
 

I kinda see this as a feature request to get FX bin like access for the items in the pc from the main inspector tab. There are plenty of reasons to make this separate from the old FX bin.

pro-channel is a lock-in that offers nothing beyond a cut down "optimised" gui,  there was a load of noise about this when it was introduced so it's kind of ironic that 3 versions in and the requests are to re-combine them :-)
other hosts offer the choice to use the custom vst gui (usually vintage-looking ;-)) versus generic gui elements for the vst controls, without some proprietary nonsense a la pro-channel
you can do everything in the fx bin, without using the prochannel, unless you use some pc module that's not also available as a vst
 

I have not used pre-x SONARs, but from CS API (which is still near the same) there was "Filters" (EQ,COMP,GATE,SAT) and that was apart from FX bin. ProChannel is a "new version" for filters (in CS API it is accessed throw filters calls) and so it is also stay apart from FX bin.
 
But it looks like during the development, good ideas come in CW minds: why not allowed to reorder/add/delete these "filters" and allow some other modules. While still preserving some advantages and limitations of the predecessor (only one module of some type like EQ or Comp and separate integrated GUI), it is in fact has already leaned toward second FX bin.