RTA or Spectral Analyzer inside SONAR 8 ?

I was wondering if SONAR 8 has a Real Time or Spectral Analyzer built into it that I have not found yet ? It would be nice for example to see the spectral analysis of individual tracks and/or my mix BEFORE exporting to spot trouble frequencies (ie .... boxy drums at 400-500 HZ, excessive low end rumble below 40 HZ, etc...) If not built in, is there a software any of you use on the main buss to accomplish this same idea Thanks

Bristol, Is this Voxengo Span placed on a Master Buss so you can look at whole mix and/or soloed tracks ? OR Do you need to place it in the effect bin of each track and look at each track individually ? This seems like a basic feature SONAR would have by now Thanks

So for example, I could place it in the effects bin of my snare, kick and toms drum channels, play the song and look for troublesome frequencies on each track individually ? That should work good for that How about looking at the WHOLE MIX ?

There is an analyzer included in SONAR.  It's a DX plug called Analyst (Analyst.dll).  That said...you'll like SPAN a whole lot better.  Frankly, it's probably the reason why Cakewalk didn't try any harder on Analyst.  What would be the point if something out there is a whole lot better and already free?
 
I would just put it on your master bus...or ever better...on a post master bus after your master bus, so you can still see what's going on, even if you disable the fx bin on your master bus.  All you have to do to see what's going on with a particular track is solo that track (i.e. it will show you whatever it is that happens to be going through the master bus at the time).
 
If you really have a need to see what's happening on a particular track while other tracks are playing...I suppose you'd want to put an instance on each track. 
 
Another plug that works well in this kind of application is Voxengo's GlissEQ.  It lets you see the spectral display of up to three other tracks (GlissEQ instances) at the same time, so you can see who is stepping on who.  (You may well be able to work this out with the newest version of SPAN too...but getting all the sends and routing set up is a bit complex.)

mikespitzer


...But I like the stand alone idea also, if one is available

Get SPAN...
 
http://www.voxengo.com/product/span/
 
(get it now)
 
...it will cost you nothing.  It is well worth 15 to 200,000.013 times the price.

Okay, I am either getting old and stupid or this SPAN does not do what I am looking for. -------------------- For example, I would like to be able to play a solo snare from a reference , capture that Spectra and save it ------------------ Then solo the snare from my drum kit and capture that spectra. ---------------- Then I can overlay A and B spectra and see where I may have some major frequency differences between the 2 different drums. -------------- SPAN is nice as a basic FTA,, but I am not seeing this kind of capability ???

it does have that capability and much more actually.  but I'm not at home to be able to help you with it.  maybe someone else can help.

SPAN does more than most users realize. I'd be lost without it. I prefer to use its Mastering modes and K-n metering for general equalization (as opposed to diagnostic and troubleshooting purposes). During the course of a project it will find its way onto almost every track and sub-bus at some point, and always on the master as the last plugin in the fx bin.

You might consider picking up Voxengo GlissEQ. SPAN is actually derived from GlissEQ, which features the same spectral display plus the ability to share spectral curves from multiple instances so you overlay and compare them. Great for complementary equalization techniques. Although I've moved to FabFilter Pro-Q for bread 'n butter equalization, I still use GlissEQ for its spectral overlays.

Here's an old posting I made a few years ago, showing how to use SPAN as an actual RTA.

[EDIT: P.S. I've had Ozone for years and can count on one hand the times when its EQ-matching feature was actually useful. The concept sounds so promising until you try it. Aside from some very specific technical applications, it's actually pretty useless.]

That is correct. Users have been asking for that functionality for a long time, but the developer has said he won't put it in because he wants the paid product to have features the freebie doesn't have. Given Aleksey's generosity in providing such a useful tool to the world for free, I'm certainly not going to complain. And GlissEQ is not terribly expensive as quality EQ's go (100 bucks), plus it's a good equalizer.

There is a free spectrum analyzer out there that does allow overlays, but I don't remember offhand what it's called. I know I've downloaded it and tried it out, but it apparently didn't impress me because I've never used it since. I'll see if I can't find it - assuming I still have it - and let you know what it is.

Bitflipper, I don't mind paying $$$ for a good product. I don't expect it for free. I just need to find the right software. Sounds like GlissEQ is what I need , not SPAN.

I have the newest version and I see it has 4 Channels available, but I can't see how to assign them. --------------- I can only get Channel 1 to do anything. --------------- i was thinking I could "HOLD" a scan in Channel 1 then move to channel 2, capture another and compare them -------------- But I can't figure it out ----------------- It's easy in OZONE, PAS Spectral Analyzer , etc..

There's a video tutorial somewhere on the net showing you exactly how to set up Span to display several curves at once.

I might have the link on my DAW, but I'm miles away from it currently.

I'd totally forgotten about that kludge. I remember now watching that very video Beagle linked, getting frustrated trying to make it work, and deciding it wasn't worth the effort.

I'd be curious to know how many of you actually a) got this to work and b) use SPAN this way.

In fact, now that I think about it, I am still primarily using the older version 1 of GlissEQ for comparing multiple tracks, as it is much quicker to configure (and re-configure) for that purpose.

Thanks all for your tips ... I think I have found what works best for what I need. I will start using SPAN for taking a quick look at the Spectra on each track. But for in-depth comparisons of EQ profiles, I like the way OZONE allows multiple EQ profiles to be overlayed and then you can adjust the EQ matching to see where the large differences are. As mentioned earlier by another, I don't think I would use the "EQ Matching" feature of OZONE, but it is great to see an EQ trace of the differences between the Source and Target to see where you have major problems. For example, I just compared my Drum Buss to a section of a song I like where the drums are playing a similar pattern by themselves during a break ....... I could see what was causing the problem in my drums .......... too much 400-525 HZ I knew something was wrong with my drums on this project, instead of being tight and clicky, they were like a cardboard box when played on smaller speakers. The drums sounded good on high end equipment, but the drums were boxy sounding on smaller and cheaper speakers as compared to some professional recordings that sounded pretty good on everything. My drum kit had about +5db more 400-525 HZ classic "boxy, wet cardboard" EQ region for drums.

What advantage do you see with Critical Bands view -vs- Default View ?