Noel Borthwick [Cakewalk]

panup
External inserts haven't been updated since the initial version. I guess it's one of the "implement and forget" features in Sonar.

Not true - there was a major rework in 8.5.3. https://www.cakewalk.com/Support/kb/reader.aspx/20090222

Can we hope for a fix for this stereo/mono problem in X4, please

Noel Borthwick [Cakewalk]

panup
External inserts haven't been updated since the initial version. I guess it's one of the "implement and forget" features in Sonar.

Not true - there was a major rework in 8.5.3. https://www.cakewalk.com/Support/kb/reader.aspx/20090222

 
Oh, you're right, I didn't remember there was "External Insert life" before 8.5.3.
I could write detailed design for External Insert II if CW has any interest to update it further... :)

RogerH
Can we hope for a fix for this stereo/mono problem in X4, please

Probably not because it isn't a bug :) Seriously the external insert is one of the most complex areas of the code and we don't intend making major changes to that area. Most of the functional user reported problems were addressed in the last big update we did to it. True mono support would be nice to have but we don't know of any major functionality that is missing for this feature as it stands today.

Is it possible to give External Insert outputs for use even if they're used in archived tracks?

I'm not sure what use case you are considering here and why archived tracks play a role.

Noel Borthwick [Cakewalk]
I'm not sure what use case you are considering here and why archived tracks play a role.

Correct me if I'm wrong: output is not shown in External Insert dropdown list if it's used in any track or bus, even archived track. 
Is there a reason why they reserve assigned output from being used in External Insert?

In a large project it may be difficult to find the track which reserves the desired output. Many times I have wondered (when using 2 x FF800) why output is not shown in the External Insert dropdown list only to find later that it was set on an archived and hidden track. 

The problem is, if you were to re-use the outputs and then un-Archive the track with the EI at some point, how should SONAR resolve the conflict?
 
Also, as the page that Noel linked points out, its doesn't make much sense to leave External Inserts active in a project indefinitely because that hardware is likely to get reconfigured at some point with settings that are no longer applicable to the project.
 
All of these issue are best avoided by bouncing the external processing as soon as possible in the project's life, and removing the EI.
 
 
 
 

How about more simple approach: any output can be used but outputs are assigned to -none- for those tracks that use it (warning / messagebox to confirm).

brundlefly
Workaround:
 
- Put the External Insert on a bus and give it a stereo send and return.
- Assign tracks to the bus, and pan them hard left and right according to which channel/processor you want them to hit.
- Use Channel Tools after the EI to pan the returns as needed or bounce the processed signals to new tracks (split mono) to free up the External Insert for the next job.
 
 
 
 

Thank's. That works. A little more hassle that I could wish for, but it's a workaround.