Well, has anybody had the guts to give this a go?  Last I heard, Michael Brauer didn't think it could work ITB -- although he uses ProTools (along with all of his analog stuff), and I think ProTools didn't have ADC when he made that statement.
 
Anyway, I believe he speculated that all the parallel paths employed by the technique required very tight synchronization that would only work in the analog world (again, this was his viewpoint about 6 or so years ago).  But he did admit that he expected it would eventually be possible.
 
So, has anybody actually setup a template and tried it in Sonar X2?  If so, how did it work out for you?  Finally, would you care to share any suggestions, recommendations, or insights?
 
Mark Blair
 
skyblu studio -- http://skyblu.com/
 

Who? Is that the Kiefer Sutherland guy from 24?

What is it?

Okay, just read the SoS article about him. So, he stems out his tracks to subs and uses multiple layers of compressors on them? That doesn't seem terribly hard to replicate (the flow, not the artistry of his settings).

Route all your tracks to a bus that is appropriate (DRUMS, BASS, GTR, etc). Use sends to route signals to your multiple compressors of choice, and then another downstream bus to collect them all back.

So, three layers of bussing. DRUMS->(via sends)COMP1, COMP2, COMP3->DRUMS MASTER->MASTER OUT

It's no fun if I have to explain it! ;-)  Plus, to be fair, I wouldn't need to explain it to anybody who's tried it -- no offense intended.  Also, I'm assuming that anybody whose interest has been sufficiently piqued would be motivated enough to Google it.  HINT: Multi-dimensional use of compression.  But I'm hoping not so much to explain the concept as to get feedback from folks who have actually implemented it in Sonar X2...
 
Mark

Wicked -- your description is a subset of the overall concept.  But, again, I'm looking for folks who have gone beyond the speculation stage.  But thanks!

Is it? In the article he just piles compressors as inserts onto tracks and then also onto his subgroups, which he brings up in the centre section of an SSL. He even describes his own method as "it's not about the hardware, I just have a sound in my head and I keep adjusting things until it gets there."

Maybe the article is incomplete, but I think what you're positing from the original post is that all this routing would introduce delay into the chain and thus start creating phase issues? If so PDC should take care of all of that, especially once it's ITB.

Yes, a long time ago when his method was published, I set this up to experiment. I think there is a thread from a couple of years ago on this forum where it was discussed.

Couple of notes:

1. You're not going to get the same results as the hardware he uses. Even Michael has tried to duplicate this in software and admitted it does not come close to the same results.

2. Having a good selection of compressors to try on different groups is helpful.

3. It's extremely educational on how to set up group treatment once you figure out what he is doing i.e. frequency specific compression which is highly dependent on the frequency characteristics of the compressor.  This is primarily the reason it's hard to duplicate in software.

4. All of these comments don't reduce your ability to create a useful template for mixing.

I think this is applicable for some types of music but there are other approaches as well for mixing. This was what I walked away with. Also, he was concerned about delay compensation in Protools, which is what he was using (older version). ADC was not in the product at that time but is now as you point out.

And I believe there have been implications that even with ADC, there's so much parallel processing going on that  there are still issues.  So, that's why I'm hoping to find someone who's actually using it right now with Sonar X2, and if they're willing to share thoughts, suggestions, and recommendations (and also, what template they're actually using!).  But thanks for your thoughts Middleman and Wicked.  But if nobody's actually using it with Sonar X2 right now, I may just have to join gearslutz and solicit some info from the folks over there...

There were no issues when I used it in Sonar X1. No phasing etc. Here are a few thoughts.

1. I built my own template as follows:

- Drum Group fed to mains (all the compression was in parallel or on track i.e. parallel compression on kick and overheads prior to this group. I can't see running these back through the MB comps below as this is just too much compression and will make the drums lifeless)
- Guitar Group - C 1176 parallel feed
- Vocal Group - combination of B LA2A and C 1176 parallel feed.
- Acoustic Guitar Group - C 1176 and D SSL parallel feed
- Bass Guitar Group - A UAD Precision Parallel feed
- Keyboard group - B LA2A and D SSL parallel feed. Did not want any emphasis in the vocal range.

MB busses all routed to mains:
A Low Freq Comp Group - UAD Precision Comp
B Lo Mid Range Comp Group - LA2A
C Upper Mid Range Group - 1176
D High End Group - SSL Channel

The reason I chose these comps is that they had the response I wanted for the frequencies they handled. 1176 has emphasis in the upper midrange. The SSL is notorious for high end sheen. The LA2A adds body and the UAD precision, kind of a C2 type compressor adds some precise and clear treatment for low end. Very transparent.

I would encourage you, if you have questions to go to Michael's site and ask him directly or do a search at Gearslutz where he has responded to numerous questions about his method. He will respond directly on GS if you put his name in the header of your post.