The sidechain function

[krans]

Instead of hijacking other threads for this, I'll just start a designated one.
The sidechain compressor function we know from v5 is gone in v6.
So I have a couple of questions about it:

1/ What is the technical reason to remove it?
I guess removing a handy, well functioning feature isn't done just to "do something new", I would think there is a practical reason for it.

2/ Is there a new way of doing it?
The plugin based solution with pinning/sends has always been there, I've used it whenever I needed more control or multiple sidechains. But has there been added a new way of sidechaining?
I see some comments about more flexibility and so, but I cannot find anything about a new feature for it.

I was really excited about the update coming. But to be honest, this feature is now holding me back from updating.

[Tassy]

"do something new" is a big enemy of today's ideas all around the Globe. And I really mean enemy. Thanks to put it this way.
Tassy

[eyal]

You can insert the ardour team compressor it has a sidechain

[madmaxmiller]

1/ What is the technical reason to remove it?
I guess removing a handy, well functioning feature isn't done just to "do something new", I would think there is a practical reason for it.

I guess it wasn't "removed". It wasn't re-implemented with the new engine. Now that everything is latency compensated there's no need for a hardwired side chain.

Face it, the old implementation was a crutch. I used it a number of times but never directly - I always had to EQ and often gate/replace the actual sidechain signal in a separate bus before I could use it properly. And once you come to that kind of effort it really doesn't matter if you feed it into a hardwired sidechain or into a pin of a lightweight plugin compressor.

MMM

[krans]

Face it, the old implementation was a crutch. I used it a number of times but never directly - I always had to EQ and often gate/replace the actual sidechain signal in a separate bus before I could use it properly.

Well, that's your opinion.
I've used it rather frequently for subtle ducking (and actually quite a bit for unsubtle ducking also), and I haven't used any gate or separate buses. It's just been a quick way of sidechaining.
If it's discontinued because it "was a crutch", then I'd like to hear it from Harrison. If that's the case, I think they need a hug and some reassurement that it really wasn't so bad.

You can insert the ardour team compressor it has a sidechain

But is this something new? Wasn't this always possible?

[Marv]

I fully agree. I also want the built-in sidechain functionality back, for excactly the same purpose you describe. I use it for practical ducking, e.g. when a talent speaks it ducks some playback bus or similar. I mentioned this in my previous post "Thoughts on Mixbus 6.0.0".

[Dingo]

The 'sneaky' side-chain key was a good idea, but it limited side chaining to one key only.
The 'plugin' based model allows for an infinite number of keys for different sources.
In response to many requests from users Harrison has expanded the way side chains can be implemented.
It took me a week or two to get used to the change, but now I find it just as fast as the old key and far more flexible.
Also the new all PDC engine allows more radical or complex signal paths.
Mixbus is continuing to evolve as technologies change and more users add more requests for expanded features.
Change is a good thing, otherwise we would all be stuck with rolls of magnetic tape and a pair of scissors.

[Marv]

The 'sneaky' side-chain key was a good idea, but it limited side chaining to one key only.
The 'plugin' based model allows for an infinite number of keys for different sources.
In response to many requests from users Harrison has expanded the way side chains can be implemented.
It took me a week or two to get used to the change, but now I find it just as fast as the old key and far more flexible.
Also the new all PDC engine allows more radical or complex signal paths.
Mixbus is continuing to evolve as technologies change and more users add more requests for expanded features.
Change is a good thing, otherwise we would all be stuck with rolls of magnetic tape and a pair of scissors.

Change to digital audio has led to products like Mixbus, UAD and all the other plugins trying to bring back the analog sound; including tape saturation :-) Dealing with magnetic tape and scissors is difficult and expensive in terms of time and material. The side-chain function was easy and cheap in terms of time to (re)configure. I also appreciate the more flexible sidechain approach for more sophisticated mixing tasks, but it is a bit more fiddly (I admit not so fiddly like dealing with magnetic tape). I would suggest to have a preference option to optionally enable it.

[E. DeMaestro]

Hello,

I'm not understand how side chaining works using 3rd party plugins; such as waves products. I've noticed that the blue side chain input tab (in pin connections) does not connect to anything like it does using ardour team plugins. So I'm wondering if there is something I'm over looking. A green cable will be visible when clicked on but it will not connect to anything. Does anyone how experience using 3rd party plugin side chaining?

Thanks

[Dingo]

I haven't used Waves for some time, but from memory Waves plugins in VST or AU form do not support side chain.
There are a few Ardour plugs that can plus Fab Filter, some McDSP etc...