Plug-Ins As Inserts - DigiDesign DigiRack Plug-ins Manual

Plug-ins as Inserts

Real-time plug-ins are available as in-line inserts
on audio tracks, Auxiliary Inputs, and Master
Faders. A maximum of 5 real-time plug-ins can
be used per track.
When more than one insert is used on a track,
they process the audio in series, each effect be-
ing added to the previous one, from top to bot-
tom in the Mix window.
Inserts can be used in two ways:
On Single Tracks An insert can be applied to an
individual audio track or Auxiliary Input using
the Insert selector on that track.
With in-line inserts, you control the level of ef-
fect by adjusting the controls of the plug-in.
As Shared Resources An insert can be used as a
shared resource in a send-and-return arrange-
ment by bussing signals from several tracks to
an Auxiliary Input, and applying the insert to
the Auxiliary Input track. With such an arrange-
ment, you can control the send level for each
track and the overall level of the effect can be
controlled from the Auxiliary Input track.
Shared arrangements let you make more effi-
cient use of your system's processing power.
Pre-Fader Operation
Real-time plug-ins function as pre-fader inserts
(except on Master Fader tracks, where inserts are
post-fader), meaning that their input levels are
not affected by a track's volume fader.
Real-time plug-ins are pre-fader, but post-disk.
This means that if you record to disk with a
plug-in inserted on the record track, you will
hear the effect of the plug-in, but the effect will
not be recorded to disk.
To record with a plug-in effect, create an Auxil-
iary Input, insert the desired effect on the Aux-
iliary Input track, then route the Auxiliary Input
to the audio track to which you want to record.
Alternatively, bounce the audio track with the
plug-in after recording in order to write the ef-
fected audio to disk.
Mono, Multi-Mono, and
Multichannel Plug-ins
Plug-ins can be used in mono, multi-mono, or
multichannel formats, depending on the type of
plug-in and whether the destination is a mono
or multichannel track.
In general, when working with stereo and
greater-than-stereo tracks, use multichannel
plug-ins. If a multichannel version of a plug-in
is not available, use a multi-mono version.
Plug-in formats
Mono Plug-ins Used on mono tracks. Some
mono plug-ins (such as Mod Delay) can gener-
ate stereo or greater-than-stereo output from a
mono channel. Plug-ins that occur on a track af-
ter a stereo plug-in are used in stereo as well.
Multi-Mono Plug-ins Used on stereo or greater-
than-stereo multichannel tracks when a multi-
channel version of the plug-in is not available.
Multi-mono plug-ins can analyze and process
each channel independently without regard to
each other. Controls for all channels are linked
by default so that you can adjust them in tan-
Chapter 3: Working with Real-Time Plug-ins 15