Sonar Reference 4 and rendering music in Cakewalk Sonar [Solved]

[RexRed]

Sonar Reference 4 and rendering music in Cakewalk

How do I use Sonar Reference 4 with Cakewalk Sonar?

Do I need to turn off Sonar Reference 4 when I  render files?

Edited December 18, 2024 by RexRed

[RexRed]

8 minutes ago, RexRed said:

Sonar Reference 4 and rendering music in Cakewalk

How do I use Sonar Reference 4 with Cakewalk Sonar?

Do I need to turn off Sonar Reference 4 when I  render files?

My Question to Copilot: So I use Reference 4  when I am mixing down but I disable it when I am rendering down?

Copilot Response: Exactly! You use Sonarworks Reference 4 while mixing to ensure accurate monitoring and a balanced mix. Then, when you are rendering (exporting) your final audio file, you disable the Sonarworks Reference 4 plugin to prevent the calibration curve from affecting the exported audio.

If you need a quick recap:

Mixing: Enable Sonarworks Reference 4 for accurate monitoring.

Rendering/Exporting: Disable Sonarworks Reference 4 to ensure your final mix isn't altered by the calibration.

Let me know if there's anything else you're curious about or if you need further assistance with your audio projects! 🎶

Copilot also said this:

Yes, you need to bypass the Sonarworks Reference 4 plugin every time you export audio from Cakewalk Sonar. If you don't bypass it, the correction will be applied to your master bus mixdown, which can imprint your unique calibration EQ curve on the rendered audio.

To bypass the plugin, make sure to fully disable it in your DAW, not just the calibration bypass inside the Reference plugin. This ensures that the rendered audio remains unaffected by the calibration settings.

Does that help clarify things?

 

Edited December 18, 2024 by RexRed

[RexRed]

Even though this topic is "solved" you can still give your responses and experience with this process.

[RexRed]

Copilot also said:

Here's a quick recap:

Tracking (Recording): Disable Sonarworks Reference 4 and use the direct monitoring feature of your Zoom UAC-232 for latency-free monitoring.

Mixing: Enable Sonarworks Reference 4 to ensure accurate monitoring and a balanced mix.

Rendering (Exporting): Disable Sonarworks Reference 4 to ensure the calibration curve doesn't affect your final audio file.

This workflow allows you to get the most accurate sound during mixing and ensures your final rendered files are true to the mix without any unintended alterations. 🎶

[mark skinner]

Rex , don't forget  "bounce to clips/tracks or freezing a track or synth" 

 Don't disable  the toast warning you get if you forget to turn it off.   Learned that the hard way ..

Open the plugin and disable it , and then completely turn it off.  I've had issues with  Sound ID Reference making volume changes if it was diabled within the UI , but not completely turned off in the FX bin.               ms

[DeeringAmps]

@RexRed and @mark skinner Gentlemen, You're working waaay tooo hard, and
leaving yourself open to problems.
DO NOT PUT ANY CORRECTION SOFTWARE ON THE MASTER BUSS!

I send the MASTER BUSS to, in my case, the ARC (IK's ARC) BUSS (which is routed to the monitors).
All export's, mixdowns, et cetera, are taken off the MASTER BUSS.

SIMPLES, you can thank me later...

t

I also send the MASTER to the CANS BUSS, that has the SonarWorks Headphone Correction on it.
Once again, it is NEVER involved any any bounces or mixdowns...

I send the
i SEND THE master TO MY

[Starship Krupa]

On 12/28/2024 at 7:19 AM, DeeringAmps said:

I send the MASTER BUSS to, in my case, the ARC (IK's ARC) BUSS (which is routed to the monitors).
All export's, mixdowns, et cetera, are taken off the MASTER BUSS.

This. Or something similar.

My project templates have a dedicated Export bus just for exports. My Master bus routes to it.

Then it can route to whatever I want downstream, analysis plug-ins (usually LEVELS), Cans bus with headphone correction plug-in, etc.

Relying on myself to remember to turn off headphone or room correction software before export would be a bad idea. When I'm deep into a project, I usually have that ADHD laser focus thing, along with the ADHD scattered thing when I have to shift gears and say, go from mixing to export.

It's also, as Tom says, less work in the long run.

[Glenn Stanton]

and make sure to calibrate your listening system - your DAW output should be unity to the monitoring system, and each monitoring system (SoundID, ARC, speakers, headphones, BT speaker, etc) should all provide a consistent level, if not relative frequency response (in my case i want the same approx levels but ok with varying freq response to identify things in the mix). i use a -12LUFS noise signal to get me to 75db level (which for me is "loud") so when mixing, if something seems loud, i know i'm approaching the -12LUFS. and generally i'm mixing at ~65db by turning down the volume to a known value on each system (e.g. my direct UMC = -10.2db, SoundID = -6.2db, Sparx Mini = -7.6db, etc etc).

now i can rapidly switch across monitoring systems and not be (too) skewed by level shift, but more from freq content (which is what i want to ensure translation is tested as best as possible on other systems) (and in context of the material... not everything needs to be "full spectrum")

Edited January 1 by Glenn Stanton