Linking multiple instances of a plugin to make changes across them all at the same time?

[daounandout]

In Nuendo / Cubase, it's possible to open up multiple instances of the same plugin, on different channels, and hit a link button. This means changes made on one instance are applied to all linked instances.

 

Is there a way to do this in Logic?

 

Many thanks!

[stratquebec]

In the mixer, open the plugin on one channel, do the changes, option+drag the plugin on other channel(s). Yes you have to do it one at a time. Let's hope someone else will chime in with a better workflow

[David Nahmani]

There's no direct workflow for this in Logic. You can cable your channel strips in the MIDI Environment but that's clunky and convoluted. You can pack your channel strips into a summing stack and use the main track's Smart Controls, mapped to multiple plug-in parameters on the subtracks, but that takes a bit of time to set up.

 

In many situations it may be easier to sum the tracks then insert a single plug-in on the sum.

 

Can you share the exact musical goal of what you're trying to do? That could help us suggest the most appropriate solution.

[Mechanica]

I realize I'm reviving a dead thread here, but I came searching for this same functionality. For me the usefulness of this comes when I am doing summing. Say I have a vocal and a guitar that both go to an aux with a reverb on it. This is fine while I'm producing, but when I want to send the guitar and the vocal to separate outs and I want the reverb to go with them I have a dilemma. I can duplicate the aux so I have an instance of the reverb for each out, but making any changes to the reverb after that becomes cumbersome if I'm trying to keep the instruments "in the same room", so to speak.
I'm sure there are other uses too, it's not the first time I've wanted this. Cabling in the environment seems the simplest option; I appreciate the tip!

[Mechanica]

Apparently cabling them together does not work. I'm not sure why. Despite a monitor object showing that the fader messages are correctly formed and passing through from one channel strip to the other, the settings on the second instance seem to ignore them for some reason.

[David Nahmani]

5 minutes ago, Mechanica said:

Apparently cabling them together does not work.

Just tried cabling an audio channel strip into an other one with a Space Designer reverb in the same insert slot on both and you're right, this no longer works in the current Logic version. 

However for reverb, I would simply send the instruments to a bus and insert the reverb on the Aux that receives that bus. That's how reverb is typically handled. 

Otherwise, there's another solution which is to put the tracks in a track stack and map the Smart Controls of the main track to the different plug-ins on the subtracks. That means one knob (in the Smart Controls pane on the main track) can control one parameter on multiple plug-ins (inserted on the subtracks). This is really flexbile but requires a bit of setup to map the Smart Controls. 

[Mechanica]

Shame that no longer works, would have been pretty simple.

Right, sending them to a shared bus is the issue. I don't think I explained clearly. If I want to bounce stems all at once and not have to individually solo tracks, or if I want to route to separate outs, I have to make duplicate, identical (same plugins) aux tracks so that instruments sharing the same reverb but needing different routing can be separated. Afterwards I'd like to be able to control the identical reverbs identically across the duplicate aux tracks.

Track stack smart control is a potential solution, assuming it works for folder stacks, but a summing stack defeats the separate routing which was the goal.

Edited February 24 by Mechanica

[oscwilde]

Another alternative would be to make changes on one aux and then save a channel strip setting/patch, then load that on the second aux.
Each "tweak" would need a new CST/patch to be saved and loaded.
Bit of a PITA in comparison with linking in Cubase, but a further option to David's Smart Controls method.

[Mechanica]

 

18 hours ago, oscwilde said:

Another alternative would be to make changes on one aux and then save a channel strip setting/patch, then load that on the second aux.
Each "tweak" would need a new CST/patch to be saved and loaded.
Bit of a PITA in comparison with linking in Cubase, but a further option to David's Smart Controls method.

True. Even simpler is just copy the channel strip setting and paste it to the duplicates every time you make changes. Still, pretty cumbersome.