Stem Busses
To use THS on a stem bus, you will need to begin by instantiating the following plugins, in order, at the end of the stem bus's insert slots:
- YSFX
- Router Plugin
Post-Fader Inserts
If you are using a DAW that supports post-fader inserts, I would recommend making your router plugin a post-fader insert on your stem busses. Doing so will allow you to use the channel fader to control the level of the stem bus and still use the channel meter when mixing.
YSFX
First, open YSFX. By default, YSFX will look similar to the following:
To load THS, click Load and navigate to the folder where you saved your copy of the plugin. Select the JSFX file for THS, and then click Open. Once loaded, YSFX should look similar to the following:
The main parameter to pay attention to at this stage is the Stem ID. THS supports summing for up to 8 stem busses, and for the plugin to function correctly, each stem must be set to a unique ID. As you load THS on your stem busses, make sure to update the Stem ID parameter so each bus is assigned a unique value.
Router Plugin
Next, open Blue Cat's Connector. By default, it will look like the following:
Since we are currently setting up the stem busses, you will want to enable SEND mode. Once enabled, Connector will look like the following:
Since we are using Connector within the same application (and not trying to send sound from one application to another), we can leave the mode set to the default of APP.
Connector uses an internal networking system to transmit sound between instances of the plugin. To differentiate between multiple sending instances, Connector uses the Port parameter. Each instance of Connector must be set to a unique Port value for the sender/receiver pairs to function correctly. You can also update the Name parameter at the bottom by double-clicking it. This serves no functional purpose but can help troubleshoot connections between sender and receiver nodes. For example, you might make the following port assignments in a project with 4 stem busses:
| Stem Bus | Port | Name |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 8080 |
Stem_1_TX |
| 2 | 8081 |
Stem_2_TX |
| 3 | 8082 |
Stem_3_TX |
| 4 | 8083 |
Stem_4_TX |
Repeat this process for all stem busses in your project, making sure that each instance of Connector is assigned a unique port value. Make note of the port values selected during this process as you will need them when setting up the master instance of THS. In my example, my configured Stem 1 sender appears as follows:
Connector Presets – Sender
To simplify the process of setting up THS in future projects, you can save the configurations you set for your sender instances of Connector as presets. That way, you can simply instantiate Connector on your stem busses, load each TX preset, and all your senders will be automatically configured.
When a new router plugin is identified, it will be documented here!