Dubstepforum.com

Came across a neat little plugin the other day (which also happens to be free for both mac and pc), called Flux Stereo Tool http://www.kvraudio.com/get/3250.html

Stereo Tool offers controls and visual feedback for the stereo stage. It features ultra precise controls of input gain and individual pan for left and right channels. A phase inverter is available for each channel. A global stereo pan and a stereo width setting are also implemented to complete the management of the stereo signal.
Stereo Tool also offers an accurate visual feedback reflecting the signal content. A vector scope display, Peak meters for both inputs and outputs, and a phase correlation meter permanently monitor the signal.
As all Flux:: plug-ins it features 64-bit floating point processing, up to 8 FS (384 KHz).

thing is, it doesn't seem to come with a manual, and I'm still fairly new to production and just getting to the point of worrying about phase issues and checking the stereo field. I've read quite a lot how spreading sounds makes a huge difference in transforming ones song from flat and mono to a bit more 3 dimensional, but I'm aware of the possibility of phase issues when offsetting and spreading.

Anyone here use it? I'm looking for a bit of advice since there's no manual. I realize it's probably fairly basic to most of you guys, but was hoping somebody could possibly break it down and tell me what I should be looking out for, or maybe how to use some of the plugins features (such as phase inverters). As of now I check my mixes in mono for problems, but was looking for a rough visual guide as secondary help.

Cheers

deadly habit wrote:https://www.fluxhome.com/download/files ... 555caa3fd6

The manual for "Stereo Tool" isn't in the download you suggested..

ah damn, it's pretty self explanatory tbh
what exactly is confusing you?

Real men don't read the manual...

ToxicBass wrote:Real men don't read the manual...

and the real men who do that are often the annoying lil shits who ask basic questions that can be fielded by the manual on here

deadly habit wrote:ah damn, it's pretty self explanatory tbh
what exactly is confusing you?

Well as stated, I'm very new to using stereo techniques and new to production in general. I'm aware of the issue of phase, and was looking for a bit of advice on what some of the common causes of phase are, and how to best avoid stereo diareaha

Also, the plugin isn't exactly self-explanatory because again, I"m a noob. How do I use the phase correlation meters? Are there any uses to the phase inverter other than inverting stereo channels? How does one use the visual feedback graphic to check for a healthy stereo mix or potential phase trouble? If you've seen the visual aspect of this thing when it's receiving a signal you'll know why I'm confused:



Without the manual it's a bit confusing and not exactly self explanatory when trying to discern the readout above. Would this display be of a tune with a healthy stereo image, or would the smeared/blurry bits be possible phase issues? What about the several little dots way out left in the stereo field - would these just be a couple sounds panned way out or is this something watch out for? Basically I have no clue how I should be reading this thing.

phase 101 http://www.audiocourses.com/article1664.html
personally i don't use st tool on my overall mix, but rather on separate elements that say i want to bring up more in the mix or subdue a bit (vocals or pads for example) which is where the width comes in handy
panning well i can go on for ages about that
phase inversion can be used
as far as reading the display fire some material through it and it should be pretty self explanatory, for extra emphasis use some cans