Studio One | Why Use VCA Channels?

[@Mikey__R]

Can i just say, those clever people at Presonus have done a wonderful job on S1.

[@teddym2808]

Except dropout protection is one hundred percent broken and causes dropouts instead, and there's no midi event list which is a deal breaker for some of us. Otherwise, I'd consider switching.

[@Owl-qh2rh]

VCA after automation!!! HALLELUJAH!!! Thanks Mike 🙏🕊️👍

[@seismotracker01]

I've been struggling with S1 for years and years. I wish I'd found you, Mike, when I'd started. You are a fantastic teacher, patient and graceful and pleasant and clear and thorough. I'm a man of low means (no income at all right now) but if I start making money again I *will* be supporting you. Thank you for the work you do. A thousand times, thank you.

[@periloustemple8290]

This bit where you use the VCA to automate, then use a VCA to control it: That's just fantastic!

[@joesalyers]

I remember the first console I bought with VCAs on it, it was such a game changer for me. We Bought a Soundcraft Series Five 56 channel for my bands Live Shows and it had 10 VCA faders and 12 Aux'es and 8 Group Busses for 20 total sends. It was a monster of a desk but we would take it out for all weekend festivals and I could soundcheck 3 bands at a time and still have a few channels open. That way we could just slam through the last few acts of the night without much prep time during the show. But VCAs are so handy!!!

[@Mikey__R]

If you use a VCA, then each of the tracks can still be routed to different busses with different effects on them. You might want to put the same delay and compression onto a lead guitar track and the keyboard track, but have a VCA controlling both the lead guitar and rhythm guitars without controlling the keyboard.

[@CharfishDesign]

Very helpful! Your tutorials aren’t just educating me on the specifics, but how to think about the big picture as well.

[@Endless_Skyway_Adventures]

Yet again, you prove your gift for teaching, distilling the content, presenting it in the most logical order without jumping around every time a new thought comes to mind. Using VCAs even temporarily to refine and audition automation adjustments then baking them into the track is awesome. Love that VCAs solve the annoying reverb balance issue as you demonstrated. And finally, VCAs make it easy to control headroom into the top of your mixbus where it is easy to wind up with too much signal. A good place for a level meter BTW.

[@periloustemple8290]

So flippin' clever this! This 1 tip has changed my game for the better!

[@BrentIraEnman]

Thanks Mike, best explanation of VCA's yet

[@clutch-400]

Studio one is underrated

[@elithomas552]

VCA into VCA blew my mind 🤯 the complexity is astounding but you explained it in a way that made it easy to understand.

[@troymckibbin528]

Hello Mike, always enjoy your approach to instruction and believe it to be one of the best on KZbin concerning all things S1.

[@i_jetlag]

Recently watched a video on Cubase VCA by the Cubase guy. He showed so much functionalities with VCA but I don't use Cubase. So, this was a much needed video on VCA. Thank you.

[@gcroteau7226]

Thank you very much for your excellent tutorial. You're a great teacher.

[@tuttrupmusic]

I found this video to be extremely helpful. FYI: You have done a few other videos that have been total game changers for me. I appreciate your work!

[@1loveMusic2003]

The mute and solo thing sold me. I also like how once you've got your mix you can use the vca to get the right level into the bus which is important to me for processing with analog emulations. I use many plugins like that. Great vid as always Mike!

[@jacowink8941]

I overlooked vca channels all this time😂 and I have noticed on your video that the faders assigned to a vca move in relation to the amount of db's being reduced by the vca.The futher you go down on a fader the more the increments increase as per distance travelling down. Faders assigned to a vca move so slightly if the vca starts sliding down from lets say 0.0. Thanks bud. You opened pandora's box again😮

[@IsaacLeath]

Wow, thank you! In all my years I have never known a way to control volume after automation was already set to a track. I would manually adjust volume automation across the entire track whenever I needed to update the overall level. Now I only need to make a VCA track. And knowing how to adjust send volume to the reverb bus is icing on the cake.

[@nwcic]

Awesome TUT. Now, I understand not only the functionality, but the relationships between Bus's and VCA's Thanks very much

[@Emily_M81]

I had no ideas these existed. I'm definitely going to (try to remember to) experiment with them. Thanks for sharing!

[@FakeHeavenBand]

I found after the videos that using VCAs is very important because of the reverb bus!! :) Super happy! can you make a video about the right way to use reverbs and compressors on vocals or other instruments?

[@daniellesaux6152]

I learned a lot as always Mike! I'm certainly going to take a second look at the use of VCAs in mg projects. Ironically, the biggest reveal for me was that track view button that until now, I was completely unaware of!

[@RedHorizonRecords]

I never knew about the benefits of using VCA with automation. Perfect!

[@panagope]

For me the VCA is useful mostly to replace the Mixtool gain plugin. For example you have 1 channel that you applied Automation. But now you want to raise the level of the volume by 5 dB lets say. Instead of puting a mixtool to raise the level by 5 dB (because otherwise you have to rewrite the automation) , you can instead place a VCA , (only for this 1 channel), and you move it up by 5 dB.

[@AtticVibes]

Great series Mike, just switched from cubase with a studio live to S1, invaluable channel for me at the moment.

[@nick68music]

Great video, thanks!

[@patrickgoethals3235]

Very Creative Added 😁 thx 4 the vid.

[@mikebozik]

That's a really great point about buses not controlling the reverb sends!!! 😊 I never thought of it, but I do tend to put reverbs on at the end of my work flow. Hopefully this mitigates some of the issues, but now I am keenly aware that I need to double check. Thanks.

[@jmsthiessen]

This channel is amazing!!! Thank you!!!

[@dream.cast.studios]

What a WoW! U truy are an amazing teacher.Thanks... New sub

[@dhfernandes2009]

Thanks, Mike!!!

[@rewind2play]

Great stuff as always Mike

[@thebasspapa]

very useful - thanks

[@DadRockAndGuitars]

Fantastic explanation and demonstration! Thank you 👍

[@Gwill53]

Thanks Mike. I will be giving VCA a try.

[@theharmonicfour655]

Hi love your videos they have helped me a lot so thank you .i have a question I’ve gone from windows to Mac and the one thing I can not fix is wen I add a audio mono track for vocals and a stereo track for my backing music and I’m using scarlet solo .the problem is wen I sing the signal is coming through track 2 we’re I use it for my backing tracks would you no we’re I’m going wrong .I’ve selected input L for track 1 and input R for recording my backing track but un sure why the vocal Is coming though track 2 .thank you for reading

[@songsbyed9763]

Hey Mike thanks for another great insight. Today I set up an effects send bus for some vocal tracks. I use studio one 5 and the send fader seems to also control volume ? I thought it would only control the amount of effects? Am I setting it up incorrectly? Thanks

[@daniellesaux6152]

For some reason, I can't move my VCA fader anywhere like Mike is showing on the video. I made sure to uncheck the 'Keep VCA Dafer to the Right' box. Any idea why this is happening?

[@HomeRecordingMadeEasy]

A little off topic but what program do you use you make your video thumbnails? They look great!

[@DavidMaurand]

In a top-to-bottom throughput, then, shouldn't the send field be located below the fader?

[@timdovecool7202]

Vca is a cool stuff...

[@DavisEJay]

Hello Mike, What kind of cpu do you have and what is the specs? Thank you! Davis

[@paulmint1775]

gr8 vid cheers

[@samoyl-ce8ed]

Hi, can you explain in a video what is the difference between Bus and Fx Channels and Aux? Does that mean all three do the same thing?

[@samoyl-ce8ed]

???

[@pshimmons]

What does the letters VCA stand for though?

[@EddieKilgallon]

Voltage Controlled Amplifier?

[@WalkerUnknown-nx7yu]

Volume Control Automation?

[@vstudiomix2250]

👍👍👍👍👍

[@edjefferson9175]

I would call that a DCA

[@iCLICKSTUDIOPRODUCTIONS]

Thanks a lot, Mike for a great tutorial again!! Can I get your email to contact you? 🙏🙏