'Stereo' outs DN v A4 Overbridge

Hi all

Just a quick query / observation, really.

When I use the DN via Overbridge in Logic (or standalone) I can open it as a Multi-Output instrument - adding all the outputs into the session and routing the voices individually (with FX only sent to Master) still leaves me with 4 individual stereo pairs, one for each Track / ‘voice’.

That’s great as it allows me to do cool stuff like have the LFOs randomly modulate the panning and so forth to give a bit of width and movement, or p-lock certain triggers into different pan settings for example, and it sounds better doing it this way than trying to do it with some kind of a autopan effect (because you can make it randomly trigger the LFO but - crucially - hold it for each trigger, rather than have a kind of blanket autopan that might not place individual notes and so on).

I’m slightly surprised therefore that the ‘bigger’ cousin, the A4, has 4 x mono outs that present themselves to Logic as ‘Stereo’ but clearly aren’t (and, in the standalone Overbridge, they’re mono).

I understand the logic of this to an extent in that it’s a four voice synth and each voice is essentially ‘mono’. But if I wanted to use T1 as a monophonic bass synth, T2 as an analog hi-hat but have T3 as some kind of two (or three or four depending on the polyphony with the other voices) voice moving arpeggiator, doing cool stuff with LFOs and maybe p-locking steps for pan… well I can’t, unless I route it to the Main out, in which case it comes out with all the internal FX of the other tracks too.

I can’t really figure out why they would’ve enabled this OB functionality in the DN but not the higher-spec A4… so I suppose my question to those in the know is, does the architecture within the A4 exist to enable some kind of per-voice pan to allow those ‘fake’ stereo outputs in Logic to be ‘real’? It would seem like the OB spec could handle it given that it’s doing 5 x stereo outputs from little old DN…

Anyway. I’m sure I’ll get replies saying ‘hey it’s a mono synth’ and ‘why would you want to do that’… I’ve tried to explain above though, there are instances where you might want to p-lock certain pan settings or modulate the pan in interesting ways but still have different voice separation and it seems a shame not to be able to do that on the A4 (but great that you can on the DN, I wasn’t expecting that when I bought it).

There’s also always the possibility (nay, probability) that I’m doing something rather stupid, so any advice willingly and gratefully received.

Thanks for reading!

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