Mid Side Master is a Rona Audio mastering processor that splits a stereo signal into its MID (centre, L+R) and SIDE (stereo difference, L-R) components and gives each of them its own 4-band equalizer and 3-band multiband compressor, followed by stereo width control, monitor modes and the M/S decoder. It lives in the Rona Audio blue rack-mount interface with mandatory left and right rack ears and dual analogue VU meters with warm orange/amber tube-style backlighting.
The full plugin (MID panels shown). 1: fixed Rona Audio header. 2: POWER switch (illuminated red rocker, ON / OFF to its left). 3: EDIT lever – which channel (MID or SIDE) the EQ and compressor panels show; both channels always process. 4: MONITOR lever (STEREO / MID / SIDE). 5: INPUT, WIDTH, OUTPUT knobs. 6: dual VU meters (amber = powered ON). 7: MASTER ENGINE gain-reduction panel. 8: 4-band EQUALIZER row. 9: 3-band MULTIBAND COMPRESSOR row with the CROSSOVER / LEVEL group. 10: rack ears with mounting slots.
- POWER — Click-free power (meters fade with it)
- INPUT — Input gain before the M/S encoder
- OUTPUT — Output gain after the M/S decoder
- WIDTH — Side level before decoding (100 % = unchanged, > 100 % widens)
- MONITOR — STEREO / MID / SIDE listening modes
- MID / SIDE LEVEL — Channel level after the compressor
- EQ IN — Whole 4-band EQ of the channel in/out (gain fade)
- EQ band ON — Single EQ band on/off (gain fade)
- EQ 1 LOW SHELF FREQ — Low shelf corner
- EQ 2 LOW MID FREQ — Low-mid peak centre
- EQ 3 HIGH MID FREQ — High-mid peak centre
- EQ 4 HIGH SHELF FREQ — High shelf corner
- EQ GAIN (each band) — Boost / cut
- EQ Q (each band) — Bandwidth (peaks) / slope (shelves)
- COMP IN — Whole 3-band compressor of the channel in/out (GR fade)
- XOVER LOW — Low / mid band split (LR4)
- XOVER HIGH — Mid / high band split (LR4, kept >= 1 octave above XOVER LOW)
- Band IN (each band) — Band compressor in/out (GR + makeup fade)
- Band SOLO (each band) — Hear only the soloed band(s) of the channel
- THRESH (each band) — Compression threshold
- RATIO (each band) — Compression ratio
- ATTACK (each band) — Gain-reduction onset
- RELEASE (each band) — Gain-reduction recovery
- KNEE (each band) — Soft-knee width around the threshold
Quick start
- Insert the plugin on the mix bus or master (stereo track) in your VST3 or AAX host.
- Pick a starting point from the PRESET menu – ‘Gentle Glue’ or ‘Transparent Master’ for most material, or a category that matches the job (Stereo Width & Image, Low End, Repair & Restoration…).
- Use the EDIT lever to switch the panels between MID and SIDE. Shape the centre (vocals, kick, bass, snare) on MID; shape the stereo information (reverbs, doubles, wide guitars, cymbals) on SIDE.
- Use the MONITOR lever to listen to MID only or SIDE only while you adjust, then return to STEREO. Watch the MASTER ENGINE panel for the gain reduction of each band.
- Set WIDTH last: below 100 % narrows, above 100 % widens. Check mono compatibility with the ‘Mono Compatibility Check’ preset (WIDTH 0 %).
53 factory presets in 9 categories. Formats: VST3 and AAX plug-ins for Windows (64-bit) and macOS (Apple Silicon + Intel), loaded inside a compatible VST3, AAX or AU host / DAW. Stereo tracks only (M/S processing needs both channels); sample rates from 44.1 kHz to 192 kHz at any host buffer size; zero latency. Installed, activated and updated with RONA License Manager.
