[LAU] Can't get the stereo imaging from the speakers

[jonetsu]

On Sun, 10 Dec 2017 19:32:39 -0500
jonetsu <jonetsu at teksavvy.com> wrote:

> Any advice on how to use speakers so that it's possible to hear the
> stereo imaging ?

First of all, thanks for all the replies - much appreciated !

The case is solved.  The resolution is in the 3rd last paragraph below.
I took notes with the testing procedure and am sharing this as a
reference, if anyone searches this topic later on.  If ever :)

The hardware wiring goes like this.

The 1 and 2 line outs of the 1010LT card are going into the HS8
subwoofer.  From the HS8 a XLR cable goes to one HS5 speaker and
another XLR cable goes to th other HS5 speaker.

The physical hardware volumes knobs on both HS5 are set the same.

I use Bitwig with one only track in which a continuous
single-oscillator 'init' synth sound is played.  The master stereo
output of Bitwig is defined as 'Speakers-R' and 'Speakers-L' and is
assigned to system playback 1 and 2 respectively.

I use qjackctl to switch on/off the Bitwig stereo out for playback 1
and 2.

Playbacks 1 and 2 are connected by default to Bitwig's master stereo
Speakers output.  The sound is heard.

Using qjackctl both outputs from Bitwig are disconnected from the
playback inputs.  No sound is heard.

I throw the panning knob of both the track and the master to the left.
No sound is heard.  I connect Speakers-R to playback 2.  No sound is
heard.  This is all OK so far since the sound should be total left.

I disconnect Speakers-R from playback 2 and connect Speakers-L to
playback 1.

Problem: the sound is clearly heard in both speakers.  Even though the
pan is full left on both track and master.

All right !  Found it.  Using Envy24 control app, I see in the
Patchbay/Router tab that H/W Out 1 and 2 were directed to 'Digital Mix
1' and 'Digital Mix 2'.  I set them instead to 'PCM out 1' and 'PCM
out 2' and the sound is then only heard on the left, as it should be.

Disconnecting playback left and connecting playback right confirmed
this.  Then throwing the panning to the right confirmed this also.

This is great !  The stereo sound through those HS speakers is really
nice.  More to the point, the stereo pad sounds from a couple of Repro-5
polyphonic emulations of the a Sequential Circuits synth.

Cheers.