6. Routing and output: from SD3 to Studio One
Going from stereo to multi-output without redoing anything: which channels to open, what to do with the bleed, and how to deliver the drums ready to mix.
The groove is programmed and humanized. Last step of recording: deciding how the drums come out of SD3 into Studio One. It’s pure setup, but it defines how much control you’ll have in the mix.
How many channels to open
In multi-output you could send out 15 or 20 channels. Don’t. More channels isn’t more control: it’s more setup time, more CPU and more decisions to make for no reason. A set that’s enough for any rock/metal song:
The 6-channel set (recommended to start)
- Kick: the piece you’ll process the most (sharing with the bass).
- Snare: the second one you’ll process the most.
- Toms (all together on one channel): they’re almost always processed the same way.
- Hi-hat: to dose it separately from the big cymbals.
- Overheads: cymbals and the kit’s stereo image.
- Room: the ambience, which is your “size” control.
Those six give you 95% of the real control. If you later need to separate a tom or split the kick into two mics, you open it then.
Bleed: your best ally (don’t turn it off)
When you open the outputs, each channel carries some of the other pieces: you hear kick in the overheads, hi-hat in the snare channel. That’s bleed, the natural leakage between microphones in the session where the library was recorded.
Output level and headroom
Drum hits are the loudest transients in the song: very short, very high peaks. If SD3 comes out too hot, you eat your headroom before adding a single plugin.
- Aim for peaks of −10 to −6 dBFS on each channel, with the Studio One faders at 0.
- If you need to lower it, do it at SD3’s output, not with the faders: that way you hit the plugins evenly.
- Remember that the drum bus sums the six channels: it can be considerably hotter than each individual channel. Check that meter too.
Going into the mix with orderly headroom keeps each plugin from sounding more aggressive than you expect, and avoids redoing the gain of the whole chain later. It's a few minutes' adjustment that pays off throughout the mix.
Is it worth exporting to audio?
Two scenarios, and in both the answer starts the same way: the MIDI never gets deleted.
Working with SD3 live (recommended)
You leave the instrument loaded and mix on its outputs. You keep all the flexibility: changing a hit, varying a velocity or trying another snare stays possible at any time.
Cost: CPU. If the project starts to strain, move on to the next scenario.
Exporting the channels to audio (stems)
You export the six channels as audio tracks and deactivate SD3. The project gets lighter and the mix more stable.
Golden rule: export with no processing (raw, just as it comes out of SD3), as WAV 24-bit / 48 kHz, all channels from the same start point so they stay sample-aligned. And keep the MIDI and the SD3 preset in the project: if you need to change a hit tomorrow, you go to the MIDI, not the audio.
Common mistakes
What NOT to chase yet
Quick path: getting the drums ready to mix
Quick path
- Activate SD3's multiple outputs and open 6 channels: kick, snare, toms, hi-hat, overheads, room.
- Create a DRUM bus and send the six channels there.
- Leave the bleed as it comes: no gates yet.
- Set SD3's output for peaks of −10 to −6 dBFS per channel, with the faders at 0.
- Check the bus meter too: it sums all six.
- If the CPU struggles, export the 6 channels as RAW WAV 24/48, from the same start point.
- Keep the MIDI and the SD3 preset in the project, no matter what.
Expected result
Expected result
The drums delivered to the mix: six channels routed to a DRUM bus, with the bleed intact, the level in order and the MIDI saved as the source. That closes the drum recording: you have a believable groove, shaped like a song, coming out with the control you need. What comes next is mixing the drums, where the kit goes from sounding correct to sounding big.