Crave DSP Crave Stereo Enhancer 2 v2.0.33 [WiN]

Crave Stereo Enhancer is a four-band stereo widener engineered for precision control, transparent sound, and adjustable mono compatibility for both mono and stereo sources.

Precision Stereo Widening
Built around a carefully designed parametric stereo synthesis model, two independent parameters give you precise control over the synthetic stereo content generated, helping you avoid the unwanted artifacts often introduced by traditional wideners:

Width - sets the amount of synthetic side information added per band.
Diffusion - shapes the density and character of the added stereo information.
By tailoring diffusion differently across the spectrum and combining it with controlled width adjustments, you can create a wide, natural stereo image that suits any material.

Transient Integrity and Control
Featuring dedicated transient processing, you can widen the body of the sound without softening its impact:

Transient separation - removes transients from the widening stage, preserving attack and articulation.
Multiband transient enhancer - each band includes independent transient level control for further refinement.
Mid and Side Balance
Each band provides independent control of:

Mid level - adjusts the center component of the signal.
Side level - adjusts the stereo difference component.
The mid and side channels in each band are phase aligned using a crossover network, allowing their balance to be adjusted without introducing phase issues in the left and right channels.

Mono Compatibility
Per-band Mono-Safe control manages how the processed signal translates between stereo and mono. It applies spectral weighting between center, left, and right components rather than acting as a fixed mono safeguard.

100% - preserves center spectral balance when summed to mono.
0% - preserves left and right spectral balance.
Intermediate values - blend center and stereo weighting proportionally.
While it may seem intuitive that 100% Mono-Safe would always be the safest option, this is not necessarily the case. Preserving the center channel perfectly can allow greater tonal deviation in the left and right channels, which may influence balance decisions during mixing and reduce how naturally the sound translates once summed to mono. Conversely, prioritizing the left and right channels entirely can cause the center to sum with a different tonal balance than expected.

By allowing you to choose where this balance lies, Mono-Safe turns mono compatibility into a controlled, intentional decision rather than a fixed rule, giving you greater confidence when pushing stereo width in real-world mix scenarios. In practice, we've found that landing somewhere in the middle produces the most consistent results, a balance that most stereo wideners simply don't let you dial in.

Interface and Workflow

Preset management
A/B comparison
Undo/redo
High-resolution graphics with user-adjustable scaling for up to 8K displays
Frequency-dependent stereo visualizer and peak metering
Parameter linking
Band solo and center channel solo for mono checking
Mix control and output gain
Smooth, velocity-sensitive knobs and faders
Optional high-contrast color mode

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