My setup includes a Rackbrute 6U with a Bastl Ciao! as my output which I run to a MOTU 828. To date I've been just running mono from it but looking now to use both L & R channels for stereo out into MOTU 828 into Ableton Live. The Ciao! says it has "balanced" 1/4 outputs...to run stereo to Ableton, would I just use a pair of unbalanced 1/4 - 1/4 (they have a red stripe on one cable and a black stripe on the other) connected into two inputs on the MOTU 828 (channels 7&8) and then each channel then has its own track in Ableton?

I also have the L(mono) and R 1/4 outputs from my Hydrasynth...seems like I would use the same type of cables from Hydrasynth to MOTU 828 (channels 5&6).

I had been using 1/4" - 3/5mm from my Hydrasynth to Ladik A-520 preamp and then into stereo mixer in on my Cosmotronic Cosmix and then main stereo out to the Ciao! but only out from L(mono) of Ciao! into one channel of my MOTU 828...so missing out on any stereo signal from Hydrasynth.

Think I want to go L/R directly out from Hydrasynth into MOTU 828...but will use a 1/4" - 3.5mm from the headphone output into the Ladik preamp to process that signal in the modular (because I can...I think).

So, for a stereo signal, I use mono cables to L/R? Is a stereo cable only used when there is a single output labeled stereo? Do each of my L/R cables need to be stereo to get 'stereo'?

JB