Siren - Pauli

[The_Metallurgist]

as far as sounding small, do you think I should pan things further out? I tried that but every time I hit the mono button half the tracks disappeared -_- probably because a ton of these tracks are stereo. is mono compatibility a necessary casualty for a nice, wide stereo image in a tune like this, or is there a way I can compromise?

Reply from a non expert, also in this department :-)

What I do all the time with stereo tracks is narrowing them. Like Mike suggests narrowin OH and havin room track bein full stereo.
That way i can place a stereo synth in the stereo field, still bein a bit wide but also hearable in mono.

hi chaps! just a quick one.

that's good advice. i'd only add some bits to that for now........

....it depends on the instrument and the associated FX...the mix, the number of elements, what role/importance the instrument has, and so on and so forth. no simple answer. it depends

i'd keep pads in stereo and spread them wide - but that's not a rule that can't be broken. pads often employ FX to their mono samples to make them sound stereo. some of these FX will work in mono, it just depends really.

downmixing a stereo track to mono can change it's sonic properties simply because of cancellation.

you can also try splitting the stereo in two mono parts, panning where you want them for best fit, and treating each differently with compression, level, and especially EQ. cut one at 1k, boost the other at 1k, etc etc. or feed one into a delay with some phasing....go wild

and of course, be alive to the "less is more" thang. the mute and delete buttons are invaluable allies. if it's getting in your way, and not fitting your vision and goals for the mix, take it out.

however, the more tracks you have to work with, the less you want stereo. a stereo file doubles the frequency masking issues and this clutters up the mix like nothing on earth. feed all this stereo into your reverb emulators and you have a disaster on your hands.

as a final point, not that there ever is one.....there should be times when you want the instrument in stereo for a spell, or in mono in the song. this is a creative decision, as well as a practical necessity to keep your mix under control regarding it's spectral range. hope this helps.

but read my previous post here, yeah?
cheers!