Panning problem

P

polkor

New member
Hello
I feel bit confused. i record vocals in mono which i believe is most common practice. In my daw (cubase) I set up routing from mono to stereo however feedback from friends regarding my vocals is that they sound bit mono. Thus my question. Should i start panning vocals before eq and compressing or after. I use Center -Stereo vst from Waves as a last thing on vocals before mix and mastering. Is there any better plugin from waves ?
Then if i route from mono to stereo in cubase (in the early stage) should i use mono or stereo plugins on vocals.
So far i have been doing that way
1. routing
2.mono plugins (compress , eq, etc)
3.panning

Any suggestions?
Thanks
 
What do you mean "Should i start panning vocals before eq and compressing or after"?
As in doing your mix pan adjustments before moving on to the eq and other mix things?
In most mixer/daw channel signal flows the pan control is after eq, comps, inserts etc.
Also "too mono" on a main vocal? Might mean it could use a bit of stereo spread via delay or ambiance?
 
polkor said:
Hello
I feel bit confused.
Click to expand...

Yeah...I think you need to do some reading and/or experimenting with the whole mono/stereo thing in DAWs.
The fact that you route from mono to stereo will not make the vocals "stereo"...and I also think your friends who tell you that your vocals "sound a bit mono"...also are confused about what mono/stereo is, and what they're trying to say about your vocal sound.

TBH...without an audio sample, it's hard to tell you what wrong or what you can do different...and you're not really clear on what sound you want...you're just telling us what you did.
 
Easy to remember this:

1 Microphone to mono recording = Mono
1 Microphone to Stereo recording = Mono on 2 tracks, panning them will still sound mono.

I think what your friends are saying is that it sounds a bit bland, try a little stereo reverb, short or long depending on the track. The stereo reverb tends to spread the vocals across the mix giving some width.

Alan.
 
miroslav said:
.
The fact that you route from mono to stereo will not make the vocals "stereo"....
Click to expand...

Huh I make it sounds complicated
How to change vocals to stereo,? if routing doesn’t guarantee you that
When I suppose to spread vocals, before applying any compressors and EQ or after?
Now if I have vocal record in mono and route into stereo (how do I kno if vocal is in the stereo??) should I apply stereo mono effects on vocals?
Sorry but iam perplexed and Cubase doesn’t make my life easier
 
Vocal is always mono as you only have 1 mouth.

Any stereo is an added effect, when you mix the vocal is usually in the centre and the instruments are in stereo around it. The mono vocal is still present in the left & right channels of the stereo but sounds mono in the centre of the stereo mix as it is equal in the left & right. If it was uneven volume in the left or right to would sound over to one side.

Most hip hop I have heard sounds like the vocal is mono centre.

Alan.
 
One vocal is a mono source. If you want stereo try:

Add a stereo reverb.

Add a stereo early reflection effect.

Add a stereo chorus.

Double track the vocal and pan them apart.
 
bouldersoundguy said:
One vocal is a mono source. If you want stereo try:

Add a stereo reverb.

Add a stereo early reflection effect.

Add a stereo chorus.

Double track the vocal and pan them apart.
Click to expand...

nice and clear !
how about plugins on vocals. I assume that mono plugins on mono track
and stereo if i add stereo reverb?
when i suppose to pan vocals before or after compression?
 
Lead vocal should rarely be panned off center - unless you are doubling and want that effect. If its a stereo effect, then it can be as wide or narrow as you want it, but that isn't panning, unless you are trying to do something like have the vocal on side and the reverb (or other FX) on the other.
 
polkor said:
nice and clear !
how about plugins on vocals. I assume that mono plugins on mono track
and stereo if i add stereo reverb?
when i suppose to pan vocals before or after compression?
Click to expand...

I don't know about Cubase, but in Pro Tools the track is switched to stereo mode as soon as you add any stereo effect. In Vegas a track doesn't look any different in mono or stereo, but you can change the pan knob function accordingly if you want. So the terminology like "mono track" and "stereo track" might mean something different to you than it does to me. You'll just have to figure that out without my help.

In any system I've used the pan control is after the inserts, so compression before panning. But some software seems to offer inserts after the volume fader, so I suppose it's possible to put compression after, though I don't see any advantage in doing so.
 
I used Cubase 5 LE a little bit, it makes you choose either a mono or stereo track when inserting them into a session, the effects bins on mono tracks would process plugins as mono only, to get a little stereo ambiance from a stereo reverb, or chorus, or whatever, you have to use the stereo effect on a send, the FX track would output stereo to the mix bus.

I don't know what version of Cubase you're using, or even if Cubase has changed this behavior in newer versions, but try using a send for your vocal reverb, set the vocal track's send to be post fader, and set the reverb plugin to be 100% wet, the vocal track's send control is used to adjust the amount of reverb.
 
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Strryder said:
I used Cubase 5 LE a little bit, it makes you choose either a mono or stereo track when inserting them into a session, the effects bins on mono tracks would process plugins as mono only, to get a little stereo ambiance from a stereo reverb, or chorus, or whatever, you have to use the stereo effect on a send, the FX track would output stereo to the mix bus.

I don't know what version of Cubase you're using, or even if Cubase has changed this behavior in newer versions, but try using a send for your vocal reverb, set the vocal track's send to be post fader, and set the reverb plugin to be 100% wet, the vocal track's send control is used to adjust the amount of reverb.
Click to expand...

That would be the best bet.
 
They are telling you how to make your vocal sound more stereo, but I'm very sure that's not even what you really want to do. The vast majority of vocals you have heard in your life have been mono. There may be a chorus spread running low and parallel, but I'm sure that's not what you're talking about to begin with. It's sounding like the dry/no reverb element is most likely the issue, not a stereo/mono problem. But, you know, just go do the other stuff then....
 
polkor said:
when i suppose to pan vocals before or after compression?
Click to expand...

And this doesn't make sense. You can't even pick an answer because it's impossible. Panning isn't an FX in your chain, it's just a pot you move. You can't compress before or after...although, to get technical, I'm sure one of the tech guys here can say which occurs first...your FX or pan positions. But to the listener, it makes 0 difference.
 
I must admit that I did not know what your friends are telling you about mono vocals, do they know what they are talking about? "feedback from friends regarding my vocals is that they sound bit mono" What do your vocals sound like compared to other artists in the same type for styles?

I have done a lot of rework (at the artists cost) because friends tell the artist this and that and know nothing about what they are talking about or are not really describing what they mean.

Alan
 
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