Stereo/Mono conversion and setting up my I/O

[Simbad54]

Ok, hi there, this is my first post.
I'm currently recording guitar, vocals, bass, and some midi on an iMac G5 using Ableton Live 5, using a little M-Audio Fast Track as an I/O interface.
I've included a pic of the input chooser to help explain my problem. Basically, the Fast track puts the mic into one channel (mono) and the guitar into the other channel if i make the 1/2 choice in my chooser. But If I want to add another guitar/ bass layer or another vocal it wil sit on the same channel and I'd kind of like to mix it up, say bass on the left channel/ rhythm guitar on the right and the same for the vocals .

If i choose the next option down, 1, then I get a signal in both channels, but am I right in assuming it's a mono signal because i can only see one wave form?

The last option, 2, doesn't have any input.

If I record a vocal into the left channel (for example), can I copy it over to the right channel some how to get a stereo sound? I can't seem to find how to do that in Live.
Or can I record a vocal into the left channel, then record another vocal into the right. I can't seem to change which channel the input records to. There is a stereo/ mono switch on the Fast Track but can''t see how that affects it.

I don't have any training in basic sound manipuation/ understanding so perhaps i'm missing something VERY obvious. If there is a source i should head to to learn this stuff a link would be great.

Ok, very long first post, but thanks in advance.
Sim

 

[legionserial]

Record to mono and pan

If i choose the next option down, 1, then I get a signal in both channels, but am I right in assuming it's a mono signal because i can only see one wave form?

The 1 is mono channel 1. The 2 is mono cannel 2. If you are recording instruments that have a single mono source, as it sounds like you are, record each one in mono, then pan to taste.

Recording something in the left channel and then copying it over to the right will not give you stereo, if you have the same signal left and right in equal proportion, it will appear dead centre, in which case you might aswell record it in mono and leave it panned centre.

1 voice for example is a mono source. The voice is only coming from one place, unless of course you have 2 mouths. If it's a mono source, record it in mono. Same goes for a single guitar, a single bass etc.

As far as recording a vocal in the left, and then recording it again in the right, again, you might aswell record them both in mono, and then pan one left, and one right. Then you have a stereo effect. You need 2 sources for stereo. Left and right. This would work, for example, if you were miking, say, and acoustic guitar, using 2 mics. You could send one mic to stereo left and one mic to stereo right. But then, you are left with no versatility as to panning those 2 signals, so would would probably be better off recording those mics to a mono track each and, again, pan to taste.

If you are recording you vocals and guitar at the same time, send the guitar to mono 1, and the vocals to mono 2. With a track for each obviously.

Hope this makes sense.

If you are recording mono sources to stereo files, you are just wasting hard drive space.

 

[Simbad54]

Thanks for the reply.
So, I think I've got this. The 1 option fills both channels with a mono source, so i can pan it either left or right, yes? So, i should pretty much record everything with that option, and then pan it as i see fit.

What i'd done prev was use the 1/2 option which meant only one channel had a mono source(left for mic/ right for guitar) and I couldn't pan either over to the other side. Does that sound right?

I have recorded my semi accoustic guitar using one channel for the guitar pick up, and the other for a mic at the 12 fret, so that, I assume, is a stereo signal, and sounds pretty good.

 

[ofajen]

Thanks for the reply.
So, I think I've got this. The 1 option fills both channels with a mono source, so i can pan it either left or right, yes? So, i should pretty much record everything with that option, and then pan it as i see fit.

What i'd done prev was use the 1/2 option which meant only one channel had a mono source(left for mic/ right for guitar) and I couldn't pan either over to the other side. Does that sound right?

I have recorded my semi accoustic guitar using one channel for the guitar pick up, and the other for a mic at the 12 fret, so that, I assume, is a stereo signal, and sounds pretty good.

If you are recording two, separate mono tracks at the same time, say, voice and guitar, you will need to create, arm and simultaneously record two audio tracks. Set one up to record only input 1 and the second track to record only input 2. These will each be mono tracks and when you play them back they will be mixed into the stereo master out and you can pan each one any way you like. If you record 1/2, it creates a stereo track putting 1 on the left channel and 2 on the right channel. In that case, "panning" merely attenuates the channel you pan away from, but it doesn't do any mixing of one signal into the opposite channel. The 1/2 option would be used when you are actually recording a stereo track where there is a left and right channel input that mean something together as a stereo track.

I'm not exactly sure that recording a guitar pickup and a mike on the guitar really qualifies as "stereophonic", meaning attempting to reproduce the three-dimensional sound of a guitar, but that term has lost a lot of it's precision over the years. It's really more like two different mono versions of the same guitar, but it does have two channels of different, yet correlated information, so, yes, you can treat it as if it were stereo.

BTW, upgrade to Live 6 if you can. The effect "chains" can be very handy and the big level meters are helpful, at least to these aging eyes.

Cheers,

Otto

 

[Simbad54]

BTW, upgrade to Live 6 if you can. The effect "chains" can be very handy and the big level meters are helpful, at least to these aging eyes.

Cheers,

Otto

Thanks very much Otto. Between the two of you and some experimentation I think I've got it down. It really boiled done to not knowing what "Stereo" actually was. Like you say it's one of those words used with out real understanding.
I would love to upgrade to Live 6 & and I've got it in demo form but after buying a new mic I just can't afford it right now. Have a good day.
Simeon.