4) EQ for balance, not for sound. The best way to use the EQ is so that you can hear everything distinctly in the mix. If a vocal and a guitar are competing for the same frequency space, try attenuating the EQ at 2-3kHz on one while increasing it slightly at the same frequency on the other. By checking that no two instruments that are panned together are EQed at the same point, you'll probably be able to better hear everything.
I don't rely on panning for separation since you can't expect things to always be played in stereo. I make sure things don't clash even if they are panned together. For me stereo placement is just icing on the cake, not a tool for fixing mix problems.
Yeah...it's true that things are not alway played in stereo, but at some point it's gotta to be an either or thing, and you go with it.
I'll be honest, mono mixes are not my consideration at all, just like surround mixes are of no concern to me. I'll check mono for the sake of checking, but a mix to me isn't just a question of making it work in all other possibly playback systems.
Not to sound snooty about it...but I like to think of the mix as the final creative production decision, and for me it's always a stereo mix...so panning is a big part of that and it's not just to fix mix problems. It's about laying out the virtual "stage" for the listener. If the listener chooses to change the stage to a mono listening experience...it's on their dime.
That said...I find that most times, if the stereo mix is balanced well and panned, and levels and EQ working as they should...when you collapse it to mono, it's still pretty listenable...but certainly not the same as if you had specifically mixed it for mono.
You didn't really say what/how you did the panning...just that you didn't use it to fix mixing problems (which I honestly don't think I'm doing either with my SOP).
So then are you mixing/EQing/level balancing with everything up the middle as with a mono mix...and THEN panning out to stereo...?
What are you doing differently with your panning approach?
I listened to a few of your Bigfoot mixes....they sound very clean and well balanced.
Maybe it's the dinky computer speakers I'm listening on at the moment, but it also sounds like you generally place a good deal of your mix elements more in the center of the mix....yes?
I'm not getting into the whole write and wrong way of doing it thing but I tend to pan before setting the levels for the simple that sometimes panning after can drop the levels and i have to go back and double up on any automation and reset the levels. Which quiet frankly is a pain in my harris.
by the way I am seriously impressed that Bobby came back. Its probably time i bought his book on mixing.
There is no right or wrong order for setting levels, eq and panning. You have to find what works for you.
One of the coolest things is the collection of different, even contradicting, ideas from different mix engineers. It goes to show that there isn't ONE RIGHT WAY to get the job done.
I chuckle sometimes at how nuts some folks get about how their mixes sound in their cars...but if you sit there and listen to a dozen tunes off the radio...THEY ALL SOUND DIFFERENT!
Yep - And also - all cars are different, unless they are the same
This is also true
I will say though the car on my way to work for me is where i play a lot of my cd. so i kind of know what to expect from commercial offering in my car. Its always a bit bassy in my car compared to home stereo and even more so than my monitors.
So as a referance point i trust my car stereo because my ears have become accustommed to it.
If there are any mixing or mastering things that really stand out on the car stereo I always revisit the mix.