Mono and stero tracks question

[Monkey]

So there's obviously a big difference between a mono and a stereo song when you listen to it. But when you're dealing with individual tracks in a multitrack mix, how much does it matter?

For instance, if I have a stereo track that has no panning on it, is that essentially the same thing as a mono track? It comes out equally from both speakers, right?

Also, a mono track could be panned left or right in the final mix, so I could in theory record a bunch of individual mono tracks, pan them all like I want, and end up with a nice stereo recording, right?

I just wonder if I'm missing something.

 

[Hawking]

You've got it right.

Most tracks are mono tracks. Even if you mic something in stereo, it's just 2 mono tracks. You can pan them wherever you want. Beware of phase issues however. This can happen when using more than 1 microphone to record 1 source (instrument). If the distances aren't right, the 2 signals can cancel each other. When you have everything panned left and right, the phase problems are less obvious. It's a good idea to either pan last while mixing, or periodically hit the 'mono' switch while mixing to make sure there aren't any problems.

 

[mixsit]

...<snip>...
For instance, if I have a stereo track that has no panning on it, is that essentially the same thing as a mono track? It comes out equally from both speakers, right?

Also, a mono track could be panned left or right in the final mix, so I could in theory record a bunch of individual mono tracks, pan them all like I want, and end up with a nice stereo recording, right?
I just wonder if I'm missing something.

Maybe?
If both sides of a stereo track have the same info, then it is still mono, just with one of the tracks being redundant and wasted track space.
On the other hand, if you put up a stereo pair of mics then you will have results that can not be had from panned mono.
A combination of both methods usually works out well.
Some splits sort of fall back to 'pseudo stereo' or effects; the same signal done two seperate ways, like a mic and a DI panned. Or one sent to two seperate compressors with different settings will cause random movement. That's sort of a fun tweaky one.

Wayne