Mixing Stereo - How to spread the sound over the range from left to right

[Bagsida]

Hey so I was wondering if there was a simple directive on how to mix audio to make it sound good. is there something like a default go-to that is considered the standard for where to start from? Im playing mostly acoustic guitar and record singing and i never got this nice sound where i had the feeling that the tracks were balanced between l and r in a way that convinced me. For example i usually put the rythm guitar to one side and the lead vocals to the other side of the range and then put the overdubs somewhere in the middle. somtimes i just spread the tracks to whereever i feel they might fit but i never got to that stereo sound that i hear when i listen to music. is there something like a simple how-to that i could rely on? like a stereo for dummies guide? TIA!

 

[bouldersoundguy]

The standard way to do it is to put LF sounds (kick drum, bass guitar etc.) center, lead vocal center and spread the other stuff across the image. A rock mix might have the snare centered or just off center. If you just have guitar and vocal, one way to do it is pan them each just a little off center. You can do a trick where you use a reverb that is panned opposite from the instrument, so vocal left, guitar right, vocal reverb right, guitar reverb left. You can also use more than one mic on the guitar so you can spread it out and have the vocal centered. Alternatively, double track the guitars and pan them out.

 

[Bagsida]

The standard way to do it is to put LF sounds (kick drum, bass guitar etc.) center, lead vocal center and spread the other stuff across the image. A rock mix might have the snare centered or just off center. If you just have guitar and vocal, one way to do it is pan them each just a little off center. You can do a trick where you use a reverb that is panned opposite from the instrument, so vocal left, guitar right, vocal reverb right, guitar reverb left. You can also use more than one mic on the guitar so you can spread it out and have the vocal centered. Alternatively, double track the guitars and pan them out.

Thats a good idea! thanks a lot. when i do the overdubs, is it common to make on track louder than the other? unfortunetely i dont have two mics but i usually record the rythm guitar and lead vocals twice and just stack them and make the one of each a bit louder than the other. im not really sure how i have to think about decibels, i like a big sound but i dont want the sound to be compromised by badly mixed volume. any thoughts on this?

 

[bouldersoundguy]

That's kind of your choice.

 

[Bagsida]

That's kind of your choice.

Yeah sure i was just wondering if there was any kind of recording etiquette in where this or that was a no go and that or this was like a default which producers would use as kind of starting point. any "rules" or common practice that i could rely on providing me with a better sound than i do now.

 

[gecko zzed]

just listen to music that is broadly similar to yours, and emulate their panning.

 

[Farview]

There really aren't any rules, but people tend to go for some sort of balance.

The focus of the song is probably the vocals, pan them center and it will add focus.

If you have two rhythm guitars, pan one left and the other right at the same volume. This gives a stereo spread that leaves room in the middle for the vocals.

As has been said, kick, snare and bass are best in the middle. Anything else can be put anywhere, but a balance between the two sides is usually desirable.

 

[Bagsida]

There really aren't any rules, but people tend to go for some sort of balance.

The focus of the song is probably the vocals, pan them center and it will add focus.

If you have two rhythm guitars, pan one left and the other right at the same volume. This gives a stereo spread that leaves room in the middle for the vocals.

As has been said, kick, snare and bass are best in the middle. Anything else can be put anywhere, but a balance between the two sides is usually desirable.

thanks a lot thats very helpful!

 

[grimtraveller]

just listen to music that is broadly similar to yours, and emulate their panning.

That's kind of your choice.

I don't know what kind of music you listen to but if you take these two statements as a bookend, then there's a whole universe in between that can act as guides. With the info you've been given thus far, you've got some good start points. But really, the name of the game is experiment. It might take you a long time to hit what you find to be acceptable. Alternatively, you may get close straight away.
This is a funny sort of gig. As beginners, we often know more what we're not looking for.
But there's a pretty broad scope of what we might actually find to be acceptable/preferable. It's just that at the start, we often box ourselves in looking for the elusive unicorn when a few different kinds of horse will do.

 

[rob aylestone]

There’s a trend in education nowadays that means when you get to say 16 you’ve been conditioned to NOT do things unless you understand the whole thing, in case you damage yourself, others, and ‘things’ in that order. Previously, kids were taught to experiment and investigate first, then research and find out out solutions to things that went wrong. This is termed kinaesthetic learning, and for some people is still the best. In grown up life it manifests in instruction manuals or assembly instructions. Some people look at the pile of bits for the garden gizmo they just opened, and just put it together, looking at the leaflet only when stuck. Others almost religiously start at 1. By 10 they might be ready to find the wrench mentioned in 11.

You learn from kinaesthetic activity. You learn less from research unless you are one of a small group for whom this is best. Most wont remember enough, without adding doing it to the process.

listening to a track really carefully is a great skill to learn. Then you can try to replicate it. Then you experiment and if it works, you add it to the do it again list. If it first work it goes to the doesn’t work pile. As we all do different music, this is the only sensible way to do it. My music, for example, is not modern. So I try to place things where I would on a stage. This means I break the popular music rules and it’s fine. Imagine an orchestra. Violins far left, double basses far right. So often you get highs left and lows right which is not how pop or rock does it. Electronic dance music has loads of ‘stereo’ sources like synths that often have effects on, so EDM has more central panning because the sources spread. You just want it to sound good, but probably similar to other music of that kind.

in music, you are allowed to create your own new rules. If we listen and laugh you got it wrong, but if we go wow, we tell you it’s great and immediately steal your idea for ourselves.

 

[mjbphotos]

My usual (95% of the time) stereo method is to pan things like I was watching the band live. Nothing is panned 100%, because in a live situation, you don't hear things like that. I do spread the drums out further, as if the overheads were into a stereo PA. But I will automate panning when needed to keep things balanced left-to-right. A song that starts out with just one guitar for the intro and first verse doesn't sound right if the guitar is way over one one side, so I'll put it more to the center, then when other instruments come in to balance the sound, I'll automate that guitar more to the side.

 

[grimtraveller]

My usual (95% of the time) stereo method is to pan things like I was watching the band live.

I used to watch live gigs all the time but I never paid attention to where the particular sounds were coming from. Also, I'd always be in a different place in the hall or room so that wouldn't have worked for me either.

 

[Steenamaroo]

I agree with all the 'experiment' and 'listen' and 'there are no rules' advice but if you're panning guitar left and vocals right and wondering why it's not sounding balanced, it might be appropriate to go back a step - Learn some rules so you're qualified to break them.

There will always be exceptions but if your focus is acoustic guitar and vocal it's very very common to keep the main vocal down the centre.

It's common to record acoustic guitar with one mic twice then pan those recordings apart (not the same as copy/paste) to create a sense of stereo/width,
but it's also common to just record the guitar with two microphones. Quite often they're spaced apart so that they capture a realistic stereo representation of the guitar in the room, so you'd pan those apart left+right.

The two-recordings approach will sound less natural - more like an effect (chorus).
The two-microphone effect will sound like a natural recording - depending on the microphone position it may sound like you were there.

For vocal overdubs - I guess you mean harmonies and additional parts?
There really are no rules there. I like to track a lot of parts twice and pan them apart for balance, but it's totally fine to have some harmony pop up in the left and another in the right.
If you want to create the impression this was a live performance then you'd probably want to pick a place for the 'second singer' - Maybe panned a small percentage off centre.

No rules, but some guidelines.

 

[grimtraveller]

No rules, but some guidelines.

No rules, some important guidelines, various methods. Try them all. See which grab your fancy.

 

[pj11]

The general purpose for panning is allowing each instrument or vocal have it's own space while at the same time blending with each other without canceling each other out. In your case with only a guitar and one vocal, I'd place one around 11:00 and the other at 1:00 oclock to start. If you pan ''hard'' like at 9:00 and 3:00 or greater, you'll have more separation or space and will hear a noticeable difference in the blending. And also as suggested, put the guitar L and R and vocal straight up center. If using multiple sounds, the stage method, as I call it, is a good starting point. Pan tracks as if you are listening to a band on stage. Drums in the middle with bass slightly off to the side. If two guitars are used they need to be separated on each side, especially if distorted. Mid rangy instruments separated or they will collide with each other. I've had good results with submixing harmonies down to one track and dropping them in where I see fit. But typically off center slightly opposite the bass. A guitar solo can be panned where the lead vocal is if it drops out during the solo to put it out front without having to push the gain. Also panning will affect your db levels for each side. That's another factor in the balance in having your meters peaking the same. There are some do's and don'ts but if you mess with it you can figure out what works and what doesn't.

 

[mjbphotos]

I used to watch live gigs all the time but I never paid attention to where the particular sounds were coming from. Also, I'd always be in a different place in the hall or room so that wouldn't have worked for me either.

Well, of course - so I do it like I was in a well-placed centered soundboard!