lead guitar usually tracked in stereo?

D

doriangrey

New member
Do you guys know if the typical guitar solo is tracked in mono or stereo ( ie- BB King, Page, Al Di Meola, Beck, ect. ) ? It sounds to me like 95% of lead guitars are in mono.

If mono, is there a logic behind this? So it leaves room for backing vocals and keyboards? What if there is no backing vocals and keyboards?

Derek
 
It is recorded in mono because it is only one instrument playing (normally) single note stuff. Any stereo effect can be put on it in the mix. There are exceptions but not many.
 
Ok, I'm using ASIO for the first time. If I want to record a lead guitar in mono in my Cakewalk GT Pro 3, do I select "left" or "right" ( not stereo ) in the input selection and then pan the guitar track in the center during mixdown?

Last night, I was recording my lead tracks selecting the stereo input. It didn't sound right, that's why I am asking. Thanks.

Farview said:
It is recorded in mono because it is only one instrument playing (normally) single note stuff. Any stereo effect can be put on it in the mix. There are exceptions but not many.
Click to expand...
 
You need to add a mono track. Then you need to select which ever input the guitar is plugged into and send it to the mono track. Are you recording a stereo source?
 
I'm just recording one SM57 up to my guitar cab going through the Mic/Line A on my E-MU 1820m audio dock.

My input options in the GTP 3 software are:

Left EM-U ASIO DOCK Mic/Line A
Right EM-U ASIO DOCK Mic/Line A
Stereo EM-U ASIO DOCK Mic/Line A


Farview said:
You need to add a mono track. Then you need to select which ever input the guitar is plugged into and send it to the mono track. Are you recording a stereo source?
Click to expand...
 
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I don't know how cakewalk handles this. If I have a mono source on a stereo track, it will be on the left and I won't be able to pan it.
 
I got it working right. Thanks for the help Farview :)

Derek

Farview said:
I don't know how cakewalk handles this. If I have a mono source on a stereo track, it will be on the left and I won't be able to pan it.
Click to expand...
 
in cakewalk there is a difference between recoridng in a stereo track and panning centre than there is to recording in a mono track. you will really save yourself a headache later if you record in a mono track to begin with. in sonar there is an option icon for this but GT3 may be a bit different. consult the manual and get things going right from the beginning.
 
I just did a search here on homerecording.com for mono/stereo and there is a plethora of infomation on the subject. It seems there has been a lot of confusion surrounding the mono / stereo facts. I'm glad I was not the only one, now I don't feel as ignorant, lol.

Thanks for the info, I certainly do want to get it straight from the start.

Derek

minofifa said:
in cakewalk there is a difference between recoridng in a stereo track and panning centre than there is to recording in a mono track. you will really save yourself a headache later if you record in a mono track to begin with. in sonar there is an option icon for this but GT3 may be a bit different. consult the manual and get things going right from the beginning.
Click to expand...
 
Can you anwser this?

Let's say... I wanted to record 2 tracks of lead guitar mono.

-1st track with an SM57 on the speaker cone.

-2nd track with an EV RE20 2 feet way from the guitar cab for a bit of room ambience.

Both mics are going into 2 seperate tracks and I keep both panned to the center.

Is this still considered mono?

If I panned 1 to the left a bit, does this begin a stereo sound?
 
Yes two tracks panned center is mono, as soon as you pan them, VIOLA! Stereo.
The confusion comes in when you have a stereo track (in software). You can have a, so-called, stereo track with mono information in it. That just takes up twice the harddrive space.
 
Fairview, thanks for putting it in a way that I understood! I was guilty of doing that! Thanks for the info and for helping me conserve hard drive space =)
 
doriangrey said:
Let's say... I wanted to record 2 tracks of lead guitar mono.

-1st track with an SM57 on the speaker cone.

-2nd track with an EV RE20 2 feet way from the guitar cab for a bit of room ambience.

Both mics are going into 2 seperate tracks and I keep both panned to the center.

Is this still considered mono?

If I panned 1 to the left a bit, does this begin a stereo sound?
Click to expand...

Just a thought, be carefull with dual miking! It could introduce phase cancelation! If the result sounds thin or weird, then try to move around either mic an inch or two... it's sometime difficult, but doable!

;)
Jaymz
 
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