Mono?

  • Thread starter Thread starter guitarfreak12
  • Start date Start date
guitarfreak12

guitarfreak12

New member
Ok, I know that it's important to mix for the slight chance that it'll be heard in mono, but is it something that should be fussed over? I recently found myself mixing it all as if it is only going to be heard in mono cause my brain just got conditioned to think of all possibilities. Plus I'm not right in the head anyway. How often, or what are the chances things are listened to in mono? Should I really worry about it? Cause I noticed albums by Pink Floyd that would sound like crap in mono, you wouldn't hear much at all.
 
Really all you need to do is make sure that you don't have any phase cancellation issues going on. What are you using? Do you have the ability to listen to your stereo mix in mono?
 
The instances I can think of where a more mono-compatible mix would be desirable are:

Radio- FM stations will drop to mono in "fringe" reception areas where the listener is distant from the transmitter.

Television- Even with the advent of stereo tv broadcasts, a large number of folks still have the single 3-4" tv speaker as the audio source. Most "stereo" televisions I have heard don't seem to have a whole lot in the way of stereo seperation either.

Small systems- Even though they are touted as "stereo", a lot of the small boom boxes etc. produce less than stellar stereo seperation. Also, clock radios etc. are often mono.
 
I have Alesis M1 Actives, so I can listen to what ever I want.
 
guitarfreak12 said:
I have Alesis M1 Actives, so I can listen to what ever I want.
Click to expand...
OK, but what I'm asking is can you listen to your stereo mix in mono? For example I have two ways I can do it - I can run the stereo out to my mixer, then pan the left and right channels center, or, I have a mono button on my passive attenuator that I use to control the signal to my actives. If there's a radical difference (especially in the highs) then you probably have some phase problems.
 
i think of mixing in mono as being like mixing on NS-10s (from what i've read about their use). you don't exactly mix so it's incredible, because as you point out, much of the audience won't be listening in mono, or on NS-10s. however, you know when it sounds good, you can trust it.

if you're using stereo material or effects, there's no way it will sound as good in mono, so don't set your standards too high for the mono mix. rather, keep checking the mix in mono, or perhaps start your mixes in mono to get your frequencies in line before having to rely on panning and stereo effects for separation. keep in mind that some stereo techniques are more mono-compatible than others (spliting frequencies between channels vs simple delay between channels). so not all stereo effects will sum to mono the same way. also keep in mind that for the most part, people will probably not hear the mix in ideal situations, so even the best stereo mix will not necessarily sound exactly like you've mixed it to the listener.

so yeah, don't get bent out of shape over it, but if you're checking in mono and it sounds at least decent, then you're on the right track. then, when you forget that your mono button is pushed in, and you get back to stereo playback, you'll be blown away by how awesome things sound. that's always a trip.

-marcus
 
MadAudio said:
OK, but what I'm asking is can you listen to your stereo mix in mono? For example I have two ways I can do it - I can run the stereo out to my mixer, then pan the left and right channels center, or, I have a mono button on my passive attenuator that I use to control the signal to my actives. If there's a radical difference (especially in the highs) then you probably have some phase problems.
Click to expand...

Yes, sorry didn't understand. I can, if I unplug the right input to my stereo channel of my board, it automatically sends only left channel to both sides, that's the closest thing I have to a button.
 
guitarfreak12 said:
Yes, sorry didn't understand. I can, if I unplug the right input to my stereo channel of my board, it automatically sends only left channel to both sides, that's the closest thing I have to a button.
Click to expand...
Doing that is not the same as downmixing your stereo mix to mono. You're only listening to the left channel from both speakers. If you do have phase issues, you won't hear it, and it's also not a true sum of left and right.
 
I thought that mono was only the left channel getting through? It's both going through the same channel?
That being asked, it that is the case, what if I put both cables into defferent stereo channels (left Side) and bring both channels up as equal as I can (I know I can't get it exact).
 
I need to exactly what your set-up is before I can comment further.
 
Mono is when both the right and left sides are summed.

Some mixers have a "mono" output in addition to the stereo outputs. If yours has that, it would probably be near the stereo outputs. You'd still need to get it to both your speakers somehow, or find a single speaker to send the mono mix to.

Mono is great for checking mixes and is just another tool to make sure your mixes will work well in a variety of listening situations. Also, as has been said, if you have phase issues you'll be able to hear those in mono. If parts are dropping out when you switch to mono you've got phase cancellation issues.
 
FWIW, I like to check in mono to see more of what it sounds like instead of what needs to be fixed.

For example, if I can sum to mono and hear the vocals are kind of quiet, I'll listen in stereo and see if I think the same thing. Other times, I'll check multi-track recordings and stereo effects to see if I should flip the phase or not. This is really helpful with drums; after lining up all the peaks, I can double check to see whether or not they are in or out of phase.
 
Plug-ins

how about running your mix through a plug-in that lets you check your mixes in mono or stereo. off hand i know you can do this with t-racks. i can't think of any others at the moment. just my 2 cents.
 
A free plugin that does stereo/mono is the BLOCKFISH compressor. Yeah, it's probably not perfectly transparent, but for checking phase it works just fine. Just slap it on the master bus, and it'll automatically go to mono. Then you can hit the "stereo" button. I think by default it's in as close to bypass as possible.
 
both Brian wilson and myself (partialy) hear things in mono and mix stereo. You've either got it or you aint :D
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top