Question about Mono processing

I know Laidback Luke still swears by mono bass and mono kicks and says its a must. Maybe its his style of music but he has said it over and over again that the bass has to be in mono.

Well you know it really depends on how you have your ‘bass’.

The real consensus is that anything in the low end should be mono.





Your bass isn’t always ‘just in’ the low end is it. Sometimes you may have mid / high frequencies that help make up your bass, those frequencies don’t need to be mono’d.





But yeah the main reason behind why they should be mono’d is as suggested previously:


  • So the track can be cut properly to vinyl (however please note that mastering for a track that’s due to be cut for vinyl i’ve heard, tends to be mastered a little differently.)
  • Some club systems are set to mono so it’s important that your low end still has it’s punch.

[quote]bangthedj (03/11/2010)[hr]I vaguelly recall hearing something about the low ends and stereo perception too, but don’t know what it was exactly and am not vouching for it as such, just that I do remember hearing something.



Likewise though I heard the conventional wisdom about having your bass sit tight and centre… makes sense enough, but if it sounds good panned hard left go for that too :P[/quote]



Have Low’s in mono and High’s in stereo works as great contrasts to i guess and helps to make the sound, sound wider than it actually is. Like being in a silent room when you hear a gun shot compared to hearing in a gunshot in a loud area.

[quote]Itsapandemic (03/11/2010)[hr][quote]Jon_fisher (03/11/2010)[hr]whats the deal with mono ?[/quote]



the way ive understood it is below a certain frequency (like 160hz or something? I cant remember off hand) the human ear cant decipher between stereo or mono. But having items in stereo in those frequencies opens up the probability for a lot of issues. Of course the pros and people that have worked on this technique probably know what to do in stereo at lower frequencies but its easier to just make it mono since the listen cant hear the difference anyways. This is my interpretation.[/quote]



Makes sense, I always assumed that it was to do with old radio and tv broadcasting equipment struggling with reproduction of low frequencies but wasn’t sure.

[quote]onetwoseven (04/11/2010)[hr]The reason why the low end is usually mono is to do with the cutting of vinyl. If the sub bass is in stereo this can cause the cutting head to break. Not a good thing to say the least! So producers and mastering studios put the bass right down the middle to stop this from happening.



Now though, its unlikely that your tracks will be cut to vinyl. So mono bass isn’t the golden rule it used to be. It can be broken, but only if it sounds good :slight_smile:

[/quote]



thats what my main thought was… why bother if its never gona go to vinyl

My bass has a left and a right channel, but they don’t differ in any way. That’s how I roll with Mono.

[quote]bangthedj (04/11/2010)[hr]Well you two disagreeing on the core point doesn’t help your cause. ;)[/quote]



never known one to break but it can apparently do alot of damage, remember one of the D&B lads a college getting some plates cut and the guy telling him next time the bass wasn’t sorted not to bring it in.

some may find this interesting other maybe not, take it with a pinch of caution though as its Wiki and not always 100% correct.



[url]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vinyl_record[/url]

the thing about humans interpreting bass frequencies is true its about the inter-aural time difference, which is basically the way the brain decyphers which way the sound is coming from (left or right) and because low frequencies having a longer wave length (think its speed of sound/frequency) its difficult for the brain to hear the peaks and troughs of the sound

sorry inter-aural AMPLITUDE difference not time :slight_smile:

Low frequencies are non-directional. Mixing your low frequencies in mono will clean up your low end and give your mix balance and focus.



Oh - and what Roben was saying about vinyl cutting is absolutely true. Low frequencies have much longer wavelengths causing needle to lose tracking by moving from side to side too much.- I even think this used to cause the cutters to break on the acetates before the vinyl was even cut if the low end was too out of control… A very expensive mistake. Very expensive machines complete with diamond tip cutters.



Most club systems will be in mono. When you have finished your mix put it in mono. That is how it will sound on that mono system… Scary ha.



Time to go back and fix your mix.



My 2 cents anyway. If I’m wrong I’d love to learn the facts. Nice post.