How much can excessive stereo information actually affect your mix?

In this short session, I take a synth bass straight out of the box and test its mono compatibility before doing any treatment.

The original sound contains a lot of stereo information. When I fold it down to mono, there's a noticeable drop in level.

I then duplicate the bass and treat the stereo information, keeping the sound wide but removing some of the unnecessary side information.

The difference is pretty significant.

The treated version remains much more consistent when folded down to mono, with almost no change in level compared to the untreated version.

I also go through how I approached treating the stereo field.

When the sound is still live inside the synth, I start at the source:

• Reduce unnecessary width where possible
• Check effects such as reverb and their decay
• Use EQ to control excessive stereo information
• Then use a good EQ in Side mode to clean up anything that remains

Once a sound has been printed to audio, you obviously have fewer options. You're generally looking at tools such as stereo imaging or Mid/Side EQ to rebalance the stereo field.

The problem is that if the stereo information is excessive, trying to fix everything after the fact can start to change the tone and character of the sound itself.

So it's worth monitoring the stereo field at the source rather than waiting until later.

This isn't about making everything mono.

It's about understanding what's happening in the sides of your sounds and making sure the stereo information is actually working for the track.

Because if your bass loses several dB when a system folds your track to mono, that's something worth knowing about.

A simple bit of monitoring and treatment can potentially avoid the problem before it gets that far.

Eleven One One Audio: https://www.elevenoneonemastering.com/

Sound Design • Music Production • Mixing • Mastering