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Partly due to my hearing, I tend to prefer Mono over Stereo where possible (and also because most panned stereo is hard to hear if you are far left/far right of the initial source). I also find it kind of ironic that a lot of the "Golden Age" of 60's music came in Mono format, largely because that's what they used, but also because they focused their mixing towards that later in the decade. Thoughts? Comments?
Also a lot of Mixers double check their mixes in mono or completely mix/EQ/etc. in mono before sending it off in stereo to the Mastering Engineer.
Just from my own experience... Some of the benefits of both.
Mono
- Feeling of "Presence." Band/Singer feels right in your face as if you're in the front row or in an informal crowd of 10-15 people.
- Vocals/Instruments sound more natural and real. Allows for more depth in individual instruments as well. Vocals, IMO, benefit the MOST from Mono as you get a natural sound and timber.
- It's much easier to separate the instruments or blend them together seamlessly in a mix. Really great Mono mixes can easily rival or surpass stereo mixes. See: The Beatles. What's interesting is that they don't sound "powerful" in the normal sense but still have their own sense of power.
Stereo
- Feeling of "Fullness." Band/Singer feels like they are up on stage hitting from all sides if you're 10-20 rows deep.
- Able to get more of a powerful feel, even if the initial sound is fairly light, due to having 2 channels. Sound as a whole can be "tougher," due to layering.
- Ability to pan instruments left or right to create space & separation. Due to panning, "more" can be done in a song instrument wise.
- Ability to experiment a lot more in terms of playing around with either channel.
Steppenwolf - Born to Be Wild (Start at 0:25)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-DqndMZ1f6M
Deep Purple - Hush (Start at 0:30)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XTDwBtll3oM
Also a lot of Mixers double check their mixes in mono or completely mix/EQ/etc. in mono before sending it off in stereo to the Mastering Engineer.
Just from my own experience... Some of the benefits of both.
Mono
- Feeling of "Presence." Band/Singer feels right in your face as if you're in the front row or in an informal crowd of 10-15 people.
- Vocals/Instruments sound more natural and real. Allows for more depth in individual instruments as well. Vocals, IMO, benefit the MOST from Mono as you get a natural sound and timber.
- It's much easier to separate the instruments or blend them together seamlessly in a mix. Really great Mono mixes can easily rival or surpass stereo mixes. See: The Beatles. What's interesting is that they don't sound "powerful" in the normal sense but still have their own sense of power.
Stereo
- Feeling of "Fullness." Band/Singer feels like they are up on stage hitting from all sides if you're 10-20 rows deep.
- Able to get more of a powerful feel, even if the initial sound is fairly light, due to having 2 channels. Sound as a whole can be "tougher," due to layering.
- Ability to pan instruments left or right to create space & separation. Due to panning, "more" can be done in a song instrument wise.
- Ability to experiment a lot more in terms of playing around with either channel.
Steppenwolf - Born to Be Wild (Start at 0:25)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-DqndMZ1f6M
Deep Purple - Hush (Start at 0:30)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XTDwBtll3oM
