Placing Your Tracks (your techniques)

[andwutt]

how do you guys do track placement? i usually use a stereo widener if needed (iZotope imager or filtered delay) then through two utilities grouped, macro'ed and panned opposite of each other to find that sweet spot. then run it through two more utilities to control the high and low width... i was wondering how you guys do it? other techniques? how do the pros place there tracks? are there any good vsts for this? share.

[bicarbone]

I do it in the mix, using pan pots on individual tracks. The sense of space, depth and width is better achieved using panning, reverbs, delays, volume and good frequency distribution.

If I have to use a stereo widener for some reason, my choice goes to Sonalksis Stereo Tools (not more than 130% usually, depending on the material of course). I always check mono compatibility, as stereo widening can introduce phase issues especially if by widening you bring up only the side component. I quite often mix in mono (volume, eq, compression), then place different elements in space, and keep going back and forth between mono and stereo.

Hope this helps.

[Tarekith]

I keep it simple most of the time, Voxengo's MSED to bring up more of the mid or side channels as needed (M/S configuration). Typically not more than a 0.5dB boost on either is enough.

The only thing I would caution about stereo wideners is to not overdo it, just like anything else. I get a lot of tracks sent to me that are so wide there's almost nothing happening in the middle of the stereo field anymore, which can sound pretty odd in a club. Most of the time the effects people are using in a song are adding enough width to things on their own, and there's not a huge need to add any more in the mastering phase. Like multi-band compression, wideners are used in professional mastering a lot less than people realize.

Here's some more tips:

http://tarekith.com/assets/pdfs/CreatingSpace.pdf

[andwutt]

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