Mono compatibility - what to consider?

[Menfrad]

IMHO the best way to be sure your track is mono compatible: Start producing in mono. This will in no affect the quality of your beats, your melodies or your basic sounddesign.

When your track is completely laid out you can go for final mixing and add this little pannings and fix some issues. In the end you could be faster because you will not think about minor things ( and yes, stereo effects are minor things ) until you have finished the track.

Of course, it´s debateable if your tracks MUST be mono compatible. But if you want it so, that´s the most basic way.

[Zexila]

[Menfrad]

Yes. Way too much information for beginners nowadays. Do not major in the minors.

Make sure you make a FAT Track at first, and if everything goes wrong afterwards you have at least a FAT Track.
And if the track is really fat ( and you may have a bunch more ) you will find someone who takes care of the minors for you, take this for granted.

[metamorphosis]

Yes. Way too much information for beginners nowadays. Do not major in the minors.

Make sure you make a FAT Track at first, and if everything goes wrong afterwards you have at least a FAT Track.
And if the track is really fat ( and you may have a bunch more ) you will find someone who takes care of the minors for you, take this for granted.

... no, this isn't something that can easily be fixed at the end of the process. Although as previous poster noted, whether you need to be mono compatible is context-dependent.

[Frantz]

whether you need to be mono compatible is context-dependent.

In the 70s, when music was played on AM radio which is mono, mono compatibility was a consideration. What is the context in 2016?

[Menfrad]

As I stated before, a foolproof way of having a mono compatible track ist to start producing in mono. You will hear it instantly if something goes wrong. Whether mono compatibility is a must for anybody or not is beyond my interesting. If you want to know if it is important for you then just listen to your reference music and check it out.

Start to make gooood music first and the rest will come easy. Whether your track is "shit" or "the shit" isn´t a question of mono compatibility.

I´m more on a "philosophical" point of view. Make some fancy stuff and people will be interested in helping you. Thinking about minors right at the beginning of your "producing career" leads to nowhere. Just go, go, go and make music.

[Hermetech Mastering]

In the 70s, when music was played on AM radio which is mono, mono compatibility was a consideration. What is the context in 2016?

Most club sound systems.

Most phones.

You know, the two places where most people actually listen to music these days?

It's a minor detail though, don't fuss over it, check quickly in mono, HOW DOES IT SOUND? I did have one synth metal project come in where on one track the guitars were hard panned L & R and completely out of phase, sounded huge in stereo, but they completely disappeared in mono, just gone. Told the client and that's what they wanted, so who was I to argue?

[Aloysius]

Just as well this discussion is not about driving a car. Can you imagine? Ah don't worry about the red lights. Do you major in minor things? Just get out there. Pedal to the metal. Actually, that could just about describe some truck drivers I've been unfortunate enough to come across.

Who cares anyway? You can pride yourself in not knowing how to do things properly if you want. At least nobody will get killed.

[chk071]

LOL

[Zexila]

In the 70s, when music was played on AM radio which is mono, mono compatibility was a consideration. What is the context in 2016?

Everywhere where listener is not in the middle of stereo field, so not someone sitting in his studio and not someone who have both earbuds on and not someone in the middle of dance floor, pretty much everyone else besides them in 2016 are going to appreciate good mono compatibility.

[arseniy2]

As I stated before, a foolproof way of having a mono compatible track ist to start producing in mono. You will hear it instantly if something goes wrong. Whether mono compatibility is a must for anybody or not is beyond my interesting. If you want to know if it is important for you then just listen to your reference music and check it out.

Start to make gooood music first and the rest will come easy. Whether your track is "shit" or "the shit" isn´t a question of mono compatibility.

I´m more on a "philosophical" point of view. Make some fancy stuff and people will be interested in helping you. Thinking about minors right at the beginning of your "producing career" leads to nowhere. Just go, go, go and make music.

I was making music for many years without bother about stuff. And actually did not know mixing thing exist. Now I am pity I did not stumbled on mixing back then. One time I was making some track and I was very dissatisfied with the sound no matter what I do. So by making a search I found out about such thing as mixing. And now I think it is also a part of making a music. Since then I only find more and more problems. It feels like a dark impassable forest. Fortunatelly there are people who done through. And it makes tings much easer.
Here is this track(in case you wonder) that made me want to start learn mixing professionally(I had no idea it will be such a deep pit):
http://www.newgrounds.com/audio/listen/544494

[Menfrad]

Alright. Sorry, i estimated that you do your very first steps, your music told me something different. It was not my intention to offend you in any way.

It is my strong opinion that one should only think about the really important stuff ( different with every person though) and for beginners one can certainly exclude mono compatibility from this.
Majoring in the minors will kill people, you know?

By the way, all of my beloved music ( mostly electronica, some singer/songwriters ) is perfectly monocompatible. Of course some information get lost in mono, but it never sounds weird or weak.

[arseniy2]

Alright. Sorry, i estimated that you do your very first steps, your music told me something different. It was not my intention to offend you in any way.

I wasn't offended. Actually it was funny Reminded me those jokes of mastering with soundgoodizer.

P.S.

Listening some mid/side of a music I found this intresting thing.
Listen to the very begning of this song. Before the vocals. Then listen the Side only. I wonder if this will be surprise for you. I guess it's some sort of those psychoacoustic stuff.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cMTAUr3Nm6I

[MogwaiBoy]

I was just checking out this video and at 2:20 I think Pensado's low end is a bit wide

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Or28i41r_Go

[pixel85]

One thing: the same song doesnt need to sound exactly the same in mono and stereo. No no it's not like that. The one and most important thing is that the song should sound pleasant both in mono in stereo (i'm avoiding low end phase problems here). It's normal thing that some elements will disappear in mono like wide lovely reverbs and some parts of the stereo pads/synth leads. I remember times when listened to radio with weak signal, it switches from stereo to mono constantly and professionally recorded songs doesn't sounds exactly the same (except song recorded only in mono) so it's not the case.

Checking how your song sound in mono and stereo is really good habit to simply know what people can hear.
Most important is to be able to hear your instruments in mono but they doesn't need to sound perfectly the same like in stereo. Simply be sure that song in mono doesn't sound disgusting.
As long as you're not working in top studio, you don't need to become mad scientist on this field.

I know people who have one speaker on the floor and second somewhere on top shelf (both set in different directions) because they have no idea why it's wrong. In some cases people can hear your song the way like you put stereo enhancer on master with setting 150% and sometimes like 20%.