Sometimes stereo is just not as cool as mono. I know that is an opinion, but hey, this is my blog! Seriously though, sometimes that big wide stereo piano (or keyboard, organ, etc) is just not what you need, especially in a complex part of a mix. Today’s tip is another simple one (don’t you love those?) and is a little old school as well.
Pan It Mono People
If your piano is just creating a wash of sound in the mix by being panned left and right, help yourself out by simply panning one side to match the other and go mono. It will put the piano in a defined place in the mix, thus making it more audible and simultaneously carving out room for the rest of the band. Enjoy the video!
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My name is Graham Cochrane and I'm the founder of The Recording Revolution, one of the world's most loved audio recording and mixing blogs with over 200,000 readers each month. 
I have alway kept piano close to center, definitely going to try this one!
Also consider just panning less widely. Try “10 and 2 o’clock” panning, or “9 and 1 o’clock” to move the image slightly to one side. This can keep some width and interest without pinning the sound right down to mono.
Hey Graham,
I assume this goes for stereo-mic’d acoustic guitar as well? Sometimes I find it’s just better when the acoustic isn’t meant to be prevalent to dump one of the stereo-mic’d tracks altogether. Sometimes fighting with phase and the issue of the sound kind of being all over is too much work. Just curious if you found that to be the case, too, or if i’m just doing it wrong.
Brilliant. I’ve been a jackass and always runnning it in stereo with the pan knobs lefy from thestandardsetting for stereo tracks. One of my weaknesses. You just blew my mind with this.
The same holds true for acoustic guitar. Just because you recorded it in stereo doesn’t mean you’ll even be able to HEAR the stereo image in the mix, unless it’s just a guitar/vocal track.
I LOVE stereo-acoustic, but you’ve got to realize when it’s just taking up space in a mix, and when it’s actually doing something useful.
Stereo piano is best for solo piano recordings. Otherwise, mono is probably best.
Depending on the phase-compatibility between the two channels it might sometimes be better to just mute one of the channels (usually the one that covers the low-end of the piano). Otherwise the differences between the mic-placements can cancel out a lot of important audio-information when summing them up in mono. It shouldn’t be a big problem if the stereo-recording is well done, but still worth mentioning.
Anyhow, thank’s for a great series!
Many thanks to you Graham! I’m a hobby guy staring to do some production work for local singer- songwriters ( also hobby guys), in Tampa Fl. I to have read a lot of material, but some of it combines digital and analog recording together which makes things confusing or not clear to me. Also, some books get very technical (which isnt a bad thing), but are light on the “how to stuff”. Lastly, your 5 minute tutorials give the visual example and cut through a lot of clutter to clearly explain and demonstrate QUICKLY how to get great results. What you are really helping to do is implement a lot of what I’ve read, but didn’t really try. I know your a pro, but I’m a little jealous of the quality of your examples!! :-l I can’t wait to get to the next video. Even though I feel that I can skip some, I always get substantial pearls from each one.
Thanks Mitch
Glad to help Mitch! And you’re local here in Tampa?!
Hi Graham,
I’m new to your site, and recording. I’m a singer-songwriter who’s interested in making my own recordings. I’ve been a little bogged down with all the options, and your site was exactly what I needed. I have a question about miking piano (since that’s my main instrument). I’ve read a few of your other posts where you’ve questioned the necessity of using 2 mics to record piano (and some other instruments). It sounds like in this post, you’re not debating how many mics (you obviously used 2) but whether or not to convert them to mono in the mix? Sorry if the lingo’s off! My question is more to your first point of how many mics to record with. I have a console piano, and even though I need to experiment where to best place the mics, I just always assumed I needed 2 since the strings span such a large area. I guess I’d be afraid of getting mainly just the mid tones and not the high or low ones (if for example I placed it towards the center of the strings). Sorry if this doesn’t make sense! Could you just tell me why you say 1 mic should suffice? It seems like if it’s a directional mic, you’d lose a lot of sound in either direction. And if you think 2 mics could work, could you recommend some “$100” pairs? 🙂 Thank you for your site! Really, it’s been a huge eye opener for me!
Sincerely,
Jeanette
Hi Jeanette,
Great questions. First off, don’t assume you need two microphones to get a great piano sound. Experiment with placement to see if you can’t just pickup a nice, full, and beautiful sound in mono with one mic.
If however you want to go the two mic route, then really any large diaphragm condenser will do. Some are brighter than others, so they might sound a bit harsh on your piano, depending on the piano. But you can easily tame that with EQ.
I prefer to fold a stereo piano recording to mono if it’s not the main instrument in the song.
Thanks Graham! Do you have an opinion on these?
http://www.zzounds.com/item–BEHC2
They were recommended to me. I understand what you’re saying, it’s not so much about the gear as it is the actual music. But I have to admit, I’m skeptical about getting a good sound from a $30 mic (x2). I ask because you recommended a large diaphragm mic and these are a small diaphragm. Even though I’m new to recording, I’ve been playing for a long time and want my recordings to sound full and warm like the actual instrument.
Thanks again for all your help!
I think these should work fine. I prefer the sound of large diaphragm condensers on piano though. You could get a pair of Behringer B1s for $200.
Thanks for the tutorial, Graham. I have a question for recording from a Hammond SK1. I’m recording a song with 2 guitars, bass, drums, and vocals. The organ part would be along the lines of something the Animals would’ve recorded in the 60s. Is it best to record the parts in mono and pan, or in stereo and then pan?
you are such a douche…who in their right minds mixes on krk?
wow… how did you get this far? I am shocked
As a veteran engineer and you know me..I’m all over, dud please go away!
Hmmm – Grammy winners like Jacquire King mix on KRK Rokits. Cheers.
If you mic the piano with two mics. To minimize phase comb filter affect, use the mics in an X/Y configuration. This entails the mics are placed next to each other which will help reduce phase issues.
howdy, what are your thoughts on mixing a virtual piano?
love this site!