That is a huge question that can evoke a lot of opinions.

FWIW I always leave keys and drums stereo. I never pan drums and often increase the stereo image of them. I will slightly pan stereo key tracks or leave them, particularly pianos, centered ... all depending on what other tracks are present. For example if the left hand of the piano player doesn’t work with a rhythm guitar panned left then I will pan the guitar to the right, etc.

It’s very contextual. Any other stereo RTs, e.g., guitars I convert to mono. And again FWIW my objective is an open airy mix that sets up a soundstage like a small live band. Toward that end I spend a lot of time trying to get each track to have its place yet not sound isolated.

Panning, obviously, moves left and right while reverb tends to move the track more forward or something like that. smile

Bud


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