My brain works like this in regard to panning.

If I am sitting in front of my computer, the speakers are so close together than panning is lost to my ears. However, if I am wearing phones, or listening on a stereo with separation, then my brain listens differently, more like i am listening to live performance in a small club. And if I am listening to a live performance in a small club, the keyboards are stage left, the guitar stage half left, the sax stage right. So when I pan the rhythm sections, i put the parts that way. Piano far left, guitar half left, sax right. The bass and drums stay down the middle. The drum parts generated by Real Band are usually stereo, and I often split that drum track into 2 mono tracks and put them 10 degrees off center.

There are obviously going to be exceptions. One song on the canvas right now has a stereo percussion part that starts left and right but during the song automation pans it back and forth so you can hear the percussion part "walking" around the mix. It's a very strange tune to begin with and that just seemed to fit it.

Or course, arena type music is usually mono coming from both sides of the stage, but I probably haven't seen more then 4-5 of those kind of concerts in the last 20 years. just not interested in paying the kind of prices they charge to see music I already know.

I am using the new 1040XTRAEZ form this year. It has just 2 lines.

1. How much did you make in 2023?
2. Send it to us.