Panning, like EQ, is a way to help elements fit into the mix and to create excitement. There are few hard and fast rules to panning, but it's also not totally arbitrary. The best way to illustrate how panning can be used is to use examples.
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- Producing, Mixing & Mastering Dance Music
- The master-lens for this sub-lens.
Minimizing Clashing of Elements
I use panning to nudge elements out of the way of each other in the mix. Say you have two guitars that are conflicting with each other because they both occupy the mid-range frequencies. Using panning to set one 50% left and the other 50% right will spread them apart from each other and increase the clarity.
Improving Clarity
Just as you can use EQ to improve clarity, you can also use panning. Take a tambourine for example. When placed dead center, it might get lost amongst the snare and hi hats. Instead of increasing its volume, you could try panning it slightly to one side. Even a 25% move in either direction will make the tambourine more clear without increasing its volume.
To Make an Element Wider
Panning can be used to increase the perceived width of a sound. You can do this by creating a duplicate of your sound, panning one left and one right, they applying different effects to the left and right channels. Alternatively, you can take a mono channel, apply reverb, they pan the reverb slightly outside the source. Say your source, a piano, is at 45% right. You could apply a reverb (or delay) and pan the return of the reverb 90% right. Creating Excitement and Movement
Panning automation can be used to move an element in real-time. This is where you can get really creative and produce some innovative, dynamic soundscapes. You could take a crash cymbal and use panning automation to move the sample as it plays. For example, the crash could hit at 15% left but move to 85% left throughout the decay and reverb tail. You could take a vocal phrase and pan one word left and the next right. If you're using a sustained pad sound, try sweeping it from 75% left to 75% right. There are tons of possibilities here.
Panning Tips
- Always pan your kick, snare, and bass dead center. These are the fundamental elements that you build your mix around. Think of them as the foundation and supporting beams of your house.
- Stay away from hard pans in dance music. On a dancefloor, listeners are often positioned in front of only one speaker. If you hard pan an element they might not even hear it. Instead of panning 100% left or right, try using 65-75% instead.
- Map out the panned positions of your elements using a piece of paper. This way you can visually create a balanced, clear soundscape and avoid stacking elements in the same pan positions.
by Vespers
Vespers, A.K.A. Andrew Betts, has been a musician and performing artist since the age of 5. While most kids were doing finger paintings in pre-school...
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