Question about panning

[SvartSomSynd]

Hello, I have tracked 2 guitar tracks on a song, but hardpanning them left & right splits up the harmonized riffs very hard and they don't interact with each other the way I want, is the only proper solution to this quadtracking? I feel two tracks are enough, but I want the harmonies to sort of bond like they would if I played them in mono

 

[rapucore]

One solution would be to quadtrack:

Harmony a1 = 100% L
Harmony b1 = 100% R

Harmony a2 = 50-70% R
Harmony b2 = 50-70% L

If you want to only use the existing two tracks you could try sending them into a very short delay or short reverb with very little to no pre-delay and pan that quite narrow or mono.

EDIT: I'll add that IMO you'd be just fine using the tracks as they are, hard-panned. Nice wide stereo image and separation between guitar parts.

 

[SvartSomSynd]

One solution would be to quadtrack:

Harmony a1 = 100% L
Harmony b1 = 100% R

Harmony a2 = 50-70% R
Harmony b2 = 50-70% L

If you want to only use the existing two tracks you could try sending them into a very short delay or short reverb with very little to no pre-delay and pan that quite narrow or mono.

EDIT: I'll add that IMO you'd be just fine using the tracks as they are, hard-panned. Nice wide stereo image and separation between guitar parts.

Looking into keeping two on L/R, quadtracking is too much work, and I'm really harsh on myself in tracking = twice the pain

I realized too it kind of works with the separation, it's not as bad as I anticipated

 

[guy in latvia]

I've actually reached the conclusion that it is possible to have too many guitar layers in a mix and am now considering just deleting a bunch of them if they don't really add anything to the music. It's hard for me as the guitarist/songwriter to do that, but less really can be more. After all, there is a bass guitar in there.

 

[rapucore]

I've actually reached the conclusion that it is possible to have too many guitar layers in a mix and am now considering just deleting a bunch of them if they don't really add anything to the music. It's hard for me as the guitarist/songwriter to do that, but less really can be more. After all, there is a bass guitar in there.

Agreed! There's no need to have quad-tracked guitars with additional double tracked harmonies with lead guitars plus their harmonies and on top of that a paddy delay-lead in the higher octaves playing all the time.

 

[guy in latvia]

Agreed! There's no need to have quad-tracked guitars with additional double tracked harmonies with lead guitars plus their harmonies and on top of that a paddy delay-lead in the higher octaves playing all the time.

I was actually referring to 2 rhythms, 2 leads and bass, but what you said is absolutely idiotic!

 

[rapucore]

I've received such projects, not fun at all....

 

[Jormyn]

For me the big problem with two guitars, 100 L/R, is when only one of them is playing and you get nothing coming out the other side. Just sounds weird. As a solution, send your guitar bus to a nice room reverb, 100% wet, and flip the sides on it so your left guitar is reverbing on the right, etc. It makes sure there's at least *something* going on.

 

[rapucore]

I dig when there's nothing playing. Feels like there actually is only two guitars.

 

[Winston Wolf]

I was actually referring to 2 rhythms, 2 leads and bass, but what you said is absolutely idiotic!

Then most pro producers are idiots,init?

 

[guy in latvia]

Then most pro producers are idiots,init?

I have never heard a pro track that consists of 10 layers of guitar harmonies, I can't imagine that mixed in any comprehensive way.

 

[abt]

For me the big problem with two guitars, 100 L/R, is when only one of them is playing and you get nothing coming out the other side. Just sounds weird. As a solution, send your guitar bus to a nice room reverb, 100% wet, and flip the sides on it so your left guitar is reverbing on the right, etc. It makes sure there's at least *something* going on.

This. Maybe not 100% wet on one side, but yes, send the majority of the verb to the opposite side.

 

[Plendakor]

Don'T you have a width knob on your harmony bus track ? Where you can turn it from 0% (mono) to 100% (Hardpanned) ?

Around 37% works for me.

 

[Terminus]

On the Sleepwalkers project I do, I always track 2 rhythms panned hard and two leads that are sometimes the same thing and sometimes harmonized counterpoint style (similar to Opeth's Orchid album but with lead tone, not rhythm) and pan those about 60 percent out. Yeah, it makes it tough for a live situation since there are almost always 4 guitars going but I enjoy the effect the various harmonies have on the songs.

 

[Jordon]

I have never heard a pro track that consists of 10 layers of guitar harmonies, I can't imagine that mixed in any comprehensive way.

I know a few top-of-the-industry producers that layer guitars so much, it would make your head spin. Seeing their sessions gives me a mild anxiety attack.

 

[bryan_kilco]

I know a few top-of-the-industry producers that layer guitars so much, it would make your head spin. Seeing their sessions gives me a mild anxiety attack.

I recall some of the old Smashing Pumpkins stuff having 30-40 guitar tracks in a single song, although a lot of them weren't all playing simultaneous, I guess you have to do what it takes to achieve the hugeness you desire.

 

[MetalSound]

I have never heard a pro track that consists of 10 layers of guitar harmonies, I can't imagine that mixed in any comprehensive way.

Just listen to Blind Guardian!

 

[Nikolas Quemtri]

Used to panning the main rhythm guitars hard (100% L/R) and then adding the additional harmonies where they're different only (they're 80% panned).
Probably, I wouldn't chose an inversed quad-tracking approach (part1 - 100L, part2 - 100R and another part2 - 80L, part1 - 80R) in case I use different tones/cabs for these two doubles.
Reversed reverb may also be a good glue for the hollow arrangement. But be careful here, 'cause this approach may widen the stereo image more as well (depending on the reverb's type of course).
Generally speaking, there are plenty of metalcore recordings (for example), using different parts for left and right guitar. Even up to playing a power-chords rhythm part on the left side and some higher tapping part on the right.