I have been trying to wrap my head around LCR mixing concepts (old dog, new tricks syndrome). Because of my limited resources, I use a mid/side mic technique for drum overheads instead of an XY set up.. Figure8 pattern on condenser with a dynamic mic for center. If I pan Fig8 and the Fig8 phase inverted 100% left and right, how wide the field sounds depends on the difference in the level between those two channels and the center channel. Then I like to pan the tom channels so that they match up to the same place in the stereo field. In order to get a true LCR supposed benefit, should I push the field and toms out to the maximum width?. I tend to find that distracting personally. I try to make my kit sound like it takes up a more natural, less exaggerated sounding sonic space. Does anybody else use a strict LCR approach? Maybe some clarification will help. This guy explains LCR pan approach better than I can. http://therecordingrevolution.com/2011/05/04/5-minutes-to-a-better-mix-lcr-panning-part-4-of-31/

 

In LCR mixing style everything in your mix is panned 100% left, 100% right, or dead center. I guess what I'm asking is how you approach this when you have stereo keys, or drums where you don't close mike every tom to hard pan.

 

I find extreme drum pan distracting too, but a lot depends on where it's going. If you are mixing LCR instead of straight stereo, that tends to suggest your overall format is 5.1 or LCRS. Unless you're delivering discrete stems for a specific multitrack playback setup, it seems likely that the mix will be encoded for delivery. The various kinds of encoding and decoding circuitry can affect imaging significantly. I find that Pro Logic 2, for example, pushes the L & R inward somewhat, and although I have less experience with it, I've heard similar things about Pro Logic 1. Dolby E (a likely scenario only if it's for broadcast) narrows the L/R image somewhat less, though still noticeably. So when assessing pan position for a mix that'll be encoded, it pays to be a little more liberal in the panning, despite what your good instincts tell you.

 

Thanks, Frubbs. I didn't know that different formats change the apparent stereo image. Have not noticed. I guess the thing to do is go ahead and LCR everything then put it all to mono and see what still stands out and what disappears. Now that I have become aware of LCR, I think I hear it being used more than I would have thought. I never noticed before, but T-Bone Burnett seems to use this a lot and I like his recordings.

 

Algae, surfing over net I see these:

Producer Terry Manning proposed the ‘Cardinal Points Law’ technique --> LCR
SOS - Making The Most Of The Stereo Panorama

and a discussion
Cardinal Points Pan Law