mix sounds like trash in mono

[Oranproks4]

hi, im new to recording and mixing so this is probably gonna be some easy fix but idk.

ive been working on a track, having 1 guitar for each side panned 80% with 2 more tracks coming in at various points panned 45%.

in stereo, the mix sounds decent, though there is a lot to work on.
someone told me i should listen in mono and play with the eqs and compressions over there, once i collapsed the master track to mono i was shocked at how bad it sounds... no clarity at all.

what am i doing wrong? is it an EQ type of thing? or is it because my tracking was done tightly enough?

thanks for any advice you can give me

 

[Chi]

Got a track to share?

 

[axxessdenied]

Checking your mix in mono is great to see if you are actually making the proper EQ moves. Here's why. When you collapse to mono each element is on top of each other. When you EQ and balance your elements in stereo you might think things sound good because there is nothing fighting that element for room in that part of the stereo field. A lot of people nowadays listen on phones and laptops which means things need to be clear in mono! When you're in mono you're now hearing if you've carved out the proper room for each element to be heard properly. This is where a high pass filter comes in handy. You want to eliminate excess info on a lot of tracks before the main transient. So if your kick is peaking around 60hz, cut below there. Your snare is peaking around say 200hz, cut below that. Guitars are peaking around 120hz at the lowest, cut below that, etc. This will help a lot to clean up and make room for each element.

It definitely helps to start your mix in mono. Do your initial balancing and eqing in mono to get a better idea of what you're actually doing. Thing is if it sounds great in mono it will probably sound great once you pan the elements. But, not the other way around.

 

[axxessdenied]

whoops double post lol