Stereo or Mono? Seriously, H4N victim.

J

JackBayer

Well-known member
Hello everyone,

I am on a project where I have audio files that came from a H4N. All files have 2 channels, but depending on how they had been recorded they´re either mono (2 channels with different audio on them) or stereo. The stereo files have two identical channels. (I really don´t know how that came to be, as all mics used where mono).

Well now, I seem to remember that I should always work with mono tracks, right? My mics are mono so why should I double my audio tracks with those false stereo files?

On the other hand I can´t really see any problem in using stereo files. If on some occasion I have different audio on the two channels, I just use the "fill right/left" effect accordingly.

I would be wayyyy harder to conform the stereos to mono, especially when I´ve already used them on my timeline.
I´d have to note the ins and outs of the stereo clip, then delete it from the timeline, set them up to be treated as dual mono clips and then re-insert them to the timeline with apropriate ins and outs. Finally I can delete one of the two mono tracks that now reside in the timeline.

So, which way to go?

I appreciate every insight,

Regards!
 
JackBayer said:
I am on a project where I have audio files that came from a H4N. All files have 2 channels, but depending on how they had been recorded they´re either mono (2 channels with different audio on them) or stereo. The stereo files have two identical channels. (I really don´t know how that came to be, as all mics used where mono).

Well now, I seem to remember that I should always work with mono tracks, right? My mics are mono so why should I double my audio tracks with those false stereo files?
Click to expand...

The first thing is to understand the difference between "mono" and "stereo". I've detailed this in another post (read it HERE), but here's a quote:

When recording one mic to both channels, you aren't actually recording in stereo. It's dual mono. "Stereo" (aka binaural) refers to two audio channels working together to create a dimensional image. In terms of playback, if the same source is playing out of both channels (or speakers) at the same level, it is mono (monaural). Even if the playback system is capable of stereo, and the audio is panned to the center, it's still monaural audio.

One mic cannot record in stereo. It's a monaural source. To truly record in stereo, you would need to have either a stereo pair of mics, or a stereo mic (which is really two mic elements housed in a single device). Further, if recording a shotgun mic to Ch1 and a wireless lav to Ch2, whether or not the mics are pointed at the same source, there is no stereo imaging. Likewise, a two-person interview with two lavs recorded to separate channels constitutes dual mono, not stereo.
Click to expand...

What you are seeing in your audio files is pretty standard for production. For a single mic recorded to both channels, though, the second channel should have been set -6dB lower as a safety track, just in case a sudden peak caused overmodulation (distortion) on the first track.

For the tracks that have different mics recorded to each channel: if they're two mics on the same person (such as a boom and a lav), pick the best one; if they're two mics on two people, split them and pan them to center (or fill left or right) and you have individual control over each person in the mix.

For the tracks that have one mic recorded to both channels, pick one and pan to center (or fill left or right).
 
Your description, however appropriate for an audio engineer, is actually very confusing for the non-engineer, and has no bearing on audio from an NLE perspective (or at least, from a Premiere Pro perspective).

Stereo means two channels, left and right. What is on those channels, if anything at all, is irrelevant. If there's two channels, it's stereo.

If there's only one channel, it's mono.

However simplistic those definitions may be, it's how PP sees and treats audio, and editors would do fine using just those definitions.
 
It's very important for production and post-production to be able to communicate, and to understand common language. The OP posed this thought:

The stereo files have two identical channels. (I really don´t know how that came to be, as all mics used where mono).
Click to expand...

Explaining how this came to be will help him understand how to handle the files. Plus, the thread title claims that he's an "H4n victim," which insinuates that the production sound recordist did something wrong; this is untrue.

And again, it's not overly-complicated:

Same mic recorded to both channels: use only one of the recorded channels.
Different mics on the same person, recorded to separate channels: pick the best one.
Different mics on different people, recorded to separate channels: use them both.
 
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Alex H. said:
It's very important for production and post-production to be able to communicate, and to understand common language. The OP posed this thought:



Explaining how this came to be will help him understand how to handle the files. Plus, the thread title claims that he's an "H4n victim," which insinuates that the production sound recordist did something wrong; this is untrue.

And again, it's not overly-complicated:

Same mic recorded to both channels: use only one of the recorded channels.
Different mics on the same person, recorded to separate channels: pick the best one.
Different mics on different people, recorded to separate channels: use them both.
Click to expand...

I think though, that the 'stereo' channels should be split out to two mono channels, for any of the options that have something different on each channel. Since during editing one would want to 'chop out' sound segments that are not going to be used.

Perhaps I missed a feature of Premiere, but I don't think one can selectively mute one or the other stereo channel for 'brief' regions of time...

Also, there is one awkwardness that does occur to me. In FCE/FCP one could very easily split a stereo track in to two mono tracks. I think in Premiere you have to create essentially two new audio clips with each of the former stereo tracks.
 
Covered that in my first post:

if they're two mics on two people, split them and pan them to center (or fill left or right) and you have individual control over each person in the mix.
Click to expand...
 
"The stereo files have two identical channels. (I really don´t know how that came to be, as all mics used where mono)."
=> maybe you had "input->mono downmix" activated on your H4n. That's commonly done to get hear the one microphone on both ears in the headphones while monitoring.
(It's very confusing to hear it only on one ear.)
 
Perhaps I missed a feature of Premiere, but I don't think one can selectively mute one or the other stereo channel for 'brief' regions of time.
Click to expand...

No, but you can choose one of the channels for the entire clip by using either the Fill Left or Fill Right effect. If you need both channels, duplicate the audio portion and use one effect on each.
 
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