Surround Mixing in a Non-Standards World (Part 1 of 2)

I seem to have a lot to write about. I'm having trouble keeping the word count to a minimum. I always feel a little background is helpful when discussing complex topics. So, once again, this first part (and feel free to take out this part if you don't like it, Marx Brothers fans), will be background for Part 2. Here we go:

Mono was paradoxically easy and difficult. Your audience had one speaker. The best method to record was with one microphone. Easy, right? Just put the microphone in the room where it sounds the best. Ah, not so easy now. With one microphone, it's sometimes easier to move the musicians and their instruments to "mix" the song. Even if multiple mics were used, they would need to blend them to fit the frequency spectrum of a single speaker.

Along came stereo. A whole new world opened up. By using two speakers it was now possible to effectively and accurately reproduce a group's performance for the listener. The simplest method to record was to use two microphones - one representing each ear.

Some organizations developed standards for microphone placement. There was your NOS pair, your ORTF pair, the MS or Mid-Side pair, the proverbial spaced omnis and my two favorites, the Blumlein pair and Decca Tree (actually three mics). We can discuss these in another blog. The point here is more than one "standard" was created for recording and mixing stereo. Throughout the years more microphones were added and mixed to create a balance between the instruments.

And then, in the 1970's there was "quad". Quad, as the name implies, requires four speakers for the listener - two in front and two behind. The first surround sound system. With quad, it was now possible to place the listener inside the band. The be in the middle of your favorite rock group while they performed was cool. Unfortunately, producers and engineers took this to extremes. Some recordings had the drums coming from behind you to one side while the bass came from the front and opposite side. It was too weird. Quad went the way of the Dodo bird and stereo remained king for decades. Some would argue it still is.

In the 1980's, the movie industry decided to reinvigorate the surround concept to create a better movie-going experience. The early days of surround for film were variations on quad. Four speakers were used, but there were now three in front and one behind the listener. The center speaker was placed there to help focus the dialog while the "surround" speaker was for special effects and used sparingly. The format is known as LCRS (Left-Center-Right-Surround) The idea flourished.

Organizations such as SMPTE, AES, Dolby Laboratories and ITU got involved and began creating standards. Standards as to levels and speaker placement. LCRS gave way to 5.1. The surround channel became stereo and a subwoofer was added (the .1 in 5.1). Now it was easier to localize sounds and get the audience involved. Laser shots can be heard whizzing past one's head.

It was time for music to venture back into the realm of surround. This time we were more conservative in our approach to mixing and not confusing our audiences. When DVD's were born, the concert-going experience was more accessible than ever to the masses. We can now relive a concert we never attended from the comfort of our own living rooms, without having beer spilled down the backs of shirts.

Surround for music was here to stay. We needed to develop mixing standards to create the best possible listening experience. That is was Part 2 will be about. What do you put in the center channel? Which crossover frequency is best? What do you put into the surround speakers? How much?

Rock. Roll. Repeat.