Logic Pro X - Mid-Side Stereo Miking and Processing

[@marksinger5954]

I have watched your entire 78 episode course and what makes me quietly smirk almost every time is the end where YOU thanking US for watching. It is us that most assuredly owe you thanks for what must be the most comprehensive overview, and indeed, at times in-depth bodies of work on Logic Pro X out there. THANK YOU. You are helping creators create in a way we really are grateful for.

[@fredflintstone1988]

So nice to see audio tutorials that actually IMPROVE the sound. Well done.

[@billystrano7291]

Thank you! I spent a lot of time trying to work out how to do this.....and got nowhere. Your explanation was clear and precise. I really appreciate you taking the time to help strangers. Thanks again. Enjoy your day!

[@bentuur20]

bro..no exaggeration .. you r the best… whatever you teach.. it all goes in man.. it all goes in… This help,what you are doing for other producers..its jus awesome… God bless you man.. god bless you..

[@ideaslinger]

Really crisp tutorial, exactly what I was looking for. Many thanks.

[@chetmortenson92]

I decoded a MS signal from a Zoom H6 that was recorded into Logic X using the H6 as an audio interface. I then used Logic's direction mixer to decode the track. I clicked "MS" on the direction mixer plugin, and the sound is more to the left channel of the output. According to this video, that's a sign that the MS recording was decoded successfully. But I don't want the signal to be unbalanced. Is using the pan knob the correct way to balance the signal. Also, it seems to be a lot quieter when the Direction Mixer is disabled. I guess decoding it into stereo makes it quieter, and you just have to up the channel level to make it louder.

[@levirawaudio7523]

I also use the Zoom H6 MS MIC and i learned that the MID mic is recorded to the left pan That is why your left channel is louder because it also has the mid section in it. So you need to go to your menu in the Zoom H6 and go to MS-RAW Monitor to enable RAW recording, Then in your DAW you can separate your recording to 3 mono tracks and then apply this tutorial video on your tracks.

[@jimpellinger7705]

Another way of accomplishing this is to pan the cardioid left and the figure 8 mic right, then send both to a stereo buss on which you have inserted Logic's Direction Mixer plugin set to the MS Decoder preset. I happened upon this method when I was searching for a phase switch in my plugins and not finding any--I guess I didn't check the Gain plugin. I do this all the time now, especially on drum overheads and acoustic guitars. Sounds great, and it's mono compatible.

[@MusicTechHelpGuy]

Yep, another great way to do it. I didn't mention it in this video, because I thought this was the simplest way. I'm actually saving that for an actual Direction Mixer tutorial.

[@jimpellinger7705]

MusicTechHelpGuy Well now I can try it the simpler way, now that I finally know where to find the phase switch! Cheers!

[@EnricoNichel]

Thank you, very informative. It seems to me, though, that there is some phase cancellation between the mid signal and the right phase-inverted signal. Is that possible or am I hearing it wrong?

[@thelittlemoontravelers]

Very straightforward tutorial. Much appreciated!

[@LEDBOO]

I know about mid/side. But I like the way you broke it down with this technique. Great video.

[@KrakowskiStudio]

Now Logic has Direction Mixer, seems to be easier to process the MS files. Check Logic Pro X: Direction Mixer overview on the Apple support pages

[@jhira001]

Did you know you can do MS recording crazy simple by using a single stereo track? I see someone mentioned a stereo bus, but you don't even need that. Record into a single stereo track with the mid to the left channel, and side to the right channel. Then insert the Logic direction mixer (Imaging-Direction mixer-Stereo) on the stereo track and click MS (default is LR) and you're done! No need to copy and flip tracks or use a separate bus. Now you have one stereo track instead of three mono. I see you are going to do a direction tutorial later. Maybe you can figure out what happens when you set the spread above 1.0. It just seems to mess things up like it's trying too hard. You can even separately EQ mid or side very easily. For me this has greatly simplified my projects since take tracks are so much more simple, and there is less clutter since there are less tracks. And since the audio is automatically phase locked, editing is easier. Also adding effects is as simple as adding just a single stereo unit. I've really enjoyed a lot of your videos. Thanks for posting!

[@MusicTechHelpGuy]

I'm aware of how to do it with the Direction Mixer, I've always done it this way because it let's me EQ the sides differently from the mid channel. Sometimes I'll cut the bass and boost the highs on the side channels. Keeping it all on one stereo channel doesn't really let me do that.

[@jeffhirata]

MusicTechHelpGuy Now that I think of it, I should have know that you know how to do it this way. I guess I was just waiting for you to mention it in the video. So hope I didn't offend you, because your videos and knowledge are really top notch. I like this video because you show you how things really work in MS mixing and how things are really done. Once you master that and it makes sense, you can go for something more simple like a single stereo track where everything is done mysteriously in the background of an insert. I look forward to your next videos.

[@MusicTechHelpGuy]

Not at all. I should have mentioned that there are other ways to do it. Each has it's own advantages. The Aux Track/Direction Mixer actually works better if you want to pan the entire guitar one direction or the other, because it can keep the sides in the right relative position to each other. I've used that method when I want to use MS, but then double-up the guitar part, and pan left and right. I'll make sure I cover that in another video though.

[@axelbezzi]

Great video!! A complete drum recording and editing (phase allignement and time quantization) video on Logic Pro X would be very appreciated! You have covered everything! Thank you!

[@glenncarr4514]

Thanks so much for this amazing, amazing series of Logic Pro X tutorials. The package is enormous and your information is so helpful! It has saved us hours of hard slog. Cheers Mate from Glenn & Dave.

[@PhilDahlen]

Great video, short and to the point. If ever you treat the subject again, maybe you can demonstrate how panning the mid cardioid more to one side or the other also has neat stereo image effects, with added depth (i.e., front back, as opposed to left right). Also interested to know more about Jim Pellinger's method described below. Very intriguing. Finally, WRT to figure 8 and why it is only mono, it should be pointed out that the figure 8 is just like a cardioid, except that its diaphragm is open to sound pressure levels on both sides, whereas a cardioid purposely isn't. Thus, the sound pressure levels on both sides of the diaphragm are in phase and in mono, in that, when the diaphragm is pushed to the right, it is also pulled to the right. That's why a figure 8 outperforms a cardioid in that setup. But you can also use a cardioid. (like an XY setup) and proceed from there. Or simpler still, just use one cardioid to track. Copy the track once, and make it sound more like a reflexion, i.e., give it a thinner EQ colour (maybe add an exciter), drop the gain & put on an expander to underline the transients, nudge it a few milliseconds to taste, etc. Then make a copy, panning one hard left, the other hard right.

[@MusicTechHelpGuy]

I plan on doing a dedicated Direction Mixer tutorial in the future, which is why I didn't go that route here -- IMO this is the simplest way, especially for people who are new to this. Not a fan of the 1-cardioid method you mentioned though, because with MS the capsules are right on top of each other and you end up with near-perfect phase coherency. With your method, it might sound really cool in stereo, but probably isn't the most mono compatible.

[@PhilDahlen]

MusicTechHelpGuy You're absolutely right about the mono compatibility. In all cases, always check the mono (and the correlation meter, very useful). I should have emphasized the importance of having a distinct sound from the track you're duplicating and also add that it would be better to bounce it before moving on from there. Why I mentioned that method is that some home recording guys like me might not be prepared to buy another mike just yet. I was on my way to get one when I decided to experiment with a figure 8 at a friend's studio. And that's when we tested these other options, on vocals mainly. It seemed quite comparable. Now excuse me while I try 'n catch up with all your other videos - you have absolutely the best stuff on Logic Pro X. Thanks. Phil

[@ImpliedMusic]

super tutorial. just what i needed.

[@BobSell]

Very informative! As always, thanks for sharing.

[@joyseb28]

Hey thanks a lot for all your videos they help a lot... I would Like to Ask you how much you charge for mixing and mastering a song ?

[@nickplaysviola]

if you recorded the mid and side separately into mono tracks like you demo-ed here, can you bus out the side to a mono aux, pan them hard opposite directions and then flip the phase on the aux instead of actually creating a new audio track?

[@davidaliperti]

when m and s are recorded on a stereo interleaved file, the first hard step in logic is to split them into 2 mono tracks, and when having dozens ms file interleaved recorded what is a suggested workflow? is there any plugin to decode it?

[@CouncilEstatePopMusic]

Thank you for this (and all your posts actually) always worth time out to watch. Much appreciated in my studio :) Jake.

[@guruvarammusicschool9893]

Good tip. Thanks

[@enisilhansmellsgood]

thanks for sharing!! your vids are always helping!

[@willstortimusic]

Great video

[@TheNicogratte]

Thanks for this video 🤘🤘

[@JaraSpring]

Great video again! Thank you

[@embiebie3063]

phase problem , dont you hear it?

[@markwoodard4640]

Why do you only phase invert the right side and not the left side?

[@jasonwith2ss568]

Because the purpose is to change the polarity. If you invert the phase on both channels you'll have 2 plus or 2 minus wave forms. Think of it like math. 1+1=2 -1+-1=-2 1+-1=0

[@JayBeBerg]

So bummed. I just realised I can't record the same input to two tracks in Logic at the same time like I'm used to in Mixbus. M/S is much slower like this and I can't listen back immediately. And this is in 2021. Come on Logic developers!

[@EnmandsBand1]

good demo, annoying "metallic ringing" in the guitar sound though ;-)

[@Yarivperelmuter]

v

[@glenncarr4514]

Thanks so much for this amazing, amazing series of Logic Pro X tutorials. The package is enormous and your information is so helpful! It has saved us hours of hard slog. Cheers Mate from Glenn & Dave.

[@guruvarammusicschool9893]

Good tip. Thanks