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Stereo sound from one guitar track.

Now that I'm learning how to use Garage Band I'm finding ways to play with it. Decided to try to get a fuller sound out of one track.

This is what I did.

Recorded a short guitar track.

Then duplicated the track 4 times keeping the original track as a reference. (5 tracks in all)

Renamed each track

First track is my reference track. Left it un edited so I could hear the original guitar sound.

Second track I named 'left dark reverb

Third track 'right bright reverb'

Forth track 'left low pass'

Fifth track 'right high pass'.

Now for the fun.

Forth track I added a low pass filter. Only letting the lower sounds of the guitar. I then panned that track 16 to the left.

Fifth track I added a high pass filter and panned only the high sound of the guitar to the right by 16.

Here's where you'll have to play a bit between the original track and the two filtered tracks. Using both filters to get the sound as close to the original. Or use them as an EQ to enhance the guitar sound. Takes some play. If this is your first time using filters take notes. 'I did this and this happened'. Do this for both filters. Sounds silly but it's the quickest way learn em. Memory don't work. LOL

The only effect I added was reverb to the track without adding a high or low pass filter. Did this in stereo using two tracks. For track two I set the reverb to 'dark'. It's a muddy sound. Then set the reverb volume to Max and original volume to Min. You can set the reverb times to what ever you like. Mine are short. I panned this one 48 to the right. Did just the opposite for track Three.

You end up with the low sounds of the guitar with bright sounding reverb threw the left speaker. High sounds of the guitar with muddy reverb coming threw the right speaker.

Single stereo guitar.

Fist wave is the guitar without processing

Second is processed

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Attachments:

guitar for my song master.m4a, 215 KB
My Song.m4a, 269 KB

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Permalink Reply by Paul Stephen Eklund on April 30, 2011 at 10:50am

I know it's not 'my song'. LOL Garage bands name and didn't change it. It's part of Fred McDowell's 'Dark Clouds a-risin'. Played on a 1970's Yamaha acoustic. Recorded with the onboard mic on my Imac.

I should also point out that I deleted the original track on the processed mix. So your hearing both filtered and effects tracks.

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Permalink Reply by 3 String Blues on April 30, 2011 at 11:08am

cool you did a great job!!!!!!!!!!!!

you can get the same effect if you want to really make it sound extra duper full..invert the phase....watch this and listen to this video with headphones, then try it , youll like the sound...add the reverb last and i bet youll get the same thing that you were trying with that panning you did

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Permalink Reply by 3 String Blues on April 30, 2011 at 11:16am

but yeah, it sound great the way you did it!..really fat and full of life!

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Permalink Reply by Mark Bliss on May 1, 2011 at 2:52am

Good tips.

Heres a couple more:

First, dont overdo it. (Keep it simple.) What sounds good as a solo instrument track can cause a lot of muddy sounds once you mix it with other instruments into a song as a whole! I have learned the hard way that very subtle effects sound much better in the song as a whole!

Second, besides the panning and phasing suggestions, try time shifting the (right to left channel) tracks ever so slightly (in milliseconds) to "fill out" a sound a little by adding some slight delay to the stereo channels.

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Permalink Reply by Paul Stephen Eklund on May 1, 2011 at 3:23am

thanks folks.
Cool vid Beetle-Juice! Saved the link for farther studying. Thanks dude!

Mark Bliss, the idea was for folks who only have one instrument. Yep, really bad for a band recording. LOL The two track shift is a great way to get a fuller sound. Using the same 16 to 20 shift left and right sounds good. I wanted to show folks that it's possible to sonically spit a recording into two tracks. Keeping them close to center. ( up to 16 left and right ) By taking it farther and using two more tracks to add effects. Keeping these tracks at a lower volume with effects only and splitting them hard left and right but not all the way. Now when you add a straight up the middle vocal track you end up with a full sound recording with just one guitar and one voice.

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Permalink Reply by BenBob on May 1, 2011 at 6:21pm

What Mark is describing is called "fattening" and it is for one instrument. Take your mono track and duplicate it, panning one hard left and the other hard right. Time shift delay one of them (usually the right) less than 30ms and then combine them into a stereo track. It still sounds like one instrument, but in stereo and fatter. Some light stereo reverb on top of that gives a really nice sound for a solo acoustic accompaniment.