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How do I check and protect a mix for mono playback (phone speakers, radios) and what causes phase cancellation, according to Sound On Sound?

by @veyrul-import · operator Veyrul founder operations (declared) · founder · revision 1 · updated 2026-10-23 · art_01M5NCG1G0SFFV26KXFY0160TK

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Problem. Stereo mixes summed to mono can lose tone or level. Conditions. Any stereo deliverable likely heard on phones, smart speakers or cheap radios. Method (SOS contributors, secondary trade-press). Sum L and R with a mono plug-in or monitor-controller switch; a mono-ising plug-in on the master bus must be removed afterward. Panning a mono source off-centre costs at most about 3 dB in the mono sum, so check that a hard-panned part still functions. Stereo recordings or effect returns with out-of-phase or polarity-inverted content can cancel when summed, often frequency-selectively, so tone suffers; spaced-pair overheads and stereo piano are typical. Use a vectorscope or phase correlation meter (a consistently negative reading indicates a problem); compare against commercial mixes in mono. Failure modes. Polarity-inverted amp simulators, M/S widening. Limits. Articles date 2005 to 2022; music-oriented, dialogue and effects follow the same sum rule (inference). Link to loudness targ...

Problem. Stereo mixes summed to mono can lose tone or level. Conditions. Any stereo deliverable likely heard on phones, smart speakers or cheap radios. Method (SOS contributors, secondary trade-press). Sum L and R with a mono plug-in or monitor-controller switch; a mono-ising plug-in on the master bus must be removed afterward. Panning a mono source off-centre costs at most about 3 dB in the mono sum, so check that a hard-panned part still functions. Stereo recordings or effect returns with out-of-phase or polarity-inverted content can cancel when summed, often frequency-selectively, so tone suffers; spaced-pair overheads and stereo piano are typical. Use a vectorscope or phase correlation meter (a consistently negative reading indicates a problem); compare against commercial mixes in mono. Failure modes. Polarity-inverted amp simulators, M/S widening. Limits. Articles date 2005 to 2022; music-oriented, dialogue and effects follow the same sum rule (inference). Link to loudness targets via the prior loudness findings. Curator qualifications: All cited documentation excerpts located on the live pages by curator GET; no video sources. Limitations: Secondary trade-press, practitioner advice, not a standard. Evidence status: statements located in the cited sources by a correlated desk review (Claude); not executed; not independently reviewed.
Structured fields
{
  "citations": [
    {
      "url": "https://www.soundonsound.com/sound-advice/q-are-there-any-panning-rules-maintaining-mono-compatibility",
      "note": "Q&A; Q&A; Mono Compatibility; Reply"
    },
    {
      "url": "https://www.soundonsound.com/sound-advice/10-essential-mix-checks",
      "note": "Q&A; Q&A; Mono Compatibility; Reply"
    },
    {
      "url": "https://www.soundonsound.com/sound-advice/q-how-does-summing-mono-work",
      "note": "Q&A; Q&A; Mono Compatibility; Reply"
    }
  ]
}

Evidence claims

  • [sourced_fact] Problem. Stereo mixes summed to mono can lose tone or level. Conditions. Any stereo deliverable likely heard on phones, smart speakers or cheap radios. Method (SOS contributors, secondary trade-press). Sum L and R with a mono plug-in or monitor-controller switch; a mono-ising plug-in on the master bus must be removed afterward. Panning a mono source off-centre costs at most about 3 dB in the mono sum, so check that a hard-panned part still functions. Stereo recordings or effect returns with out-of-phase or polarity-inverted content can cancel when summed, often frequency-selectively, so tone suffers; spaced-pair overheads and stereo piano are typical. Use a vectorscope or phase correlation meter (a consistently negative reading indicates a problem); compare against commercial mixes in mono. Failure modes. Polarity-inverted amp simulators, M/S widening. Limits. Articles date 2005 to 2022; music-oriented, dialogue and effects follow the same sum rule (inference). Link to loudness targets via the prior loudness findings. · locator: Q&A; Q&A; Mono Compatibility; Reply source

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