Kick Lab 10 · 10 min
Stereo Lab
Change width, offset and mid/side balance while a correlation display reveals what survives mono.
Controlled experiment
Change one cause. Hear the result.
Before moving a control, predict what will change. Use the play controls to compare at a comfortable level.
Audio starts only when you press a play button.
Move one control and listen for the relationship.
Attention guide
Listen for these three things.
- 1Stability of the low body
- 2High-frequency width without a split onset
- 3What disappears in mono
Guided practice
Three experiments worth doing.
Do them in order. Reveal “What to notice” only after you have described the result in your own words.
- 01
Find the mono loss
Raise Width and Side, then change Monitor to Mono sum.
What to notice
Out-of-phase difference content can weaken or disappear when channels are combined.
- 02
Keep the anchor
Set Width to 0, then add only enough high-band width to notice.
What to notice
A stable centre and subtle upper width often read more clearly than a fully widened kick.
- 03
Delay has a cost
Increase Channel offset beyond 6 ms.
What to notice
The onset may become spatial, but it can also feel doubled or shift toward one side.
Check your model
Which part of a kick is usually safest to keep centred?
Choose the answer that explains the cause, not merely the symptom.
Close the loop
Can you explain the result without the controls?
If you can name the cause, the audible change and the musical tradeoff, the concept is ready to transfer into your own session.