Why is logic flattening and merging mono files to stereo?

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Level 1

8 points

Why is logic flattening and merging mono files to stereo?

So.. all of a sudden, Logic is flattening and merging my mono guitar tracks to stereo tracks. I can't recall 'this' issue happening before, have I made a wrong setting or something? I can go through the process of bouncing the stereo files 'in place' to a mono file, but surely I can just flatten and merge to a mono track.. can't I?

Us logic users are becoming the butt of everyone's jokes in the audio community - can't we please, please get these mono/stereo issues sorted out? Can we imagine a utopia where we import a mono track, or export a mono track, and it STAYS MONO!? What a wonderful world that would be...

Posted on Jul 4, 2021 11:25 AM

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Answer 1

Eriksimon

Level 6

15,458 points

Jul 4, 2021 1:21 PM in response to JR41hz

Doesn't happen here. Can you show a screenshot of the channel strip of that track please?

I haven't noticed those jokes you speak of that everyone alledgedly makes; and I do have some contacts, they don't seem to do this. Maybe you're everyone differs form my everyone?

Anyway, screenshot would be nice. I suspect you may have a stereo plugin on your track.

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Answer 2

Eriksimon

Level 6

15,458 points

Jul 5, 2021 12:11 AM in response to JR41hz

Well, there are many "hidden" ways a mono track comes out stereo: if the bounce is done via the stereo out, if there is a stereo plugin or a mono>stereo plugin on the channel strip, if there is panning and/or panning automation, to name some.

But in the end, there is not really a problem: the sound of a mono track that is somehow made stereo through a "bug" (if indeed that is what it is) is still mono. And the "extra processing" that may result from that is peanuts. So even if it is a bug (for which I have no evidence - whenever that happened to me, it was always one of the mentioned causes), there is not really anything to worry about imo.

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Answer 3

JR41hz Author

Level 1

8 points

Jul 4, 2021 3:05 PM in response to Eriksimon

There just seems to be a 'vibe' with logic users exporting stereo tracks that are meant to be mono. Or importing mono tracks and having them show up as stereo. Not meaning for anyone to take what I said personally...

Anyway, I bounced these tracks to mono the long way already, but the only plugin that I used was the gain plug to switch polarity. No stereo plugins, no panning, no other information, just raw audio... I've already saved the project and moved on so I can't get back to the bouncing issue, but this mono/stereo thing seems to be an intrinsic issue to logic, in my experience...

I'm very much hoping it's just simple user error...

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Why is logic flattening and merging mono files to stereo?

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