Crazy question

[ukejon]

Often I feel like my recordings are a tad louder on the left. In other words, during playback the sound seems to be slightly left of center in my headphones. And if I turn the headphones around, rather than reversing the imbalance I hear the same thing. Can one's hearing actually "lean" in one direction?

[KevWind]

One off the cuff guess would be you have a wax buildup happening in your right ear . That you notice in the headphones but not regularly.

[Wengr]

Maybe consider getting an audiogram (hearing test). Nothing says that hearing loss has to be bilateral.

[Doug Young]

Have you tried listening in mono to see if this still happens? I'm obsessive about stereo balance and I constantly struggle with the sort of thing you describe, where the speakers are balanced in mono, the meters say I'm well balanced, but when I switch to stereo it sounds unbalanced. The only difference is if I switch speaker, the levels usually switch, so I attribute my issues with the unbalanced sound coming from the guitar in stereo. In any case, if this still happens with mono, then yeah, get your ears checked (you can also download test signals that might help remove any question about the musical content)

[KevWind]

Originally Posted by Wengr

Maybe consider getting an audiogram (hearing test). Nothing says that hearing loss has to be bilateral.

Yes that also my construction noise related loss is more on the right (being right handed that was ear closest to the tools )

[Ty Ford]

and loss on the left (in the US) if, like long-distance truckers, you spent a lot of time driving a vehicle at highways speeds with the window down.

[RRuskin]

Originally Posted by Ty Ford

and loss on the left (in the US) if, like long-distance truckers, you spent a lot of time driving a vehicle at highways speeds with the window down.

With that in mind, I've taken to using ear protectors when I drive long distances.

[rick-slo]

To me when I switch ears with headphones the sound is fairly different overall since I hear pitches of some notes differently in each ear (due to an old eardrum injury).

[MikeBmusic]

Originally Posted by rick-slo

To me when I switch ears with headphones the sound is fairly different overall since I hear pitches of some notes differently in each ear (due to an old eardrum injury).

Another reason to use monitor speakers for mixing, rather than headphones.

[Ty Ford]

OK, we're going there?

Yes, if your project will only be heard on headphones, then you can make a case for mixing on headphones. But how often does that happen?

Then the question becomes, which headphones? Headphones and monitors vary greatly in frequency response. I do some Pro Tools consulting. Folks get Pro Tools and get a little lost. I try to help. I usually do this at their place so they can see and hear what's going on. I always bring my headphones; Sony MDR7506 or Audio Technica ATH-M50. It's not unusual to find that their headphones sound horrible, either because they're really cheap or because they're fried.

AKG makes a headphone with a micro switch built in to the head strap that keeps the phones turned off until they're worn. The tension on the head strap pulls the switch. This keeps people from blowing up their headphones because they forgot they were plugged in and jacked up the volume somewhere in the system.

I do use headphones during mixing to check effects levels. Even near field monitors, as close as they are, do involve the room and that can mess with the level of effects. Put the cans on and you can sometimes hear that you've over boosted an effect just enough to sound over the top in the headphones.

Pulling the effects back just a little lets the mix still have the effects in the monitors, but keeps it from being too much in the headphones.

So, yes, both headphones and monitors are important. I have a pair of Realistic Minimus 7 and my main monitors at each work station. The Minimus 7 give me a good idea what things will sound like on systems with smaller speakers. If you're shooting for good mixes on lap tops and other devices with really small speakers, you need to mix to them as well. But if those mixes must also work on larger systems, then you need to do some creative EQ work to make a compromise that works on both.

Regards,

Ty Ford