When describing stereophonic (more commonly known as stereo) sound, I think the best place to start is by defining and comparing it to monophonic sound. When a speaker is described as having monophonic (mono) sound it means that you only have one channel of audio playback. As a result of this, when you listen to an entire song in mono every audio element such as guitars, drums, vocals or pianos get compressed together – this creates a much flatter sound that loses a lot of detail, lower frequencies especially loose a lot of their dynamics and presence. Stereophonic or stereo sound however uses two channels of audio. This means that whereas in mono every element gets compressed together, stereo sound gives much more space and detail to each element – resulting in a much more immersive, realistic listening experience. [1]
A key moment for stereophonic reproduction was Alan Blumlein’s invention of a binaural system. While it now is called a stereo system, Blumlein’s creation of stereo sound back in 1933 is still used today in some of the worlds most prolific studios like Abbey Road Studio’s. [2]
Despite stereo becoming a patented invention back in the 30s, it wasn’t for another 20 years until it was slowly introduced to the public – this is because all radios were still broadcasting in mono, as well as all records and gramophones only being able to playback mono signals. It was in the late 50s and early 60s that stereo recordings were becoming the standardised form of audio for recording studios, which is largely due to the stereo tape machines and larger mixing consoles that came with them. [3]
I’m not entirely sure if there is a foreseeable way that this information will inform my future mixing work because as engineers in 2024 we have only ever been used to stereo as the standard, ‘basic’ way of delivering our mixes/masters. An understanding of where our ‘no brainer’ knowledge has come from is never bad and not to be looked down upon however having more knowledge about why we use stereo wont necessarily impact how I continue to use it within my work.
[1] www.sonos.com. (n.d.). Mono vs. Stereo Sound: What’s the Difference? | Sonos Blog. [online] Available at: https://www.sonos.com/en-us/blog/mono-vs-stereo-sound [Accessed 3 Apr. 2024].
[2] EMI Archive Trust (2019). Alan Blumlein and the invention of Stereo | EMI Archive Trust. [online] Emiarchivetrust.org. Available at: https://www.emiarchivetrust.org/alan-blumlein-and-the-invention-of-stereo/.
[3] Abbey Road. (n.d.). The History of Recorded Music has its roots firmly planted at No. 3 Abbey Road. [online] Available at: https://www.abbeyroad.com/news/the-history-of-recorded-music-has-its-roots-firmly-planted-at-no-3-abbey-road-2596#:~:text=years%20to%20follow.-.
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