Spatial: Stereo
The SPATIAL tab controls where a sound sits in space and how wide it feels. It has several modes; this page covers Stereo (the everyday one). Binaural 3D is on the next page.
Turn the whole tab's processing on or off with SP ON / SP OFF (top right).
The diagram
On the left is a polar diagram — a top-down view of you (centre) and the sound's position. Stereo mode has no front/back parameter, so the Balance dot only moves along the horizontal axis — drag it to place the channel left/right; the readout below shows the position. It's a visual twin of the sliders on the right.
The diagram is live: two dots spread apart as Width increases, reflecting the combined effect of Width and the Mid/Side ratio together — exactly what the engine applies, not Width alone — and a faint trailing dot shows Haas Delay on the side it actually delays. Per-speaker glow appears when a surround source is folded, so you can watch the spatial image move, not just set it.
Mode strip
Across the top right: Stereo · Binaural HRTF · 5.1 · 7.1.
- Stereo and Binaural HRTF are available now.
- 5.1 and 7.1 output modes are marked coming soon — they need a multichannel output device and are still in development. (You can already fold a 5.1/7.1 source down to headphones — see Binaural HRTF.)
Stereo controls
| Control | Range | Default | What it does |
|---|---|---|---|
| Width | 0…200 % | 100 | Stereo spread. 100 % is unchanged, 0 % collapses to mono, >100 % widens beyond the speakers. |
| Balance | −100…+100 | 0 | Shifts the existing stereo image left or right (keeps both channels, unlike pan). |
| Haas Delay (L–R) | 0…35 ms | 0 | Delays one side slightly to push the image toward the other — a wide, natural-sounding spread. |
| Mid / Side ratio | 0…100 % | 100 | How the Width control balances centre ("mid") against the stereo edges ("side"). |
If the same sound reaches one ear a few milliseconds before the other, your brain places it toward the earlier side — without it sounding like an echo (that only kicks in past ~35 ms). A few ms of Haas delay widens a stereo source convincingly while keeping it mono-compatible.
Width vs Balance vs Pan
- Pan (on the HOME tab) positions a mono source between left and right.
- Balance nudges a stereo source's existing image sideways.
- Width makes a stereo source narrower or wider.
Reach for stereo tools to make music and game audio feel bigger; leave a mono voice mic centred and narrow.