Tonmeister and renowned classical sound engineer, Carsten Kummel, explains, "The problem with traditional panning is the loss of signal on one side when you pan to the other. To resolve this, some people choose to mix in mono, but this isn't really a viable solution, especially for complex shows where you are dealing with anything from 80 to 100 channels. So, I started playing around with delay and seeing if I could achieve better results that way.
"I went away and did a whole series of testing and taking measurements and the results were astonishing - by using the tools available to us to reproduce the way in which the ear works naturally, we opened up a whole new world of possibilities. I had been achieving similar results myself by using the functions that were available to me on the Eclipse, but it was just a way of working, and not an integrated feature of the desk.
"At this point, it was time to consult Hervé de Caro, the godfather of Eclipse - when I discussed my findings with him, he said straight away that it was something he wanted to incorporate properly into the console. After some initial experimentation, being the genius that he is, Hervé and his team had developed a working prototype algorithm with the function available on a single pan pot in just two days."
Hervé de Caro adds, "This is an absolutely amazing function, even if I say so myself," he says. "The world has been waiting for Pandora, and finally, thanks to our collaboration with Carsten, it's here. Carsten has been slowly developing the idea over the last three years and testing it in real-world situations in the work that he does daily with major symphony orchestras across the world."
(Jim Evans)
