I need to make a fairly basic recording of a stand-up comedy show. I’d like the comedians on one track and the audience on another track, with the audience in stereo. Is this possible with two tracks, or do I need to record to three tracks and mix down the audience in post?
While you can certainly record a 2-channel mix to SD or a stereo mix to USB quite well, a 3-channel recording will be a significant advantage if you want a perfect result.
Since your “audience” also includes the ambient room sound, and therefore likely the comedians themselves, it will be much better if you can adjust the balance and dynamic between the 3 channels later and at your leisure.
Furthermore, depending on the microphone setup, there might be timing differences between the comedian’s voice and the ambient sound, which you could compensate for afterward only with a 3-channel recording.
Thanks. I was hoping I could get one mono track and one stereo track to simplify my workflow a bit, but three mono tracks did the job.