Independent stereo width control across low, mid, and high frequencies — with an automatic ratio guard that prevents over-widening and ensures mono compatibility from FM receivers to earbuds.
The Stereo Enhancer splits the signal into three frequency bands and applies independent mid/side processing to each. Low frequencies can be narrowed toward mono for tighter, more focused bass that translates on any speaker system. Mid frequencies can be widened for a spacious, immersive soundstage that makes music feel alive. High frequencies can be precisely tuned for air and shimmer without washing out the center image. Each band has its own width control, giving you precise control over the stereo field at every point in the spectrum — something a simple stereo widener could never achieve.
The automatic stereo ratio guard is what separates MixBus Platinum's stereo processing from everything else. When the mid/side ratio exceeds safe limits — the point where mono playback would suffer audible cancellation artifacts — the guard automatically clamps the ratio to prevent phase cancellation. This isn't a simple correlation meter that warns you after the damage is done. It's an active limiter on the M/S ratio itself, operating in real time, ensuring that your stereo enhancements never compromise mono compatibility. Critical for broadcast, where AM simulcast, single-speaker television sets, and mono FM receivers are still a reality. Equally critical for streaming, where phone speakers and single-driver Bluetooth devices are the most common playback systems in the world.
Broadcast engineers know the brutal reality: your audio must sound great on a car stereo with full separation and on an AM kitchen radio summed to mono. Producers face the same challenge — their master needs to fill headphones with width and survive a phone speaker playing back in mono. The Stereo Enhancer handles both worlds simultaneously. The ratio guard continuously monitors the correlation coefficient in real time, tracking the relationship between mid and side energy across all three bands. If any band approaches the danger zone, the guard intervenes smoothly — no clicks, no artifacts, just mathematically guaranteed mono safety.
Wide, immersive stereo that never breaks — on any playback system, in any format.