Hello Ptram
If there are such maskings to be patched, it would of course be great to be able to activate corresponding filters only when maskings actually occur. I therefore recommend that these maskings be repaired dynamically in the same way as, for example, such problems are solved with bass and bass drum. But:
Ideally, there would be no masking at all, which would require a lot of effort to patch up. This means that you might place instruments in the mix in a slightly different way than you might see them in classical set-ups (for concerts). From a mixing point of view, it is complete nonsense to place flutes, trumpets, oboes and other melody instruments behind the first violins. That way you risk "maskings" without end. From the mixer's point of view, it is equally unreasonable to place all other low instruments behind the cellos and bassi on the right. If you did this, you would not only have a lot of masking, but also an unattractive gradient of mainly high frequencies in the left stereo channel and low frequencies in the right stereo channel.
The latter is already bad because you only have one channel (the right one) to transmit the big power (bass). What might make sense in a concert hall is actually quite problematic in a mix, as long as you want to reproduce reality 1:1. So once more:
This means that you might place instruments in the mix in a slightly different way than you might see them in classical set-ups.
Since I often record live concerts and almost always encounter situations there that sometimes deviate considerably from theory, I personally have no trouble arranging my sample orchestra instruments so that as little masking as possible takes place. In any case, I am of the opinion that one should create good illusions of a concert atmosphere when mixing and that it is less about recreating real "sitting plans". If you listen to the original film music of
Jurassic Park, for example, the strings as a whole tend to be on the left, the woodwinds in the center and the brass instruments on the right. So even with expensive productions, you don't necessarily stick totally to the classical set-ups. Of course, it's not possible if the positions are predefined by the library and therefore cannot be changed.
Here you can see a possibility of arranging the instruments in such a way that the instruments in the back are not hidden by the instruments in the front. At the same time, it is taken into account that instrument groups sound nicely stereo (strings, brass, woodwinds).
Furthermore, the bass instruments are arranged more in the middle. Good in terms of speaker performance. Both can participate in reproducing the high-energy bass instruments.
Nevertheless, one perceives the mix as an orchestra and not as some incoherent instrumental performance. It is therefore always worthwhile before mixing to think about where to place instruments (if you have the possibility). These thoughts also show the disadvantages of fixed positions or fixed mixing presets.
Although it's not a unmasking guide, maybe my text will still be of some help. Ideally, there would be no masking at all...
more Info you'll find here.
Beat
BTW: With such mixed stems you have no problem if someone else is to master them.