EQ Techniques

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EQ Techniques[edit | edit source]

Standard EQ configuration:[edit | edit source]

  • High Pass filter at 75Hz, -3db. Al the notes (maybe apart from the very lowest ones) are above 75 Hz.

We want this filter on all the instruments which are not Kick or Bass.

It is a good idea to set the filter higher so that it gets rid of everything below the fundamental frequency of the instrument.

  • High Shelf filter. Controls brightness of the instrument. Around 8KHz. Boost highs up to 6 dB or reduce down to -12 dB.

More high end creates impression of “closeness” to the source. The further away the sound source is, the less high end is, the duller it sounds.

If all the instruments are close to the listener, they will be competing with each other. That is why we want to reduce high end on all the instruments apart from the key one(s) such as vocals. That also may be automated.

  • Low Shelf filter. 150-200 Hz, +6 -12 dB. Lower it to remove low-end muddiness or raise to add some low-end punch (for a kick drum, for example).

This filter should be pretty narrow.

  • Midrange Cut filter. Narrow cut around 300 Hz, -6 db. 300 Hz is a very muddy frequency. Most of times reducing it makes the mix sound better.

We almost never want to boost midrange frequencies.

Zapping a resonance technique.[edit | edit source]

  • Switch on a narrow raise filter.
  • Move it back and forth to find a resonance frequency of the instrument (you’ll hear the ringing sound).
  • Turn the raise into a cut (very narrow cut -20 dB)

As a result you’ll be able to raise the level by a couple dB without clipping.

EQ on specific parts[edit | edit source]

EQ on kick[edit | edit source]

The final step in the sound is adding EQ. For a kick sound, you need to be very careful with the amount of low frequency energy in the sound and also avoid excessive mid-range energy that could get in the way of the bass part, and finally careful controls of the highs can be important.

Hi pass on the kick (yep). 20Hz, just to get the power sucking sub bass out.

Using a low shelving filter set around 40 Hz and changing gain is a great way to control the bottom end energy.

A narrow cut from 250 to 600 Hz can be used to get rid of unwanted mid-range energy. This one is tricky to set, cutoff, bandwidth and gain all are important here (check this against the bass part, place the cut where the bass seems to jump out nicely).

Scoop out in the 400-800hz area on your kick slightly. Maybe boost the 'slap/knock' (very freq sensitive here).

Finally a high shelving filter around 7000 Hz, changing gain will act as a nice high end control.

Two tips for a punchy kick: 1. EQ: have a bell curve down low boosting the fundamental freq (usually anywhere between 45hz and 100hz) a bit so it's more accented. Highpass noise below the fundamental. Low pass anything in the higher spectrum you don't need (usually anything above 2k). Throw down another bell curve right around 2k to find the 'smack' part of the kick sound. Boost that a bit. In order to keep your kick clear and strong in your track, it's best to EQ dip those two boosted parts of the kick in your other tracks so they're not competing for sonic space. 2. Compression. Set your attack at APPROXIMATELY 10ms. Lower the threshold until you hear the compressor working. Adjust release to taste (make sure it has fully released before next kick hit). Adjust attack again now that you can more accurately hear the compressor working. Slightly moving between 7ms and 12ms until you find the sweet spot where the compressor is letting the transient through, and compressing the tail. Adjust the threshold again, to taste, for more aggressive punch. Serve hot with sidechain to the bass instrument.

Sidechaining kicks:

Check out VolumeShaper, LFO Tool, or Vengeance sidechain.. those can help speed up the process. but I usually stick with a short "ghost" kick (different from the main kick), and pick a few kicks I trust and know sound great in a club. Set your sidechain to work with the tempo.. usually the fastest attack and 50-60ms release.. really depends on the plugin, song, and instruments. Every compressor is different.

Ghost kick - a guide kick that is only used as a send, typically shorter than the real kick - to be more flexible for sidechaining