Lesson Info
4. Segment 4 - General EQ Questions
Lessons
Segment 1 - EQ in Action
26:08 2Segment 2 - General EQ Questions
10:43 3Segment 3 - Use EQ While Tracking
26:22 4Segment 4 - General EQ Questions
09:37 5Segment 5 - EQ is Your Power Tool for Mixing
15:15 6EQ Mistakes Part I
32:18 7Segment 7 - EQ Mistakes Part II
15:17 8Segment 8 - General EQ Questions
15:44Lesson Info
Segment 4 - General EQ Questions
Is it better to stack, accuse and do small cuts and boost on each instead of using just one e q plug and cut or boost a lot that's a great question that would take my logic of the compressor from yesterday and applied t q I don't I don't do that, I think for the most part I can use one e q like a multi band e q here I can adjust up to seven different points um and I'll do whatever I need to do in that one e q plug in, but the second answer to that question would be I don't try to do anything really extreme to begin with and what kind of explain what that looks like in the next segment of what is extreme and how much do you boost your cut, but I'll try to get it done in just one one that you plug in. Yeah, good question on here's one we have nine votes on this one. Do you worry about creating phase problems when applying equalization across tracks? I mean in in in reality, anytime yuri queuing something you are introducing phase issues I mean you're doing something unnatural you're you'...
re toying and doctoring with the natural curve of the instrument that you captured so it's inevitable to be phase issue free when he queuing but that's another reason why we should do subtly queue moves as opposed to really extremely key moves because the more the more I boost if I take this, I mean, this is that this boost is at sixty b this is extreme to me, this is, like, sort of the top of my my range if if I had this appear, man, we've got some problems mix well, yeah, because if you do this across the bunch different tracks, you're introducing a lot of artifacts and weirdness, and it all adds up, and it doesn't sound natural anymore supplied with the, like, the high pass cuts in the there is that very question? I mean, those I think can sound really natural because you're not boosting anything, right? And you're not doing weird notch cuts, either you just sort of they're gentle roll off. So those those air a real natural way to work and shelter natural way to work, and we'll explain all of those in two segments, but I think that you could get away with more extreme filtering than you can a massive boost. Is that why your approach is more subtracted? Ve that adds fewer let's? Uh, you know, a lot of reasons, but that's one of them? Absolutely, absolutely all right, a few more questions in here before we head to the break. Now this is from cosman stroud and he wants to know do you recommend cutting the frequencies above nineteen kilohertz on elements like high hats and symbols? If you're mixing for clubs, would you do that for overheads and rock mixes to, for example, setting at twenty or twenty one kilohertz on the ss sells channel strip high cut and he says I noticed that it clears some headroom and also prevents inter sample peaking if you're working with limiters that are less used the term less brick wall ish we have some smart people chapman okay um let me be the the human answer to that question is a very good question to be honest, I don't think I can hear nineteen k um, you know, I don't think I've damaged my hearing much mean, I've been from rock rock rock shows and I'm sure damn it, I'm hearing there, but even on a good day, if I had perfect hearing it's really hard for humans to hear up there now believe it or not women can hear higher in the frequency range the men's women have better hearing the men, which is always what surprises me that there's not enough women that air mixing engineers there's a lot of women that are mastering engineers believe it or not and that that's probably good things they can actually hear better than we can but I can't hear a difference I can cut something twenty k nineteen eighteen and I don't notice a difference up there also it's sometimes a feel thing, so sometimes you don't think you're making a difference, but if you did some of those those cuts it can feel better after you've done enough of them, so I can't say that it's a bad move, I'm sure it does help and sometimes I will do a high cut like that on some instruments, but I'm never that precisely. That question was a very specific question I don't ever think high hat it's going to be too much, so I will cut at nineteen k because the average person and myself included I can't really notice the difference I'll leave it alone, but if you think you hear something, whether it's really or just a placebo effect, then cut it because it makes you feel better about it, do it it's so much of this is psycho acoustic like you think you hear something and then go with it? I don't I don't think it's a wrong thing there is so much of a feel, so if yeah, I'm all about it if it helps the inter sample peaking just kind of we talked about a little bit with them the brick wall limiter yesterday about not setting your ceiling all the way at the top setting your ceiling minus point five is a little bit of room in case it adds some of these peaks when it turns it back today. Analog signal so I don't know what the question was about that I've forgotten, but yes, that is an issue potentially well, ok, this this brings up a few other people are asking some other frequency questions just want to get your take on this. Do you eliminate frequencies below twenty hertz and above twenty two kilohertz? I will sometimes do like a high pass filter on my mix bus at, like, twenty hertz from below, ok, yes, sometimes, and that means that we're in theory, anything below twenty is getting cut out completely. But again, I don't know if I can hear much of a difference, but sometimes it makes me feel better to make sure there's nothing that I can't hear down there, that's adding energy that doesn't need to be there, I will make it maybe like a twenty four d be active, which would look like, um, this I'll do it other pretty steep, because I don't know if it's too gradual, then it starts it's more musical, but then it's starting to cut off a little bit around thirty forty, and that could be where my based guitar is, I don't really want to do that. I'll cut twenty sometimes, but I'm not very systematic about it, I don't always have like, oh, yeah, I always do it, but sometimes I do, I know you touched a little bit about listening for specific frequencies like that, but dan cure and we had six other people want to know. They ask the question what's the best way to learn how to listen for a specific frequencies, anyway, to sort of train you're here to get better at something like that, a great question, I'm going to show you, I'm going to show you my process for that, so I want to I'm going to do exactly what I do when he queuing and how I go find how do I know? Like, over here on, you know, this vocal? How did I know to cut three hundred twenty? It hurts in the short answer is experience tells you there's certain problem areas, and your ear starts to notice them like, and I can tell that vocal has a little bit of build up in that low, mid range that's, probably the chest voice sound like they're singing on the microphone, but it's it's also what's, resonating off from the chest and and it you don't notice there is a problem that I know in the past that if I could take out some of that it actually makes the vocal sound clearer and brighter without meaning having to boost anything's of some of its experience and some of it is doing a lot of boosting a sweeping around finding things that don't sound right and removing I'm going I'll show you what that looks like two you get better at it I actually had a quick question about I've heard some people like tio they like to boost based on what frequencies coincide with the keys and the harmonics of the song that they're working with do you have a take on that? Yeah I am not that smart I took one semester of music theory and that was the hardest class and took in college I think calculus was way easier than he's a carry on yes so like are the notes that we hear music are tied to actual frequency ranges so you think it's like a four forty if you have your you hear about tuning to eight four forty because four hundred forty hertz is supposed to be a you know I could be wrong supreme the chat room correct because again I took one semester meek theory and I barely passed it so if you're super smart think you can probably discover this songs in the key of d and so I'm going to make sure that whatever frequencies resonate around d or that already note aren't cut too much or maybe they're featured and I've talked to people that explain that like that's how they approach each you I'm just not that smart and I don't think like that I don't even know what key half the songs aaron when I'm mixing them I just go for it so it's a yes that that is a great way to think in to know for me because I just didn't not that smart how that makes you have those people that over like they're good yeah yeah but it's not like the only way to mix is just something they're keeping in mind like ok, well interesting that since I know the songs in the key of do you want to make sure that I don't eliminate this frequency or so it's just a kn added layer of I think that helps them when they were in the q I might be doing it instinctually without realizing it. There may be something that I feel like sounds sweet and it might be because that's the frequency that this key is in but I'm not that cognizant of it that I'm doing it on purpose or intentionally usually an accident it could make a lot of accidents that might sound good, but I didn't do it because I knew what I was doing I'll be honest about that
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Ratings and Reviews
a Creativelive Student
I watched both the compression and the EQ master class, and have several comments to make. First Graham is an excellent teacher, he does a great job of explaining things in a way that anyone can understand. He covers a lot of information in both classes so for many people it would be worth the price of buying the videos. I do wish he would have spent more time talking about more advanced compression techniques. I also wish he would have talked about other ways of getting similar results for those who do not have the options that he has. Things like stacking compressors via re-tracking, I also wish he would have spent more time talking about things like side chain compression, he only briefly talked about it. However if you do not understand compressors or are just inexperienced then you could probably learn a lot as he does cover all the basics real well. To me I didn't learn much about the technical aspects of either compression or EQ, but that could be because I already know a lot I guess, but I loved hearing his philosophies toward EQ, compression and general work flow. I got a lot of confirmation in that what I am doing is the right path, as most of what he does I am all ready doing, so it was good to know that at least there is someone successful doing things the same way. He does have some basic common sense tricks that for many may be a real eye opener. Things like using subtractive EQ, and using HPF, and the use of reference tracks are great advice, and he explains why these things are so important in a very articulate, professional way that anyone could understand. Graham is very professional, very articulate, very personable, and does a great job of explaining things. However it you have much experience and you understand how to use a compressor and you understand why you should use reference tracks, a HPF and other things like that, then you might not learn anything, but if you are not that experienced, or you do not understand how a compressor works, or the proper way of using EQ, then this is the class for you and Graham is the teacher to explain all this stuff in simple terms. I highly recommend this class to anyone who is seeking this knowledge.
PGApromike
This has been a great class. The stream was awesome, host and instructor all very good at what you do. I have followed Graham the last moths on his site. I get daily tips and find these valuable. I will be getting some of these products very soon as I am having my 8x8 recording booth installed this weekend. Thank you Creative Live and all the behind the scenes staff for bringing us into your studio. Job extremely well done.
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