Let me confess something. I have a terrible habit of over EQ'ing.

The thing is, I'm not even sure it's necessarily a wrong thing. I mean, it sounds good in the end so I'm all good there.

But I can't help but wonder if maybe I'm screwing with the phase too much.

If you're in the same boat I guess you shouldn't be too worried either, but if you're slapping four or five EQ plug-ins on a track maybe you should revisit your first one. 

See if you can get a good sound from your first EQ before moving on.

Guidelines to Live By

There are three guidelines you can live by that'll improve your EQ skills immensely.

• Filter
• Cut
• Boost

In that order.

Filter out the stuff you don't need. Not just the low-end but the high-end as well.

Cut weird resonances and overtones that cloud the character of the sound. Snare rings, muddiness, boxy drums, hissy guitar etc.

Boost what's needed. Add extra fundamentals and mids to keyboards to cut through. Add presence to vocals. Add air to overheads for example.

In a dense mix, you might need to filter and cut more. In a sparse mix, you'll need to add extra thickness or presence to something to make it sparkle. Every mix is different.

Is It Really EQ You're Looking For?

Notice that boosting is last on the list above.

It's not because boosting is bad. Sometimes you'll never get the sound you're looking for unless you boost certain frequencies, phase shift and all.

But don't boost if a volume boost is all you need.

And sometimes, you can actually use subtractive EQ and boosts at the same time!

Let me explain:

You know how you've heard that you should cut rather than boost right?

USE SUBTRACTIVE EQ! IT'S BETTER FOR THE SOUL!

Well, you might also think your instruments always sound weaker afterward if you only cut the signal.

Not to worry my friend, that's absolutely understandable.

Better yet, there are a couple things you can do to make your instruments cut through while still feeling good about yourself.

Solution #1 - Boost the Output

This is normal gain staging. If you're reducing a bunch of frequencies you're cutting a whole lotta amplitude out of the signal.

And another name for amplitude is volume. 

So there's no wonder your tracks sound weaker in the mix. You've turned down the volume all the way down and our dumb ears think that everything that's louder is better and here we are making everything quieter like idiots.

So instead of pushing the fader as far as it goes on your mixer, just turn up the output gain of your EQ instead. 

You've reduced the volume of the signal by EQ'ing a bunch of it out. Now bring the track back to its original volume by boosting the output of the EQ instead of cranking up the volume of the fader.

Trust me, it's simpler. Especially if you already have a good level balance before you started EQ'ing.

You did balance the faders before you started EQ'ing didn't you?

But with all those cuts you still might want to accent some frequencies with some boosts.

That leads us to...

Solution #2 - Boost Inside Your Cuts

Say your keyboards and guitars are clashing in the mids. You want to make room for both instruments so you start by cutting the mids in the keys to make room for the guitars.

But now the keyboards sound weak but you don't want to increase the gain of the overall EQ because they'll just start clashing with the guitars again.

So what you can do then is add another bell boost inside the cuts to accent the fundamental frequency of the keyboards, preferably one that doesn't sit right on top of the guitars.

So a good way to do it is to do a broad cut through the mids and then adding a narrower boost to help the keyboards cut through.

Check out the image below for an example.

Try that next time you're having problems. 

Whether you need to add some of that punch back after heavy subtractive EQ or need to accent some punch into a wide boost these techniques can help.

Your Ultimate Guide to EQ

This email only scratches the surface of EQ'ing unfortunately.

Knowing the frequency spectrum takes a little more than a few emails to explain.

EQ is the most important aspect of getting your instruments to sit together in your mix. It's a valuable skill to have when it comes to balancing your mix and making it translate to other systems

It's the reason I created EQ Strategies - The Ultimate Guide to EQ. 

When you hear a sound that makes you go "hmm....that's a little too muddy" I want you to be able to zero in on that frequency and take care of the problem immediately.

And here's what Joseph, a recent reader had to say about it:

"I like the specific EQ tips for each instrument. They're all very helpful and I learned quite a few new things: bass harmonics, how to make the beaters pop on kick drums, adding more punch to snare drums, and tips to make guitars sit better in the mix (which also works for lead synths)."

EQ Strategies is filled with practical EQ tips you can use right away to improve your mixes.

I'll even guarantee that by using the tips you find within, your next mix will sound cleaner and more balanced. If it doesn't just email me back for a full refund.

Click the link below for more information:

www.EQStrategies.net