Muddiness in your mixes is a frequent problem.

Especially with vocals.

We want the vocal to shine through the mix without the low-end cluttering it up. It's such an important part of the mix, and we don't it to come off muddy and boomy.

But what can you do to fix muddy vocals?

Here's how you use EQ to get rid of it:

Filter out the low-end during recording AND mixing

If you're recording vocals with a microphone that has a low-frequency roll-off, use it. It might be enough to clear up the rumble and low-end that's causing that extra boom in your vocals.

If that doesn't work, use a high-pass filter to remove the frequencies below about 100 Hz. Vocals don't really occupy the range below 100 Hz, so there's no reason to have extra unneeded energy cluttering up your vocal recording.

3. EQ out the muddiness

If that's not enough, use an equalizer to cut the extra boominess from the vocal. There might be extra muddiness building up to and around 200 Hz. Take a medium to narrow cut around that area and listen to where the vocal clears up. Muddiness can be a really big problem, but it's not always that difficult to solve.

Sometimes you only need to filter out the low-end and add a little cut to the low mids to clear everything up.

4. Make sure other instruments aren't interfering with your vocal's muddiness

This might seem odd but sometimes there are other instruments that mask the vocal in that frequency range so it might not be the vocal that's the problem but something else.

For instance, I often find that the bass can clash with the vocals when you're trying to make the bass cut through the mix. 

So sometimes it's not just EQ'ing the vocal to get rid of muddiness. It's about making room for the vocal in that frequency area where there might be other instruments taking up too much room.

There's a reason EQ is the most important processor you have available in your DAW. EQ solves A LOT of problems. If you don't know how to use EQ to create separation in your instruments and balance in your mix, no amount of mixing using any other processor will help you out.

It's the #1 processor when it comes to fixing bad sounding instrument and the reason I put together my top selling guide, EQ Strategies - Your Ultimate Guide to EQ.

Thousands of musicians and engineers have used EQ Strategies to create cleaner mixes, and you can too.

Grab it here and start creating better mixes:

www.EQStrategies.net