is it wierd that i dont usually EQ my distorted guitars?

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freakkguitarist

New member
heyall! havnt posted here for a while..... but ive been thinking...and talking to some people i know about EQ curves on guitars when i realized i dont ever eq my guitars other then a HPF and maybe cut some extreme highs. i usually get the tone i want straight away or by combining 2 or 3 mics. anyone else not Eq at all?
 
freakkguitarist said:
heyall! havnt posted here for a while..... but ive been thinking...and talking to some people i know about EQ curves on guitars when i realized i dont ever eq my guitars other then a HPF and maybe cut some extreme highs. i usually get the tone i want straight away or by combining 2 or 3 mics. anyone else not Eq at all?
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Nothing weird about that, in the sense of "If it ain't broke, etc....".
 
i'd say it means you're doing things impressively right.

the fact that you get the sound you want without eq is to your credit. be proud, homes. :)
 
drossfile said:
i'd say it means you're doing things impressively right.

the fact that you get the sound you want without eq is to your credit. be proud, homes. :)
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exactly! I agree. Honestly Since I started getting better at recording and started setting up 4 sm 57's on the cab (or 1 sm 57 on each speaker), i've gotten pretty solid sounds without having to EQ them. At most I usually just mix them to be the right volume with the rest of the mix.

Congrats man, I'd love to hear the recordings if you have a link to them
 
Yeah, POIDH lol. But in a busy mix, there's still gonna be times when you're cutting low mids in otherwise good-sounding tracks because of the build-up in that range, right? I mean, are you saying you're actually *anticipating* that build-up and making appropriate adjustments to the sound when you're tracking? I mean, even if you can plan that far ahead, can you trust yourself to get it right?
 
freakkguitarist said:
heyall! havnt posted here for a while..... but ive been thinking...and talking to some people i know about EQ curves on guitars when i realized i dont ever eq my guitars other then a HPF and maybe cut some extreme highs. i usually get the tone i want straight away or by combining 2 or 3 mics. anyone else not Eq at all?
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That's actually no more than most people EQ their guitars - hardly constitutes "not using EQ," imo. I mean, where are you setting your high pass?
 
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The only EQ I generally use for my guitars is a high pass, since you'll always get rumble down where you don't need it no matter what. I also cut back in the 3k range at times if its a bit grating....a lot of times amps don't really have tone controls that directly affect that region, so you'll need to cut it in post.
 
Seafroggys said:
I also cut back in the 3k range at times if its a bit grating....a lot of times amps don't really have tone controls that directly affect that region, so you'll need to cut it in post.
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That's interesting - I never thought of it before. I mean, it's not interesting that I never thought of it before, cuz there's *lots* of stuff that never decides to cross my mind, but anyway... I've got three tone controls on my amp (Fender Blues Deluxe Reissue), and each of them must be fixed-Q parametric set at a particular frequency, right?

But there's also the controls on the guitar. Although they're also fixed at a particular frequency, right, they might be at a *different* frequency than the amp? And if they're different than the amp, it would make it easier to dial in a more balanced sound, no? If I've got this wrong, please feel free to mock my ignorance, but educate me too after the laughter dies down.
 
I'm not a guitarist, I'm just going on the experience I've found recording my band's guitarist (whose tone I don't have control over) and recording a session guy for my rock opera (whose tone I did set). Even with treble only on 5-6 on the amp, there was still a ton of harshness in the 2.5k range that I ended up cutting anyway.
 
I quite often see this mentioned and sort of worn as a badge of honor. I'm not sure I get it though.
 
Badge of honor if you want to wear badges, I guess. If you don't have to EQ much, it means you tracked it right. That's good.
 
If the signal that you're running is already to taste - why change it?

I'll only EQ guitar tracks that need that extra "something" after the fact.
 
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