EQ settings?

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mikgag

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I record live through a Mackie CR-1604 that has a 3 band eq (low,mid,high)

According to the website, the eq's are as follows:

high = 12kHz Hi shelving (15db boost or cut)
mid = Midrange sweep control (12db boost or cut at 2.5kHz with 3.3 octave bandwidth)
low = 80Hz Lo shelving EQ (15db boost or cut)

in terms of o'clocks, are there any "standard" or "decent" or "starting points" for eq on the following...

snare
kick
overhead

thanks
 
There couldn't be standards becouse it all depend in the type of music which you are playing, in the experience of the producers and the resources available to process the tracks..Every producer could have he's 'own book' about it.Dr. zaragemca
 
zaragemca said:
There couldn't be standards becouse it all depend in the type of music which you are playing, in the experience of the producers and the resources available to process the tracks..Every producer could have he's 'own book' about it.Dr. zaragemca
Click to expand...


Music is very heavy rock
Recorded stereo out from the mixer...no tracks
No processing
No "producer"

Just looking to see if there's some general starting points....
 
That might be a little tough going into the board as a 2 trk. Any eq you do, I'd start with subtractive instead of boosting. And if you boost, keep it light. Like a couple db.

I found a couple of eq sites with good tips if you don't mind a little reading.
http://www.recordingwebsite.com/articles/eqprimer.php
http://www.recordingeq.com/Subscribe/tip/tascam.htm
http://www.ka5cvh.com/downloads/musicchart1.pdf

Peace mang........

(edit...there really isn't any set guide to eqing. Too many variables. Drum, mike, pre, room, )
 
mikgag said:
Music is very heavy rock
Recorded stereo out from the mixer...no tracks
No processing
No "producer"

Just looking to see if there's some general starting points....
Click to expand...

Yes. The starting point should be "0". Always!

EQ is what you reach for to fix problems if you can't get there with proper mic selection and placement. See if you can get a decent sound by playing around with placement and tuning.

What mics do you have?
 
modded MXL 603 - overhead
Peavey 520i - kick
Sm57 - snare

I've just skimmed over some posts where guys have said that for overheads they cut mids, or for a punchier kick boost this freq that many dbs and what not....just curious
 
Those are not bad mics to at all. You should be able to get a good sound. There are certain tricks to use, but it depends on what you're looking for.

What sound are you looking for?

How is your room treated?

Are you over-muting the heads, or are they old?

How do you tune your drums?

Do you have samples?
 
mikgag said:
This is last weeks jam....I had the overhead level a little low and the kick isn't "punchy" enough or maybe it's too low also. I like the general sound of the snare however....

http://www.myspace.com/poundingsandband
Click to expand...

Ok. To me it sounds like you've got a lot of muffling for the drums, correct?

Sounds like a big pillow in the kick and duct tape on everything else, combined with low pitched tuning.

Am I right?

The cymbals sound fine for whatever quality they are.
 
i listened to the samples, and i would definitely get the level up on that kick. as for the eq on it, your mixer is giving you very few options in this department. i usually carve out a ton of lower mids (could be anywhere from150-500) and add some snap at anywhere from 2k to 12k, depending on the application (mostly heavier stuff though, and usually at the lower end of that range).

have your drummer sound-check his kick solo and sweep across your mids and highs separately at extreme boosts and cuts. this will give you a better feel for where the problem frequencies are. and since the kick is really lacking depth (although this may be only a level issue), i'd even try adding a dB or 3 on that 80 Hz dial to see what it does.

keep in mind that what you hear in your sound check is going to be different from what you play back once it's recorded (this drove me crazy in the beginning and is part of the reason i eliminated my mixer and went to independent channels), so it WILL take somewhere between "more than a few" and "an infinite number of" sessions to hammer everything out. but at least you'll have some reference point.

good luck!
 
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