Enough knowledge to be dangerous

  • Thread starter Thread starter Fret
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Fret

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I am fairly new to digital recording and like a good newbie I have been reading everything I can get my hands and of course trying to apply it.

That’s where my problem starts. A few months back I started my first real project. I read several articles on EQ and applied all of the techniques I could on different frequencies to boost or cut in order to get the guitar a little more edgy, bring the vocals out or whatever. Everything was EQ’d with a nice judicious ignorance. Well now that I am at the end of my project all of the EQ boosts are killing the finished project (way too much high mid). I have gone back and removed all of the extra boosts and the mix sounds much better. So what I am looking for is some insight on how you approach applying EQ to control a tracks place in the mix verses turning up or down the fader.

Thanks
 
EQ is a fix for poor tracks or an effect to get a more unnatural sound. A bit of bass cut is pretty standard on almost everything but EQ boosts should be avoided unless absolutely neccessary. Never EQ tracks while soloed, only do it while you are listening to them in the context of the mix.

Dont EQ because some chart said to. Do it because your ears and mix say it needs it.
 
stay away from this site for awhile. This place is dangerous! I got addicted to reading here for awhile and not doing a thing musically. So, I busted out my new knowledge one day, and my mix sucked a big one cuz new info are overwelming, and ears are still sitting in stone age wondering what 60hz "sound" like...

Just my thought

AL
 
that is true...but then again...i had NO idea at all what i was doing when i began.

then i read the board and did 5db cuts and boosts basically everywhere i posibly could. = bad mix (i found out later)

then, after the mp3 clinic shot my mix down, i started over. this time, i did the usual high and low cuts on whatever needed (not much of either...and usually roll offs or something like that)...then NO boosts (except maybe .5db on the entire mix at points..wherever it sounds good..etc.)(actually now that i think of it, also to bring out the kick drum a bit..ha)...and cuts to anywhere that needed to bring out vox and kick drum....and my mix was a hell of a lot better.

so basically i'd suggest (from my experiance)...almost NO boosts..unless its .5db or less and you MUST do it. and do bass roll offs on non bass instruments to clean up that bassy section. also experiment(dont do too much, you dont want it to suond sci fi...ha) with panning a lot!
 
Thanks for the advice. It's good to know I'm not the only victim of following good advice poorly.
 
We should hook up. Most of the time I give good advice poorly!:D
 
All good advice. What I try to do is get the sound I want to hear at tracking time. And I want to do this with mic choice and placement as much as I can without adding ANY EQ. I'm not an EQ snob and I'll crank the shit out of it IF IT WORKS. But, for the most part, if you were to look at my console when I'm mixing a tune you'd notice only subtle boosts and mostly cuts for the most part.
 
I guess Im safe...cause I don't have enough knowledge to be dangerous :p


Peace,
Dennis
 
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