need an EQ guru

[davidrowyn]

Hello everyone,

I know that many of you are EQ masters and will probably find this rather simple, but I could sure use the help.

I have three vocal (speech) tracks that were recorded in a small room (that was far from being dead) on the same equipment with the same person's voice. They don't sound the same, and therein lies the problem. I've played around with it, but I'm far from an expert and can't seem to get as close as I think should be possible. I'd love for someone to take a quick listen and offer any suggestions they may have for creating more similarity between the tracks.

I'm posting links to three short samples (dry), plus the SoundForge spectrum analysis readouts 20Hz-10kHz and a graphic with a semi-transparantly overlay of all three spectrums.

Any and all help is greatly appreciated, even just a nudge in the right direction.

My best,
David

sample one
sample two
sample three

sample one spectrum
sample two spectrum
sample three spectrum
overlay

 

[producerkid]

When I get back to the house today I will download the samples, play with them a bit, and give you the EQ settings for each of them. BTW, I'm assuming you will be using Sound Forge to process these tracks? Hope I can be of help.

the kid

 

[davidrowyn]

producerkid,

Yes, I'll be using Sound Forge's EQ modules to process the tracks. Thank you (and anyone else who may follow) for taking the time to give them a listen. I look forward to your findings.

My best,
David

 

[producerkid]

Ok, sorry it took so long to respond to this but I have been very busy. Attatched are the graphic eq settings for samples two and three. I used one as a reference because it sounded the best.

Now, this serves as a disclaimer on my part. These are mp3 encoded files, and therefore the high end is a bit lossy. This is very apparent on the third sample because the high end fluctuates a good bit, so the eq settings I have given you may not be 100% accurate if the actual files are in .WAV format. If what I've done seems a bit bright when applied to wav material, trim off a little at 10k.

Most importantly, these settings are guidelines. Use your ears to tell the difference. The key for speech is, listen to the material as loud as you can tolerate while processing so that you hear every nuance and even more important, the room reflection. This will kind of give you a better point of reference. The room doesn't change, the mic placement and speaker-to-diaghragm distance does. Hope this helps you

the kid

 

[davidrowyn]

thanks for the input. i'll plug your settings in this afternoon and have a listen.

just a quick follow up -- is it a good idea to apply a high pass filter somewhere around 70-120Hz or to apply a low pass filter somewhere?

my best,
david

 

[producerkid]

Might try a high pass at 60hz, but be careful it sounds good like it is.

the kid