Using EQ to record
Can anyone give me some tips on how to best utizize eq settings for recordings? I play mainly rock and use pro tools daw.
# 1
EQ & Tone are wiiiiiiddddeeee topics... a lot of comes down to personal taste. For quick, practical advice, I'd suggest that when recording your guitar, you get the tone to as close as can to what you want as you record. Then you can use EQ to tweak it a little bit afterwards if you want.
In terms of multi-tracking & mixing, tone can be used to help "place" instruments in the mix sonically. When mixing multiple instruments on different tracks you can:
-make a track louder or quieter than the others.
-pan it left, right, or have it dead center, or as a stereo track, equally panned left & right.
-make it seem farther in the distance by adding reverb, or closer to the foreground by having little to no reverb.
But one thing that often gets missed in mixing is that you can also use EQ to place the instrument in a particular frequency range, the idea usually being to place it in a range that doesn't over-lap other instruments too much. This is why bass guitar and normal guitar complement each other so well. They could both be at relatively the same volume, and dead-center but you would still be able to distinguish the bass part from the guitar part easily.
Try listening to some music that you like, and pay attention to how EQ is being used to separate the instruments from each other. You'll notice that with good mixes, they cram a bunch of instruments all in the same frequency range, but instead place the instruments in their own little EQ space, so that each instrument can be distinguished clearly from the others.
Hope that helps a little!
In terms of multi-tracking & mixing, tone can be used to help "place" instruments in the mix sonically. When mixing multiple instruments on different tracks you can:
-make a track louder or quieter than the others.
-pan it left, right, or have it dead center, or as a stereo track, equally panned left & right.
-make it seem farther in the distance by adding reverb, or closer to the foreground by having little to no reverb.
But one thing that often gets missed in mixing is that you can also use EQ to place the instrument in a particular frequency range, the idea usually being to place it in a range that doesn't over-lap other instruments too much. This is why bass guitar and normal guitar complement each other so well. They could both be at relatively the same volume, and dead-center but you would still be able to distinguish the bass part from the guitar part easily.
Try listening to some music that you like, and pay attention to how EQ is being used to separate the instruments from each other. You'll notice that with good mixes, they cram a bunch of instruments all in the same frequency range, but instead place the instruments in their own little EQ space, so that each instrument can be distinguished clearly from the others.
Hope that helps a little!
# 2
Originally Posted by: James SheasgreenCan anyone give me some tips on how to best utizize eq settings for recordings? I play mainly rock and use pro tools daw.
In addition to the great info above, I suggest looking at this video too. It discusses how to use EQ as a way to great mix depth in the tracks too. EQ can do a great many things and is a powerful tool.
Also, the site I linked...LOTS of good tips.
# 3
Originally Posted by: JeffS65In addition to the great info above, I suggest looking at this video too. It discusses how to use EQ as a way to great mix depth in the tracks too. EQ can do a great many things and is a powerful tool.
Also, the site I linked...LOTS of good tips.
Wow, great link, JeffS65! I'm just getting started in recording and that looks like a really informative site. Thanks.
Guitars: 2014 PRS Santana, 2013 PRS Paul's, 2009 PRS Hollowbody I, 1972 Gibson ES-325, 2012 Fender American Standard Stratocaster, 2020 Fender Telecaster, 2001 PRS Santana SE, 2021 Martin M-36, 2021 Martin 000-15M, Seagull S6 Classic, 2012 Yamaha Pacifica Amps: Fender Blues Junior III, Boss Eband JS-10, Line 6 POD HD500X, Quilter Microblock 45 w/homemade 12" cab.
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