EQ Frequency Use Chart

[RDEskid]

Greetings, faithful brethren. I just picked up the December '05 issue of Computer Music Magazine. I found this on the included DVD-ROM, and I thought y'all might find it useful:



Now you don't gotta buy a $15 magazine to get it.

(I DO highly recommend picking a copy up for yourself. It comes with a DVD-ROM bearing a veritable shitload of royalty-free samples, toys, and other goodies, and the magazine itself is full of informative and reader-friendly content, including a 14-page sample-selection to mixdown "Guide to Drum & Bass", a thorough but plain-english explanation of what compression is and how it's used (the first I've read that really made sense and didn't assume that it was review), and great tutorials on additive synthesis and mixing hardcore metal tracks(literally "How to Sound Like Slipknot"), among other things. Definitely worth the price.)

(edit)

While we're on the topic of EQ and specific frequencies, I'd also like to take this opportunity to perpetuate and share (with anyone who hasn't seen it) what has been, in terms of mixing, the most useful piece of text I have come across yet:

---

FREQUENCY:
USES:

50Hz
1. Increase to add more fullness to lowest frequency instruments like foot, toms, and the bass. Peak equalization with a 1.4 Q.
2. Reduce to decrease the "boom" of the bass and will increase overtones and the recognition of bass line in the mix. This is most often used on loud bass lines like rock. Shelf equalization.

100Hz
1. Increase to add a harder bass sound to lowest frequency instruments. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0 to 1.4..
2. Increase to add fullness to guitars, snare. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0..
3. Increase to add warmth to piano and horns. Peak Equalization. For piano use a Q of 1.0. With horn use a Q of 1.4..
4. Reduce to remove boom on guitars & increase clarity. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0 to 1.4..

200Hz
1. Increase to add fullness to vocals. Peak Equalization with a Q of 0.7 to 1.0..
2. Increase to add fullness to snare and guitar ( harder sound ). Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.4.
3. Reduce to decrease muddiness of vocals or mid-range instruments. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0.
4. Reduce to decrease gong sound of cymbals. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0.

400Hz
1. Increase to add clarity to bass lines especially when speakers are at low volume. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0.
2. Reduce to decrease "cardboard" sound of lower drums (foot and toms). Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.4.
3. Reduce to decrease ambiance on cymbals. Peak Equalization with a Q of 0.7 to 1.0. Alternately try a shelf EQ with a 320 Hz frequency setting.

800Hz
1. Increase for clarity and "punch" of bass. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.4.
2. Reduce to remove "cheap" sound of guitars. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0.

1.5KHz
1. Increase for "clarity" and "pluck" of bass. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.4..
2. Reduce to remove dullness of guitars. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0.

3KHz
1. Increase for more "pluck" of bass. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.4.
2. Increase for more attack of electric / acoustic guitar. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.4.
3. Increase for more attack on low piano parts. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0.
4. Increase for more clarity / hardness on voice. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0.
5. Reduce to increase breathy, soft sound on background vocals. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0.
6. Reduce to disguise out-of-tune vocals / guitars. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0.
7. Increase for more attack on the snare or other drums. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.4 to 2.8.

5KHz
1. Increase for vocal presence. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0.
2. Increase low frequency drum attack ( foot / toms). Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.4 to 2.8.
3. Increase for more "finger sound" on bass. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.4.
4. Increase attack of piano, acoustic guitar and brightness on guitars (especially rock guitars). Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.4.
5. Reduce to make background parts more distant. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0.
6. Reduce to soften "thin" guitar. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0.

7KHz
1. Increase to add attack on low frequency drums ( more metallic sound ). Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.4 to 2.8.
2. Increase to add attack to percussion instruments. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.4 to 2.8.
3. Increase on dull singer. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0.
4. Increase for more "finger sound" on acoustic bass. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.4.
5. Reduce to decrease "s" sound on singers. Peak Equalization with a Q of 2.8. Sweep frequency slightly (between 7 kHz and 8 kHz) to find the "exact" frequency of the S
6. Increase to add sharpness to synthesizers, rock guitars, acoustic guitar and piano. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0 to 1.4.

10KHz
1. Increase to brighten vocals. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0.
2. Increase for "light brightness" in acoustic guitar and piano. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0.
3. Increase for hardness on cymbals. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.4.
4. Reduce to decrease "s" sound on singers. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.4.

15KHz
1. Increase to brighten vocals (breath sound). Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0.
2. Increase to brighten cymbals, string instruments and flutes. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0.
3. Increase to make sampled synthesizer sound more real. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.4 to 2.8.

...

cleen version

useful frequencies for several instruments:

Voice: presence (5 kHz), sibilance (7.5 - 10 kHz), boominess (200 - 240 kHz), fullness (120 Hz)

Electric Guitar: fullness (240 Hz), bite (2.5 kHz), air / sizzle (8 kHz)

Bass Guitar: bottom (60 - 80 Hz), attack (700 - 1000 Hz), string noise (2.5 kHz)

Snare Drum: fatness (240 Hz), crispness (5 kHz)

Kick Drum: bottom (60 - 80 Hz), slap (4 kHz)

Hi Hat & Cymbals: sizzle (7.5 - 10 kHz), clank (200 Hz)

Toms: attack (5 kHz), fullness (120 - 240 Hz)

Acoustic Guitar: harshness / bite (2 kHz), boominess (120 - 200 Hz), cut (7 - 10 kHz)

---

(No, I'm not trying to take credit for writing all that. The list was directly ripped from this and a subsequent post by hotelsinus on the buzzmachines.com messageboards. I came upon it thanks to a link on the vastly helpful website of nool, who deserves to be canonized for providing such a resource, should Buzz ever become an officially recognized religion.)

With these handy little guides, EQing becomes a much less intimidating process to embark upon for those of us who can't accurately tell what the dominant frequency of any given sound is just from hearing it once. I recommend cut-pasting it into a notepad document on your Desktop, which can be opened or copied in turn on to the info screen within Buzz for quick reference.

Well, nuff said. Happy tweaking!
_________________
http://www.myspace.com/joshbyra

"...I heard inside me such a note, the sweetest sound..."

[wayfinder]

[MEIOSIS]

imageshack takes all my crap
Wayfinder, he knows where it's at!

Wiggy wak! i'm just like Will Smith...

Somebody give me a contract.

CM magazine is cool for samples and info, too bad we have at least a month delay in AUS.

[RDEskid]

Wow, great call wayfinder, thanks. I transferred the images in both threads to imageshack. I can't believe you don't even have to register! Wish I'd known about that before I did so at photobucket. Sigh...reminds me of the 90's, before all the people giving freebies out realized that nothing on the net makes money except advertising and porn...

MEIOSIS - Methinks "wiggy wak" is Kriss Kross, innit? LOL

Everybody else - If you've previously saved the above chart, it is now available as a much larger, higher quality image. Please re-save it.
_________________
http://www.myspace.com/joshbyra

"...I heard inside me such a note, the sweetest sound..."

[Mirfus]

been looking for a quick reference for freqs for a while, cheers dude

[cellophanemonk]

lol... this is quite the resurrection...


_________________
Check out my group "Jeskola Buzz Buzzers" on facebook
Windows 7\
AMD Athlon 64 X2 6000+\2GB ram\8800gt\M-audio Ozonic

[wayfinder]

_________________
wayfinder

[TheQuarryStone]

hey thanks dude, this is great.
_________________
http://thequarrystone.blogspot.com/

[hotelsinus]

i will upload lots of help.,.
Better than CM has.
http://www.hotelsinus.com/mastering_school.zip

- 20 tip of mixing
- Clear Big Lead Guitars
- Eq during mixing
- Microphone Placement On Vocals
- Perfect mix
Etc.

various resource, i cant remember...
Enjoy.
_________________
.,Fanta,.

[TheQuarryStone]

Whoa, thanks!
_________________
http://thequarrystone.blogspot.com/

[shango]

really helpfull
_________________
)))INFRASQUAD(((

Obey Buzz! Pray to Buzz! On your knees, you are in the buzzchurch!

http://www.reverbnation.com/shangospirit

[greenfinger]

essential note-freq table.

http://www.phy.mtu.edu/~suits/notefreqs.html