Applying EQ and Effects
Within the HZ(30 - 20,000) bands the tone of an instrument can be
altered to effect the recording or playback and in turn
improve separation and presence.
If the effects below are needed, apply boost. If not, apply cut.
Remember the golden rule of less is more when applying EQ.
Kick drum;
Full and powerful below 60 Hz,
papery at 300-800 Hz
(cut at 400 - 600 Hz for better tone)
click or attack at 2 - 6 kHz.
Drums;
Full at 100 Hz,
woolly at 250 - 600 Hz,
trashy at 1 - 3 kHz,
attack or snap at 5 kHz,
sizzly and crisp at 10 kHz.
Bass;
Full and deep at 60 Hz,
growl at 600 Hz,
presence at 2.5 kHz,
string noise at 3 kHz and up.
Electric Bass;
Thumpy at 60 Hz,
full at 100 Hz,
honky at 600 Hz.
Guitar ;
Presence at 2.3 kHz,
sizzly and raspy at 6 kHz.
Acoustic Guitar;
Full or thumpy at 80 kHz,
presence at 5 kHz,
pick noise above 10 kHz.
Saxophone;
Warm at 500 Hz,
harsh at 3 kHz,
key noise above 10 kHz.
Voice;
Full at 100 - 150 Hz (males)
200 - 250 Hz (females), honky or nasal at 500 Hz - 1 kHz,
presence at 5 kHz,
sibilance above 6 kHz.
The following are tips for various other type of effect parameters
COMPRESSION
Ratio or Slope.
Compression ratio or slope is the ratio of the change in input level to the change in output level. For example, a 2:1 ratio means that for every 2 dB change in input level, the output changes 1dB.
A 20 dB change in input level results in a 10 dB change in the output.
Ratio settings of 1.5:1 to 4:1 are typical.
A 'soft knee' or 'over easy' characteristic is a low compression ratio for low level signals and a high compression ratio for high level signals. Some manufacturers say this sounds more natural than a constant compression ratio.
Gain Reduction.
Gain reduction is the number of dB that the gain or level is reduced by the compressor. It varies with input level. Set the ratio and threshold controls so that the gain is reduced on loud notes by an amount that sounds right or looks right on the meter.
Attack Time.
The attack time setting controls how fast the gain reduction occurs in response to the musical attack. Typical attack times range from 0.25 to 10 milliseconds. The longer the attack time, the larger the peaks that are passed before gain reduction occurs. Thus a long attack time sounds punchy; a short attack time reduces punch by softening the attack.
Release Time
The release or recovery time control affects how fast the gain returns to its normal value after a loud passage. It can be adjusted from about 50 milliseconds to several seconds. Release time must be longer than about 0.4 second for bass instruments to prevent harmonic distortion. Shorter release times make the compressor follow faster dynamic changes in the music and keep the average level higher.
Threshold
Set the threshold to near 0 VU to compress only the loudest notes; set it low (-10 or -20 VU) to bring up quiet passages as well as softening loud ones.
Output Level Control
Sets the strength coming out of the compressor to the proper level for the input section of the consol (usually around 1.23 volts)
THE LIMITER
An amplifier whose output is practically constant above a preset input level. The compression ratio is very high (10:1 or greater) and the threshold is usually set just below the point of tape saturation or amplifier clipping.
A compressor reduces the overall dynamic range of the program, but a limiter controls only the level of attack transients or peaks. To act on these rapid peaks limiters have a much faster attack time than compressors - typically 1 microsecond to 1 millisecond.
Compressors are sometimes called limiters, but the setting of the ratio or slope indicates what the device is really doing. A compressor
limiter combines both functions by compressing the average signal levels over a wide range and by limiting peaks to prevent overload. It has 2
thresholds: one relatively low for the compressor and one relatively high for the limiter.
THE NOISE GATE
A noise gate acts like an on-off switch to eliminate noises during pauses in an audio signal.
The noise gate helps clean up drum tracks by removing leakage between the beats. It can also be used to shorten the decay time of the drums, giving a very tight sound.
The noise gate threshold should be set high enough to chop off tape hiss during pauses. The release time should be very fast for drums and longer for more sustained instruments.
DELAY
The bandwidth of the delay is the frquency range or upper frequency limit of the delayed signal. 12 kHz is good, 16 kHz is excellent
and 20 kHz above par.
The S/N is the ratio in dB between the delayed signals level and the noise level. A ratio of 70 dB is fair, 80 dB is good, and 90 dB very good.
The technique to achieve slap-back so it will be in tempo with the song is:
Divide 60 seconds by the tempo
eg. 60 divided by 60 bpm = 1 (1000 milliseconds)
eg. 60 divided by 120 bpm = 0.5 (500 milliseconds)
to get a triplet feel :
Delay set at 536 ms. 536 x 2 divided by 3 = 357.33
ECHO
If the delay on echo is set around 15 to 35 milliseconds the effect is called doubling or auto double tracking. It gives a voice a fatter or stronger sound, especially if the original signal is panned
left and the delayed signal is panned right. The short delays add a sense of air or ambience to close miked instruments that would otherwise sound too dead.
MIDI AUTOMATION
Changing the type of effect - or various parameters of an effect with certain program changes entered into a sequencer.
To do this assign a different program number (patch or preset number) to each effects parameter. This is done with the effects device. Then, using the sequencer, punch in the appropriate program number for each note.
Using a midi mapper, effect parameters can be changed with a pitch wheel, data control, or by varying a filter with key velocity.
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