Equalising during the mix
This month we give you the lowdown on some basic EQ techniques that can help get things moving with your mix
Jon Musgrave
Jon is a London-based producer, mixer, composer and club remixer with a diverse CV that spans dance, pop, rock and music for media. He’s also a long term contributor to
Computer Music.
Whether working alone or collaborating he usually handles final mixdowns, which is why we’ve got him to share some pearls of mixing wisdom.
> Equalisation (EQ) is one of the most important mixing tools, yet also one that’s quite easy to get wrong. But there are a few simple methods that can really improve your chances of success.
Let’s assume you already understand that an EQ includes various different shaped filters that allow you to boost and cut selected frequencies or frequency ranges. You’ll typically find a pretty flexible EQ pre-assigned to all channels in your DAW and that in itself is a big invitation to get EQing. Even so, there is no requirement to EQ everything, and many would argue that you should use the minimum amount of EQ you can.