How To Clean Up Metal Guitars with EQ
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- Опубліковано 29 вер 2024
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No matter how good your guitar tone is, there will be problem areas.
The low end rumble that fights with the bass and eats up valuable space in the mix…
Or the high end harshness that masks over cymbals and vocal “air.”
After dealing with literally hundreds (or maybe thousands) of heavy guitar tracks over the years, I settled on a simple but deadly-effective method for tightening up metal guitars.
This EQ strategy can be done in any DAW using almost any variety of EQ plugin…
And it only takes a couple filters and tiny notches to clean up the lows, tame the highs and notch out the harsh midrange.
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Even though you basically use the same method as most of the people out there to clean guitars, you actually explain what to look for (mostly for the filters), or what to "hear" for.
That would be super cool if you could do something on extreme death metal, super fast tremolo picking with blastbeats. I found it's very difficult to have guitars cut through with low tuning. It's really hard to find good tutorials about this.
play around with boosting **around** 1.5k and 2.5k for your guitars to get them to cut through and be heard
roadrashsucks alot *be haird
@@Guitarfailtastic2857 Thanks Man.
Turn up the presence knob on the amp. I mean, this tutorial is pretty much everything you need for that, really. The tuning in this video is probably drop a or something.
If it‘s not cutting through, it’s not cause of the running or anything, more so your mic placement and amp settings than anything else
This was extremely helpful. Thank you. Finally someone that can explain eq to where it’s understandable
You can LINK plugins?! Mind blown!
Right, how the F do you do that?
I really love how natural and honest your mixes sound. Nowadays the music industry in heavy rock or metal is overloaded with these plastic sounding djent mixes. I am sick listening to new music when the mix sounds so brutally polished and robotic. Could you please make a tutorial for a mix to achieve that roomy but punchy sound like nearly every album from Thrice? That would be amazing. I love the feel from Beggars. It soaks you into the Mix in a kind of melancholy way i really like.
Greetings from Austria - Benny
I love iprevail but god damn their mixes are too clean for metal. Like it’s so stale I feel it takes away from the songs.
Man, I got super disappointed after getting some gear to record (beginner) and finding out the guitars still sounded kinda bad. Now I realize that EQ is maybe the most important part to get a good clean sound. Thanks a lot man, you saved me.
If getting good sounding tones was easy everyone would be a recording engineer. 😃
Isn’t that the truth!!!!!
The key is to have your recording gear and amp / amp sim dialed in "correctly". If you have a good tone to begin with then there is not much to left to do with equalizers like in this video.
Remember that eq is not a magic tool, it's just there to make subtle improvements on an already good and balanced tone.
The hipass & lopass filter changes are audible to me but not the 2 minor cuts. I’m struggling to understand how to hear the problem areas to cut. I see this on all the tutorials, where y’all grab a band, boost it, move it left to right then cut it. How can you tell where the cut should be I can’t understand what you’re listening for. Still fairly new to mixing
Sounds like youre just messing with pre-produced IR's... ?
Great tips. Always good to keep it simple.
Without starting a war here, I would appreciate you approaching hard rock guitar or a full band for a vid. Metal has so much audio information going on for a single note that it's easy for big problems (in the mix) to get lost in all the chuggery. Hard rock...not chill rock, not metal, not stoner rock. Guns N' Roses, Aerosmith, Led Zeppelin, Dokken, Metallica's Load album, etc. Those guitar tones were a story all their own and they weren't all double tracked mimicry (I know they had it but it was far from the foundation). I can't tell one book from another in modern rock/metal. What made these stand out? It sure wasn't gain and bottom end with the good click-y kick drum and blasting snare. I am learning the mixing art and it seems modern music is becoming so uniform that there will soon be a "Mix Formula" to end them all *excluding anything written prior to 2010. There's not a lot else to do with it. It is cut/paste production and I understand now why rock and metal have lost their prominence in the grander scheme of things. Microcosm examples to the contrary matter little when the existence of a genre is on the line. Too little too late I suppose would be the best way to respond to all the heroic acts trying to keep it alive and UNIQUE or DYNAMIC.
Jeez, if I had a nickle every time a professional engineer started notching out specific frequencies in guitars I’d have like 0 nickles. What a load of BS. These aren’t even good tips. Just use your ears people, and maybe listen to what some actually good enginneers have to say, if you can’t work with them there are plenty of videos out there. Jesus christ
This kind of eq only really works if you got an at least 'good' (no glaring room, mic placement, or performance problems) tone while recording. I'm guessing a lot of us watching are trying to turn crap recordings or crap performances into cutting powerful guitars, and this won't take us there. It's still a great example, just def gotta get the good tone/performance first!
Please make a video about guitar compression!!
This was the most helpful explanation of eq I have come across on youtube. No bs you just give some solid advice and tell us exactly what the best places to cut are. Thank you so much!
Nice! I'm trying to download but nothing is coming to my email! what can i do?
How can you hear anything your doing in the low end with just using NS tens
Thank you
How do you link the plugin together?
Thank you kindly
First comment; and greetings from Singapore!! Amazing video by the way. I am 13 and I am self-producing my band Nothing set in Stone's debut EP. Your videos are a godsend! I am very grateful for you taking the time to make these videos. I have had some past mixing experience, but nothing really formal. These videos are the most in-depth seen yet on the internet. Thank you so much, and God bless!
TURN THE GAIN DOWN; THAT WILL HELP.
Turning gain down is one thing I always hear but really don't see the need for.
A well mixed metal tone will sound great no matter the gain. Beatdown, hardcore, powerviolence, Swedish death metal, and other extreme forms of metal and hardcore often have SUPER high gain tones but still sound excellent.
A lower gain tone might be easier to mix, but there's nothing like a well saturated metal tone. Jordan here often uses VERY saturated tones but they still sound fantastic.
True. I always back the gain down a little after I dial in a tone and the boost the mids by a good 1DB.
That EQ looks archaic. hahaha. Get pro Q dude.
slchannel (eq?) and cla-3A (comp)...what did you do with that?
Thank you for this video. Your EQ pointers here have saved a mix I am currently battling with as it contains FIVE heavy, distorted guitar tracks, not including solos. Taking the steps you outline here has transformed the mix into something so clear and workable. The new found clarity is astounding. Again, thank you.
This video is great it helped me clean up my kemper tones i was never sure where to high and low cut. thanks!
I've been EQ'ing like with the exception of the "sweeping" technique which many pro do NOT use. In fact, Justin at Sonic Scoop poo pooed this technique. CLA doesn't' do it. I don't get it either, frankly. Every frequency sounds like shit when I sweep. But, legends like Mick Guzuaski DO do it. So go figure. Anyway, when panning two guitar tracks to either side, I do really love the techique for EQ'ing slightly differently. You boost, for example, 3k on one guitar and cut 3k on the other. It creates a separation in their sounds that is quiet satisfying. Got that idea from Graham at recording revolution. Love your channel. Keep up the great work!
@Nosfero thanks for that. I'll give it a try.
Sweeping helps when you hear a frequency in a mix that's bugging you and you need to locate and cut it. You shouldnt just aimlessly sweep because yes, all frequencies sound terrible when boosted like that
This dude just admitted he gets paid probably a couple grand an album to literally just EQ guitars...
Good tips. I wonder what it is at 4k that is so bad
Holy crap I'm glad I found this channel. What a wealth of knowledge man, thank you.
I wish I knew what the hell youre talking about. Im just sitting here with a 200$ amp recording through usb into reaper trying to not sound like ass
Download Bias FX and get a good interface. Wont cost much and will sound miles better than a cheap amp via usb.
if I completely dip any high or high midsized all the way, way more artifacts seem to come out
Liked bypassed better.
I am 57 years old. Do you know how PATRONISING it is to have some young just out of school chap telling me what to do? Do you?? Right. Off to record some Death Metal on my new 7 string and to EQ it to blistering effect. Thank You.
Sincerely,
Old Man.
You might have issues.
I feel like this is 25% or only 50% of the recording process... can you show how your mic the guitar cab, then tweak the amp eq to show the pre- recording setup? I feel like doing this pre- setup is just as important if not more than just saying eq is all you needed to do for your heavy guitar recordings.
You’re absolutely right, the tracking phase is much more important. Get on my email list if you’re not already... you’re gonna see that side very soon. This video was just to cover part of the mixing side.
Subtle but such a strong recording to begin it's all you need.
What song is that
Thanks for the guide dude!!!
I just heard your kick and I am now depressed.......
I'm using SD2, is it even possible for me to get a kick that sounds like this? It thumps in the chest and I am struggling to get even remotely close using every processing idea I can think of. If I can get the kick right the mix will be smooth sailing from then on. Are you using a sample also?
I really hope somebody who knows the secret sees this comment.
Cheers
This.
You're parallel with my perspective on experimenting brother. It's a relief to see someone else that keeps it simple and piece by piece instead of lower this, lower that, higher this, tweak that and then listening.
Sweeping goated for not tricking yourself. Just last night I made a little game for myself where I would try and create the same eq settings as "rock" in my android. Listened to the same song for 3 times and then flattened out the eq. Really listening to what I thought brings out each part for that song and I was almost DEAD on after 10 minutes of adjusting. Started at low end ... and before I got to mid, I started on the highs and back to mids. Something about the low and high touches first really help me DIAL in those mids to complete the mix.
Great content..... really appreciate all the time you put in recording and explaining. I'd do this as I progress ... but man, adhd is an honest struggle when it comes to multi-tasking lol.
I recognized that riff immediately. Wasn't expecting to hear some Mandroid Echostar but glad I was reminded of that song
This was so helpful as my videos lately are battling frequencies 🤬😡😡🤬😡I get so frustrated but I'll try this out.
Hey thanks for the tip I also just did a bunch of guitar videos on my UA-cam channel
great vid. I tried a variation of your strategy and preserved more highs. I did high pass first, then cleaned up the nasties then finally low pass at the end. Way better result than before
Legend! Exactly what I was looking for. Subbed.
I love your vids my man, thank you but without the guitars being played in a full mix with all the other instruments playing you cannot tell if it is working or not
Hey man been watching your video your mixes sound great would like to get to know you and your music more maybe cause maybe we can learn some stuff from one another on mixing I am subscribed to your channel
How much do u charge for mixing & mastering ? Thanks
Most helpful video ever thx
Hiya is it possible to do the same plug in link in Cubase 9? Cheers :)
Great video - and we have the same chair from IKEA ;)
good video! can you share how to make that guitar tone as well? :D
Excellent guide, pretty much my work flow with my guitars just some cuts that's all you need when well tracked.
Do you think low cut at 150 Hz is excessive? I got a POD HD500X that's known for being dark and thumpy, some amp models are just piles of mud. I found out that taming those with low cut at 140-150 Hz is making them sound ok. But other people say that the low E string fundamental is at 100 Hz...
Fundamental for 440 E string is 80 hz. This video, while informative, neutered an already dark and flat guitar tone: there’s no need to high pass up to 135-150 hz, there just isn’t. It’s excessive . Try a nice low shelf at about 200hz instead of excessively high passing your guitar. I rarely High pass above 80 hz. Low end that low contrary to popular belief can be useful. 8k is also super aggressive, you need those highs to cut through a dense metal mix. I think the 3k is appropriate ( the “Mesa cab whistle” is around this frequency, although I’m not gonna say the exact frequency, because there is one
;) ) bur the Q was far too wide for this already dark flat guitar tone. This entire generation of mixers and engineers are so god damn afraid of high end, it’s the worst trend in heavy music in the last 15 years .
Thanks for the tips... that will help me a lot.
Oh hey that's cool as hell! I saw Mandroid Echostar when they were in Halifax with Protest the Hero, and I had no idea who they were at the time.
great video, thank you
Mandroid!!!!!!!!! Heck Yes!!!
How do you link plugins?
Thanks for making this man!
Very informative ! I totally agree with your Eq at 3152Hz but I feel a kind of win/loss at 5300Hz: I guess there is something else to do but it seems harder to found, what do you think ?
You didn't ask me, but my thought is the tone he started with was super bright to begin with, so he's making strategic cuts in the upper range but it leaves that brightness intact. It's good stuff. A lot of the tones I've worked with have much less presence and more mud to begin with. But I'm not a pro, so I don't have the luxury of always getting a great tone off the mics.
this helped a lot! Thanks
Btw, what do you think about using dynamic EQ for controlling resonances instead of normal EQ? (Not low-end buld-ups)
usually dynamic eq is not consistent enough to remove bad resonance or whistling frequencies. Use it for things that build up and are not always consistently loud. If there are certain parts where the frequency isn't too loud but other parts where it is, that is when dynamic eq is great. Like if you suck some low mids out of guitars during a chorus but then when the riffs start to slap the guitar suddenly sounds thin and weak, use dynamic eq so its only reducing that frequency when it gets loud. Some frequencies in guitar will always sound bad no matter what is being played and need to just be removed with a regular static eq
Nice! Learned a lot
What amp or amp sim was used for this? I love that tone
Fortin grind somewhere in there perhaps?
I still don’t get this, I mean there’s a lot of annoying frequencies in my guitar tone. How do I even know which ones they are?
try the sweeping technique he does.
@@hummarstraful Thanks man I think I really just need to upgrade my interface. There’s a lot of noise in the one I have and I literally have to EQ it to death to clean it up, and by the time I do that the tone is gone it’s really annoying. DI box doesn’t really help either for some reason
Thanks Jordan! that was great!
love it! Thx man!
Great stuff
Loved it.
do i need to do that on bass too?
I was wondering the same
Soooo a low pass, a high pass, and narrow cut at ~3.5k and 6k. Saved ya time, now go mix!
I only got fl studios hardcore plugin for distortion... its like literally impossible to keep normal distorted guitar and have upper mids, presence, and treble.
I lost my entire studio to a felon company, and fake distortion just doesnt work D:
Sure, for people who have knowledge on these things. However, people like me have no idea what you said, but with the explanation in the video I know what to do and look for.
Could you do a video on how you approach fast leads on top of a brutal track. Again, this is very difficult to find on youtube. I never know how to approach this. Do I just limit the shit out of the lead to make it sit on top of the mix or do you automate every nano seconds to have absolute control over every single notes? I can't f find anything about that.
There is one pretty enormous problem with this: you're EQing it entirely in isolation.
I would really really recommend against doing this, because there's a pretty good chance you'll spend twenty minutes mixing it to sound completely badass, unmute the rest of the track, and then realise you've just wasted twenty minutes making the guitars sound like dog shit which you never noticed because you weren't listening to them in context. If you have to solo them, do it briefly, then unsolo them so you can hear what they sound like in the mix again immediately afterwards. EQing in the mix is kind of always better because that's how things are actually heard.
That’s actually how Jordan mostly mixes! If you’ve ever checked out his Hardcore Mixing online courses, he talks about making adjustments in context with the rest of the mix all the time. He probably just made adjustments in solo for this video to show more in depth of what these adjustments sound like in solo, and so you know what areas to look for when you’re adjusting in context with the mix.
jman - what volume typically do you record metal guitars?
Impossible for me to hear, listening to on my phone but yeah, love the technique of boosting the tone and sweeping around untill it jumps out at you then taking it down.
HELLO PEOPLE. IM THE OWNER OF LOVESTATE RECORDS. WHAT CAN I DO TO PERSUADE THEM I KNOW ABOUT MUSIC TECHNOLOGY IF I DON'T KNOW NOTHING AT ALL? I HAVE TO GIVE THEM THE MASTERS TOMORROW, HURRY UP!!!!!!
Super helpful! Was having issues with the deathly whistle! My question is how do I give my rhythm guitars a bit more high end presence if I'm cutting the higher regions?
You can use a shelf adjustment. The shelf will still keep your precise cuts.
Handy tip. Throw your EMG's in the bin, they are great live but suck in the studio.
Laughs in Slayer and Metallica
Fucking EMG's rule in the studio