Has Anyone try'd Taking Advantage of Making Their Own Multiband EQ Yet???

[Shonsteez]

If you use Reason - Maybe you can help???

I just stopped by tha propellerheads page and was doing a little reading about how to better your mix, or better yet - what you can do masterwise inside reason if you dont export and filter your song in something else. The homepage clearly states reason is in no way for mastering which i already figured out from using it. They did have an interesting article though on how to build your own multiband EQ, which aparently will help you file down alot of the sounds you want to be more present in tha stereo field - at least to tha programs capabilites...so i downloaded tha template and fired it up and then realized there must be some serious EQing involved on tha 3 compressors (HI,Mid,Low) to actually hear your sounds correctly?? When i ran my drums through it for tha first time i heard more of a sustained sound in tha kick, but less bump, which was partially ok, but tha whole purpose of using tha EQ is to hear your sounds clearly with a stereo presence and im not quite sure what i have tweak to achieve that?? If youve dabbled with this template before and know what im talking about then maybe you can give me some pointers on how to bring my sounds out a little better??
What ratios work good as a general start in tha (HI,Mid,Low) compressions???

 

[God]

DueceMade Ent.:

I know about mastering, but not about the specific EQ/Compressor from Propellerhead.

I think what you're talking about is a rudimentary split-band compressor (if I'm not mistaken) this enables you to better manipulate the frequency spectrum in which your song resides. Anyway, I'll give you some input on general eq'ing for mastering, although you have to know this:

MASTERING TAKES A LONG TIME TO GET. PEOPLE SAY IT'S EVEN AN ART FORM. EVERY MIX REQUIRES A DIFFERENT APPROACH TO A FINALISATION PROCESS. YOU HAVE TO BE AWARE OF THIS.

OK, here's some stuff to keep in mind, this ALL depends on your equaliser:

A lift between 6-16kHz lets the mix "breathe" more, it has more "air." If there is any harshness it's usually around 1-4kHz. If you lack top end, DON't raise the high end of the EQ, but use an exciter instead. If there is stagnation, without much "room" to the mix, 150-400Hz is the general problem area.

Bass can be rolled off depending where there is an aggregation of bass frequencies. It really depends on the analysis from the mix. Bass is tricky, but you usually want to get rid of the transient subs below the general aggregation of bass frequencies.

REMINDER: What I just said doesn't even touch the tip of the iceberg regarding mastering.

That is some information regarding EQ's in mastering. However, you will need plenty of time to come out with good finalisation if you have never used a split compressor or a dynamic EQ for mastering. The key is to digest the track and cater to IT'S needs, not what you think or have done in the past. Every song is different. The only thing that stays the same is the fact that radio these days wants the "loudest" mastered track. That's another subject altogether.

Sincerely,
God

 

[Shonsteez]

GOD-
So you are listening??...Yo i dont ever talk to you sicnce im jewish an all, but since you heard my preyers this time i know you truly exist.
LOL.
Yo seriously though....thats a lot of info, some ive already heard, but most i havent which was interesting. thanks.

A lift between 6-16kHz lets the mix "breathe" more, it has more "air." If there is any harshness it's usually around 1-4kHz. If you lack top end, DON't raise the high end of the EQ, but use an exciter instead. If there is stagnation, without much "room" to the mix, 150-400Hz is the general problem area.

when you wrote this did you mean ratios in tha compressor??.....i dont know if reason has a meter showing these levels if its not tha compressor??...also, when you say an exciter is that a eq of some sort, or just plain effects??
keep feeding me info aiight! i need all tha help GOD can give me.

 

[God]

Duecemade Ent:

OK, here's the answer, bear with me.

Frequency is measured in hertz (Hz) and 1000 Hz = 1kHz (kilohertz.) In this case I am discussing Hz in regards to a multi-band dynamic EQ, which usually is a feature in a split band compressor, but is also used separately for better equalisation manipulation. When you are talking of ratios, ratio is a mathematical representation of the amount of compression applied versus the base signal. A split band compressor, thus lets you compress, expand, and limit, different frequency ranges. So when ratio is discussed, it signifies the ratio of compression over a selected frequency range. So, if you select 3:1 compression (3:1 is the representation of a compression ratio) on whatever the selected frequency band your compressor splits the frequency spectrum for split compression capabilities (not an equaliser) at x kHz (representation of a frequency band) through the manipulation of Q (the slope) then this would signify the application of the compressor at a 3:1 ratio over your said selected frequency range (x kHz to y kHz whose where x's slope and y's slope are represented through the respective numerical values of Q for each variable.) Mathematically, it is much more complex than that, with more complex descriptions of what the slope up to through a point and beyond actually is referred as, but I will not get into that.

An exciter is a processor that works by heterodyning frequencies. Aphex and BBE make exciters, and there are exciter plug-ins on most DAW solutions.

If what I said is confusing, perhaps you can find some more help through a search online. Split band compressors require a delicate understanding.