EQ not just a sweetener
Roger Guerin
This series of blogs is written for the aspiring mix-to-pix mixer coming from the music mixing background (P.A. or CD). Throughout these articles, tips and tricks will be given to help you get a hold with the ins-and-outs of audio post-production workflows. The tools are roughly the same, but their use has a slightly different interpretation than in the “music world”. Since you already know most of the tools, I will skip using “baby steps”. As the series unravels you will be guided in how to modify your workflow to a surround sound session, upgrade your listening environment, what to listen for and everything in between. Very exciting indeed.
I am “mixing-in-the-box” since the late 90s, and at that time, not much was available. Going from a Synclavier/SSL set-up to Pro Tools was a definitely steep curve. Regardless of my choice of DAW, the fundamentals are the same, an EQ is an EQ, and a compressor is a compressor, regardless of the DAW.
This first blog might not be sexy, but the equalizer (EQ) is the unsung hero of everything we want people to hear. In music, we use it to enhance a performance. To sizzle or have our audience live that guitar solo’s emotion, and more. In mixing to picture, the EQ is mostly used to repair, salvage, give it depth of field… equalize, in the blending sense of the word. It’s the same tool, but used differently.
Everybody is familiar with this graph showing us the “frequency response” of different instruments, their fundamental frequencies, their harmonics and so on.
Fig. 1_Instruments vs Frequencies
In mix-to-pix, the preoccupations are different, the voice is sacred, and everything else is in the way. In mixing a feature, a mini-series or a documentary, 85% of the mixing time is spent on repairing or matching production sound. The voice caries the story and the direct connection to the audience, and everything else is giving us hints to a subtext, to a much bigger picture and a wider set of emotions. For example, you would not want a puff of wind or a motor running to break the thin line between two characters on the edge of a cliff. So, you EQ the offensive noise(s) out.
But the tricky thing is it has to sound natural, cut to cut. You see, as humans, we have an immediate reference to the human voice: it’s available everywhere we turn, whereas in music, not a lot of people have the experience of a live instrument. Even though you might be able to cut out a motor with a high pass EQ, you cannot go too high because it would sound like the person is talking out from a bad radio. You must choose your frequency and your slope wisely, and with the use of automation, it can be variable or quick in-out. And when production sound is too noisy or there is a line change, or what have you, ADR is called for and we must match these studio recorded lines seamlessly with the production sound. Yes, EQ goes a long way.
What You Will Need
Equalizers come in different flavours, some of them are in our everyday lives in a “set it and forget it” mode. I am referring to our portable playback devices (iPhone, iPod, etc.), our car radio, TV, you name it: we are surrounded.
So, a good question would be: Do I need a special EQ?
Fig. 2_Different equalizers, different tasks
Today we have graphics, parametrics, para-graphics, quasi-parametrics, etc. The list goes on endlessly, but on the good side, the vanilla flavor EQ in most DAWs are powerful enough to get through most complex dead ends.
Fig. 3_Digidesign’s EQ III
What to look for in an EQ?
This might come as a shock, but the High Pass Filter (HPF) is one of the EQ’s component you will use the most. Although 24 dB/oct. is nice, being able to raise the frequency “High” is really what an HPF is all about. At the other end of the spectrum, you will be using the Low Pass Filter to create “distance” or a “behind the door” illusion, not really to remove “Hiss”.
Shelving is nice, not a deal breaker, but having at least three (3) parametric bands with laser thin “Qs”, and overlapping frequencies is a MUST. You will be able to reduce puffs, sibilance, or electric hum, and match most curve balls they throw at you.
If you want to aim a little higher, some EQ have a built-in Real Time Analyzer (RTA). You will be able to pin-point the offending frequency and take faster EQ decisions.
Fig. 4_Waves H-EQ with built-in RTA
Things that you cannot EQ out or in for that matter.
Strangely, great editing is also a great tool: you cannot really EQ out a lip smack, a breath, but you can edit them out.
A wide-band sound is also next to impossible to EQ out: wind, seashore, air conditioning, refrigerators with variable frequency depending on the time of day, etc. You get the idea.
Wish some decisions makers would ;-O
With that in mind, what are your thoughts on the most essential EQ feature?