VOCALS EQ PRODUCTION

Are your vocals cutting through with enough clarity and power? Time to welcome Ashley Thorpe to with some expert vocal advice

Equalisation is something that’s essential for a music producer to know, but easy to get wrong when you’re getting started. One of the common EQing mistakes I see my students making in their mixes is boosting frequencies on every instrument. Boosting in the right places is important, but knowing where to cut frequencies is more crucial.

When you’re mixing, the key is balance. You want all of the instruments in your track to shine. While there are frequencies at which each instrument sounds best, there are also some that’ll make instruments sound… pretty far from their best. And these need to be reduced or cut completely in order to make more space for other elements.

For vocal tracks, the voice is your lead instrument. You don’t want to be fighting for space against a heavy electric guitar, or synth or drums. The key is knowing the strengths and qualities of the vocalist(s) you’re dealing with, bringing out these qualities with EQ (among other tools!) and adjusting the other instruments to fit. What are the vocalist’s qualities? The answer to this will determine where you need to boost. What other instruments are present in the mix? This will determine where would be best to cut to let these instruments breathe too.

It’s good to have reference songs in the genre you’re working in. But it’s also important to know your own mix. This guide will give you tips on making the vocals shine in your mix.