From the course: Audio Foundations: EQ and Filters
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Creating focus
When applying EQ in a mix there are a number of common mistakes made by novice engineers. Here I want to talk about three of the big ones: trying to make every instrument's stand out in the mix, trying to make too many instruments fit into a mix, and EQing tracks in solo. Not every track can be the star in a mix. All instruments can't have the spotlight at the same time. Instead, you can use EQ to help direct the listener to what the focal point of the song is at any given moment. In fact, you can use EQ to make one or more instruments purposefully sound more dull in order for another instrument to stand out. Photographers use depth-of-field extensively to achieve this same effect. They place the subject of the photo in focus while background elements may be made intentionally out of focus to help draw the viewer's eye towards the subject, and make for a more interesting composition or organization. We can do this in music or post-production too using EQ. For example, the lead vocal…
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Contents
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Creating focus3m 47s
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Get in the Mix: Using EQ to fix problems and place elements in the mix8m 30s
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Get in the Mix: Creating complementary EQ curves9m 7s
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Get in the Mix: Creative EQ with the telephone effect5m 30s
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Get in the Mix: Frequency bracketing with filters5m 44s
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Get in the Mix: Automating EQ6m 18s
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Learning to listen3m 10s
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Balancing expectations from the recording process4m 7s
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