Trying to equalize cymbals and kick

[dbeck002]

Hey guys, Reason 4.0.

Got redrum up with a bass drum controlling a light snare through CV.

I got cymbals going on in the background (not smash cymbals, just hi hat style) and the bass is overwhelming the cymbals.

I dont get it, arent cymabls a high frequency instrument and kick/bass drums low freq? I am equalizing by boosting the 5khz on the cymbals with a broad shelf and cutting the bass at that spot. I still get the cutting whenever the bass kicks. I tried compressing the bass but it only helped a little.

please help.

thank you!

[nathanallenpinard]

Try a higher hz, like 8000 or 9000'ish

[dbeck002]

At 5/6/09 12:12 AM, nathanallenpinard wrote: Try a higher hz, like 8000 or 9000'ish

Sweet...8-9k hz did it, i didnt think to go that high in fear of getting the bad resonance from hi freq. but it work! I also had to compress the bass a little more, 3-4:1 ratio, i hope that doesnt kill my kick.

Thanks

[loansindi]

If you're not sure how to EQ something, try looking at it through a frequency analyzer. It will help you determine what frequencies an instrument is producing so you can lock down on problem frequencies, or boost just what you need to.

[dbeck002]

At 5/6/09 12:29 AM, loansindi wrote: If you're not sure how to EQ something, try looking at it through a frequency analyzer. It will help you determine what frequencies an instrument is producing so you can lock down on problem frequencies, or boost just what you need to.

Hi, thank you for the reply.

Do you have any suggestions for any free frequency analyzer downloads? something cheap and dirty will do. Thank you!!

[jarrydn]

Also, make sure you haven't got the bass pumping excessively on the kick, because if your speaker cones are flapping too much, they won't be able to reproduce sounds as accurately, especially if your monitoring on speakers without an additional tweeter.

[loansindi]

At 5/6/09 12:43 AM, jarrydn wrote: Also, make sure you haven't got the bass pumping excessively on the kick, because if your speaker cones are flapping too much, they won't be able to reproduce sounds as accurately, especially if your monitoring on speakers without an additional tweeter.

And if you're mixing on headphones, be aware that they'll likely be bass-heavy. Always listen to your mixes in a few different places.

[dbeck002]

At 5/6/09 12:45 AM, loansindi wrote:

At 5/6/09 12:43 AM, jarrydn wrote: Also, make sure you haven't got the bass pumping excessively on the kick, because if your speaker cones are flapping too much, they won't be able to reproduce sounds as accurately, especially if your monitoring on speakers without an additional tweeter.

And if you're mixing on headphones, be aware that they'll likely be bass-heavy. Always listen to your mixes in a few different places.

Thanks for the helpful tips guys.

Everything sounds good on my headphones, but as soon as i unplug them my laptop makes the song really dry.

[gregaaron89]

At 5/6/09 01:06 AM, dbeck002 wrote:

Thanks for the helpful tips guys.

Everything sounds good on my headphones, but as soon as i unplug them my laptop makes the song really dry.

It's probably because your laptop speakers are small and unable to reproduce bass well. I know I can hardly hear bass on my macbook speakers AT ALL, the freaking cutoff must be at 250-300 Hz or something. And they boost the highs to a ridiculous amount, basically anything electronic sounds like utter shit through them, I would not rely on laptop speakers to test your music... if you have anything that are actually speakers, like an iPod jack in your car or something, you should listen on that instead.

[Snikaz]

This:

[Snikaz]

Sorry for double posting but its a little hard to read:
250 - 800 Hz: Muddiness area
1 - 6k Hz: Adds presence
6 - 8k Hz: Adds clarity
8 - 12k Hz: Adds brightness
( k as in 1,000 )