What EQ is and how to use it in a mix
EQ, short for equalization, turns specific frequency ranges up or down. In a mix you mostly use it to cut what clashes, such as low rumble and boxy low mids, and then make small boosts where an instrument needs to cut through. Every edition of Live 12 includes Channel EQ, and Standard and Suite also add EQ Eight.
This guide covers 10 instruments so far: vocals, bass, guitar, kick drum, snare, acoustic guitar, drums, piano, strings and master. Each one has its own page with the bands, the moves and the exact Live 12 settings.
Across these instruments the starting points make 12 cuts, and the middle one sits at 350 Hz. That is the low-mid zone where most mixes get crowded, which is why cutting there clears more than boosting anywhere else.
EQ by instrument
How to EQ vocals in Ableton Live
To EQ a vocal, high pass below 80 to 100 Hz, cut 2 to 4 dB of mud between 200 and 500 Hz, then add 1 to 3 dB of presence at 2 to 5 kHz.
How to EQ bass in Ableton Live
To EQ bass, high pass the rumble below 30 Hz, give the fundamental a small lift around 60 to 100 Hz if it sounds weak, and cut 2 to 4 dB of mud near 250 Hz.
How to EQ guitar in a mix
To EQ a guitar in a mix, high pass around 80 to 120 Hz to leave room for the bass, cut 2 to 3 dB of mud between 200 and 400 Hz, and add 1 to 3 dB of bite between 2 and 4 kHz.
How to EQ a kick drum
To EQ a kick drum, high pass below 30 Hz, boost the thump between 50 and 80 Hz by 2 to 3 dB, and cut 3 to 4 dB of cardboard box between 300 and 500 Hz.
How to EQ a snare drum
To EQ a snare drum, high pass around 80 to 100 Hz, add 1 to 2 dB of body between 150 and 250 Hz, and cut boxy ring between 400 and 900 Hz.
How to EQ an acoustic guitar
To EQ an acoustic guitar, high pass around 80 to 100 Hz, cut 2 to 4 dB of boom between 100 and 250 Hz, and add 1 to 3 dB of clarity between 2 and 5 kHz.
How to EQ drums on the drum bus
To EQ drums, fix each drum on its own track first, then make small moves on the drum bus.
How to EQ piano in a mix
To EQ a piano in a mix, high pass around 40 to 80 Hz, cut 2 to 3 dB of mud between 200 and 400 Hz, and add 1 to 2 dB of presence between 2 and 5 kHz so the notes stay clear.
How to EQ strings in a mix
To EQ strings, high pass around 40 to 80 Hz, or higher on violins alone, and cut about 2 dB of mud between 250 and 500 Hz.
How to EQ the master bus
To EQ a master, keep every move small and wide, usually under 1.5 dB.
Vocals
Vocals uses 4 moves in the starting point. To EQ a vocal, high pass below 80 to 100 Hz, cut 2 to 4 dB of mud between 200 and 500 Hz, then add 1 to 3 dB of presence at 2 to 5 kHz. Tame harsh S sounds with a de-esser, and add a gentle shelf above 10 kHz only if it sounds dull.
Bass
Bass uses 5 moves in the starting point. To EQ bass, high pass the rumble below 30 Hz, give the fundamental a small lift around 60 to 100 Hz if it sounds weak, and cut 2 to 4 dB of mud near 250 Hz. Add growl between 700 Hz and 1.5 kHz so the notes read on phone speakers, and roll off fizz above 6 kHz.
Guitar
Guitar uses 4 moves in the starting point. To EQ a guitar in a mix, high pass around 80 to 120 Hz to leave room for the bass, cut 2 to 3 dB of mud between 200 and 400 Hz, and add 1 to 3 dB of bite between 2 and 4 kHz. If distortion sounds fizzy, ease the top above 6 kHz instead of boosting presence.
Kick drum
Kick drum uses 4 moves in the starting point. To EQ a kick drum, high pass below 30 Hz, boost the thump between 50 and 80 Hz by 2 to 3 dB, and cut 3 to 4 dB of cardboard box between 300 and 500 Hz. Then add 2 dB of beater click between 2 and 5 kHz so the kick cuts through on small speakers.
Snare
Snare uses 5 moves in the starting point. To EQ a snare drum, high pass around 80 to 100 Hz, add 1 to 2 dB of body between 150 and 250 Hz, and cut boxy ring between 400 and 900 Hz. Then add 2 dB of crack between 2 and 4 kHz, and a small shelf above 6 kHz if the snare wires sound dull.
Acoustic guitar
Acoustic guitar uses 4 moves in the starting point. To EQ an acoustic guitar, high pass around 80 to 100 Hz, cut 2 to 4 dB of boom between 100 and 250 Hz, and add 1 to 3 dB of clarity between 2 and 5 kHz. If the strings sound dull, add a shelf above 8 kHz, and cut any boxy ring only if you can hear it.
Drums
Drums uses 4 moves in the starting point. To EQ drums, fix each drum on its own track first, then make small moves on the drum bus. Cut about 2 dB of box between 300 and 600 Hz, add 1 dB of attack between 2 and 5 kHz, and a 1 to 2 dB shelf above 8 kHz if the cymbals sound dull.
Piano
Piano uses 4 moves in the starting point. To EQ a piano in a mix, high pass around 40 to 80 Hz, cut 2 to 3 dB of mud between 200 and 400 Hz, and add 1 to 2 dB of presence between 2 and 5 kHz so the notes stay clear. Add a small shelf above 8 kHz only if the hammers sound dull.
Strings
Strings uses 4 moves in the starting point. To EQ strings, high pass around 40 to 80 Hz, or higher on violins alone, and cut about 2 dB of mud between 250 and 500 Hz. Ease scratchy bow noise with a 1 to 3 dB cut between 2 and 4 kHz, then add a small shelf above 8 kHz if the section sounds distant.
Master
Master uses 3 moves in the starting point. To EQ a master, keep every move small and wide, usually under 1.5 dB. Clear inaudible rumble below 20 to 30 Hz, ease mud near 300 Hz by about 1 dB, and add a gentle shelf above 10 kHz if the mix sounds dull next to a reference track. Fix bigger problems in the mix.
What EQ actually does
An EQ turns parts of the frequency range up or down. Low frequencies are the deep sounds, like the weight of a kick or the bottom of a bass. High frequencies are the bright sounds, like cymbals, breath and the edge of a guitar. Everything a part plays sits somewhere along that range, and an EQ lets you change one area without touching the rest.
Every EQ band has three controls. Frequency is where the band sits, measured in hertz (Hz) or kilohertz (kHz). Gain is how much you turn that area up or down, measured in decibels (dB). Q is how wide the band is. A low Q affects a wide area and sounds gentle, and a high Q affects a narrow slice and sounds more surgical.
Bands come in a few shapes. A bell lifts or cuts an area around one frequency, like a hill or a dip. A shelf lifts or cuts everything above or below a point, like turning a tone knob. A filter removes everything past a point. A high pass lets the highs through and cuts the lows, which is how you clear rumble from parts that don't need it. A low pass does the opposite, and is useful for taking fizz or hiss off the top.
Cut first, boost second
When two parts clash, you can either boost the one you want to hear or cut the one that is in the way. Cutting usually works better. A cut takes energy out of the mix, so it leaves more headroom and makes room for something else. A boost adds energy, so it makes the part louder, and that can make it sound better for the wrong reason.
Cuts also sound more natural. Turning down a boxy area of a vocal leaves the voice sounding like itself, only clearer. Turning up the presence area by a lot makes it sound processed. That is why our guides start every instrument with the filters and cuts, and only then add small boosts.
There are good reasons to boost. A part that sounds dull even after the cuts may need a little air, and a bass that vanishes on a phone needs some growl. Keep those boosts small, usually 1 to 3 dB, and check them in the full mix.
Where each instrument lives
Each part has a home in the frequency range, and most mix problems come from parts that wander into each other's homes. The guides for each instrument cover the bands in detail. Here is the short version of what to watch for in each.
The vocal needs to own the midrange, where the words live. Its problems are usually mud in the low mids, which makes it sound boxy and crowded by the instruments, and harshness higher up. Most of the work is making room for it in the other parts.
The bass shares the low end with the kick, and the two have to take turns. Bass also has a problem no other part has, which is that small speakers can't play its lowest notes. Its guide shows how to keep it heard on a phone without adding more low end.
The guitar sits right where the vocal does, so guitar EQ is mostly about getting out of the way. A high pass and a cut in the low mids do most of the job, and a little bite keeps the strums from blurring.
The kick drum needs weight at the bottom and a click at the top, and very little in between. The box in its low mids is what makes many kicks sound cheap.
The snare has body, ring, crack and the rattle of its wires, and each sits in a different place. Finding and cutting the ring is usually the biggest single improvement.
Using EQ in Live 12
Live 12 comes with three EQ devices. Two of them come with every edition, and the third needs Standard or Suite.
Channel EQ comes with every edition of Live 12, from Lite to Suite. It is a simple, fast EQ with a switchable high pass, a low shelf, one sweepable mid band and a high shelf. The mid band sweeps from 120 Hz to 7.5 kHz with up to 12 dB of cut or boost, and the two shelves go up to 15 dB either way. With only one sweepable band, you spend it on the biggest problem. Our guides show how, and when to add a second Channel EQ.
EQ Eight comes with Standard and Suite, not Lite or Intro. It has eight bands, and each can be a high pass, low shelf, bell, notch, high shelf or low pass, with gentle or steep filter slopes. It can do every move in one of our guides in a single device. Turn on Adaptive Q if you push a boost hard, and it narrows the band as the gain goes up, which sounds more natural.
EQ Three also comes with every edition. It is built like a DJ mixer's EQ, with a low, mid and high band and a button that kills each one. Each band can go from a full cut up to 6 dB of boost. It is great for big moves, like dropping the bass out of a loop for a build, and not the right tool for fine mix work.
Every guide on this site lists the device and the settings for each edition, Channel EQ for Lite and Intro and EQ Eight for Standard and Suite, so you can follow along in any of them.
How to listen while you EQ
The fastest way to find a problem frequency is to sweep for it. Set a bell band to a big boost, around 8 to 10 dB, with a fairly narrow Q, and slowly move it across the range while the part plays. The problem will jump out when the band lands on it, because you are making it louder. Once you find it, turn the boost into a cut, widen the band, and back the cut off until it just solves the problem.
Then check the move. Switch the EQ off and on a few times with the full mix playing. If you can't hear the difference, the move probably isn't needed. If the part sounds better with the EQ on but also louder, match the level with the device's output and compare again, because louder will always win a quick comparison.
Make the final judgment in the full mix, not in solo. EQ is about how a part sits with the others, and a cut that sounds thin in solo is often exactly what lets the part sit in the mix. Take short breaks too, since your ears get used to a sound after a few minutes of listening.
Questions people ask
What does EQ do to a song?
EQ turns specific frequency ranges up or down, so you can make room for each part. Cutting the low mids on a guitar leaves space for the vocal, and cutting rumble below the bass frees headroom. On a finished song it changes the overall tone, which is why mastering uses only small EQ moves.
What is 800 Hz on an equalizer?
800 Hz sits in the midrange, where parts start to sound honky or nasal when there is too much. On our vocal guide the nasal band runs from 800 Hz to 1.2 kHz, on guitar the honk sits between 500 Hz and 1 kHz, and on bass the growl that helps notes read on phones starts at 700 Hz.
How do you EQ as a beginner?
Start by cutting, not boosting. High pass the parts that don't need low end, then sweep a boost through the low mids to find the boxy spot and turn that boost into a cut of 2 to 4 dB. Make small boosts last, and always judge the change with the whole mix playing.
Does EQ make music sound better?
EQ makes a mix sound better when it solves a problem you can hear, such as mud, harshness or a part that gets lost. Used without a reason it often makes things worse, because big boosts eat headroom and make parts fight. Bypass the EQ now and then to check that the change really helps.