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Old 11-27-2017, 06:03 AM   #1
sjs94704
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Default Hi Pass/Low Pass/Mid- How do I know which one I need for a given project?

So many of the videos on YouTube are great! BUT, when they talk about "Put a Hi Pass" or "Put a Low Pass", etc.....

OK, I can do that, but, as great information I do get, what I'm looking for is the "Why" I need one vs. the other?

I learn best by watching videos. Are there any videos out there that teach music mixing theory so that when I hear guys say these terms I know what the hell they are talking about?
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Old 11-27-2017, 11:24 AM   #2
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Filtering and EQ are mostly "corrective". If you've got too much bass, cut the bass or use a high-pass, etc. You listen and then decide if you need filtering/EQ. First comes the diagnosis, then the treatment...

It's good to keep a known-good reference recording (the same genre you're working with) to "keep your ears calibrated". It's easy to get carried away with EQ (or any processing) so it's a good idea to compare to your reference, and then check again the next day.

The easiest way to start-out is by experimenting with a regular-old graphic equalizer. You should have a good "feel" for the frequency spectrum before you start trying to use high & low pass filters or parametric EQ. (And most of the time regular EQ is all you need, if you need anything at all.)

There's a rule-of-thumb, that you should cut, rather than boost when adjusting the "frequency balance". But, it comes-down the problem you're trying to correct.

High-pass, low-pass, and bandpass filters are not used that much because they are too drastic... Do you really want to remove all of the bass or all the highs? More subtle EQ is far more common.

Notch (band reject) are fairly common because they can knock-down an unwanted resonance. Typically, you "sweep" the filter to find the problem frequency. Or sometimes you can sweep a narrow EQ boost (using a parametric equalizer" until the resonance jumps-out and gets worse... Then apply a notch at that frequency.

It's also fairly common to high-pass everything except the bass & kick drum at 100-200Hz because most instruments (and voices/microphones) are just putting-out junk at those low frequencies.
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Old 11-27-2017, 01:35 PM   #3
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Quote:
Originally Posted by sjs94704 View Post
So many of the videos on YouTube are great! BUT, when they talk about "Put a Hi Pass" or "Put a Low Pass", etc.....

OK, I can do that, but, as great information I do get, what I'm looking for is the "Why" I need one vs. the other?

I learn best by watching videos. Are there any videos out there that teach music mixing theory so that when I hear guys say these terms I know what the hell they are talking about?
I bet you'll find some on youtube with that special feature..

Hi Pass and Low Pass are quite easy to understand - whenever you think that the frequency information of a particular track is not needed in that particular project you can cut this information off... in order to find the right spot - be careful with the knife not to cut off the balls in either direction. ;-)
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Old 11-27-2017, 05:18 PM   #4
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If you need a primer on mixing practices and terms, I'd suggest you pick a book and read it cover to cover. This worked for me: https://www.amazon.com/Mixing-Engine...ok+4th+edition Not too long, entertaining and had a good mix of technical info and examples.

Or you can just start watching YouTube videos at random until you find a series you like. I think Matthew Weiss' from pro-audio files are pretty articulate and comprehensive: https://theproaudiofiles.com/author/matthew-weiss/
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Old 11-28-2017, 12:35 PM   #5
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The "why" is pretty simple. You put a hi-pass on things if you want to limit the lows and you put a low-pass on things if you want to limit the highs.

*When* you should do those things is a function of experience. Your ears will tell you when you should add those filters. When you're starting out, your ears are dumb and so your brain will look for some formulaic process to fill in for them. Don't let it.

Listen to a whole lot of your own recordings. Listen to a whole lot of other people's recordings with an ear to paying attention to the mix. What are you hearing in there? Do that a lot, and your ears will smarten up and play nice with your brain.
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Old 12-26-2017, 06:31 AM   #6
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Default Although a bit late, but 'Thank You' to all who responded

I could give you a ton of excuses why, but, like many of you, I have lots going on in my life and my saying 'Thank You' to everyone was overlooked so I'm doing that now!
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Old 01-01-2018, 05:12 PM   #7
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For what you are doing you will probably:

1) need to leave the background music alone (assuming it's a good clean audio karaoke track/song),

2) maybe HiPass at around 100 up to 200hz on your main vocal (assuming you want to cut some low end for the vocals to pop out AND that the song in nothing near a Barry White song (where the very low end is necessary)

3) HiPass a bit higher on the back vocals to let the main vocal sit alone in the low end

4) Most likely not need to Low Pass anything, assuming your microphone did not pick up some very high pitched background noise. You could for safety put one at 20,000hz, but here you can't really hear it (it's too high for most people's ear, or people with cheap headphones or speakers).

You will probably want to dynamically EQ & Compress the vocal around 6-7,000 HZ to cut the S's that are too loud (use a De-esser for that - something like Spitfish VST - http://www.digitalfishphones.com/mai...em=2&subItem=5
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Old 01-01-2018, 08:02 PM   #8
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One good way to find out is to check out the high and low pass filters that come with Reaper in the JS section of the fx. The JS RBJ Highpass/Lowpass Filters is great for this as it has both and no other parameters (such as resonance or slope) to confuse you.

Very, VERY generally speaking, pass filters are most often used to drop frequencies on a track where the material has little valuable information in that area, and also to simply set a boundary for how far into that frequency area it needs to go, as opposed to trying to shape the sound with it, such as with a band eq.

In the first case it's high passing cymbals and guitars and voices up to the point where you don't like how they're affected, and low passing other material similarly. It seems odd, because why eq out frequencies that basically aren't there, and you may not be having an audible affect on its sound? But what happens is that you can see dbs of difference with several tracks getting pass filtered, and that can be very useful. There's a limit to how much energy you can send to the master fader, and while we always keep track faders low enough to not have that a problem, the truth is that there's often a fair bit of unnecessary sound energy on a track.

And then there's the strategy of pushing it further than sounds right soloed, such as having acoustic rhythm guitars or layered harmony vocals cut off at 200hz because it can open up that range for what naturally resides down there. Plus, if you layer harmonies and they build up in certain frequencies too much to use as high as you'd like in the mix, a high pass above the point where they start thinning out can make them work better sometimes than adding high sheen eq alone.

Also there's the strategy on the other end, of putting a high pass on a bass guitar at 50 or 60 because you have a deep kick drum you want to shine down there, and you still have everything between 60 and whatever, 100, to boost the bass's bottom without getting into the kick's area. It will take a touch off the low low of the bass but not in a noticeable or wrong sounding way. Cutting of the lowest lows of a low instrument can serve to clean it up in the context of the mix as a whole.

When have a narration in a mix I always put on a JS RBJ Highpass/Lowpass Filter at 80hz and 16khz. I know there's some information beyond those points but the subtle benefit of leaving them out (easier to fit in the mix) outweighs for leaving in, and it doesn't sound different for it.
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