# Sticky  EQ cheat sheet.



## DragonMusic

Here is a cheat sheet of basic settings I found on the web, handy for beginners but can be handy for the pro's too.

These are not golden rules but they can help you to get things right. However all recordings will need their own tweaks to get the desired sound.

Thanks to the many people that contributed to this ....

*EQ basics*
20 Hz and below - impossible to detect, remove as it only adds unnecessary energy to the total sound, thereby most probably holding down the overall volume of the track
60 Hz and below - sub bass (feel only)
80(-100) Hz - feel AND hear bass
100-120 Hz - the "club sound system punch" resides here
200 Hz and below - bottom
250 Hz - notch filter here can add thump to a kick drum
150-400 Hz - boxiness
200 Hz-1.5 KHz - punch, fatness, impact
800 Hz-4 KHz - edge, clarity, harshness, defines timbre
4500 Hz - extremely tiring to the ears, add a slight notch here
5-7 KHz - de-essing is done here
4-9 KHz - brightness, presence, definition, sibilance, high frequency distortion
6-15 KHz - air and presence
9-15 KHz - adding will give sparkle, shimmer, bring out details - cutting will smooth out harshness and darken the mix

60Hz with a Q of 1.4 -- Add fullness to kicks.
100Hz with a Q of 1.0 -- Add fullness to snare
200Hz - 250Hz with a Q of 1.4 -- Adds wood to snares
3Khz with a Q of 1.4 -- Adds attack to snare.
5Khz with a Q of 2.8 -- Adds attack to Kicks
7Khz with a Q of 2.8 -- Adds Sharpness to snares and percussion
10Khz with a Q of 1.0 -- Adds brightness to hats and cymbals

Kick drums I usually cut the bass below 90 to keep the phatness without conflicting with the bass
I usually notch somewhere around 250 which seems to clear up a bit of muddiness
cut all sounds below 20hz as they also muddy up the mix.

kick drums which I cut below 75Hz.

For your vinyl masters make a harsh cut at 12khz or preferably de-esser in that region.(this applies to mastering tasks for vinyl only)
for cd masters, that gives the desired air on top.

The 4500hz region is the main content of any human vocals. So if no one understands your voice sample and you want it to be understood, boost it.


*To find the sweet spot of a sound...*

solo it.

make the q as small as it will go and boost the eq 6dB and sweep the frequency untill you really hear the sound come out (usually on the attack).

then reduce the amount of q and gain.

this also works if there is something you want to get rid of in a sound.. find that sound by using this same method and reduce the gain.

*if you want to add OMMPH to the kick or snare.*

tune an oscillator to the same pitch as the kick or white noise to the snare.

and KEY it with the Kick or the Snare and it will add that ommf your looking for.
heard a lot in hip hop on the kicks and in the 80's on the snare..

another way of doing it if you don't know how to key an oscillator... is just get a sample and have it play at the same time as the kick or the snare.. the keying just does that for you. hehe

Something that often gets over-looked is COMPARING to the original. Whenever you re-EQ something you NEED to be able to cut everything you've just done and compare it to the original sound. Theres no use doing it if you can't look back on how it was to see why you EQ'd it in the first place.

Basically make sure whatever you use to EQ has some form of bypass so you can flip between before-after. If you have something that will take 'snapshots' then thats even better as you can listen to a few different versions of EQ setting to see which fits best.

probably one of the most important things to remember with eq if you ask any engineer; i haven't seen anyone mention it, so i will.

when it comes to eq, try as hard as possible to use a cut rather than a boost. this will give you more room to work with. one of the most common uses for eq is to resolve conflicting instruments. rather than boosting the one that you want to stand out, try cutting the frequency in the instrument that doesn't quite require it.

but i normally cut off kicks at 80-100 (with a not-too gentle roll off) and take a big piece out at 300ish. i also usually boost snares aroung 150-200 and 1000-1500. 150-200 is where the meat of the snare is, and 1000-1500 is where the snap is.

Boost or Cut? Or both in combination?

I just recently read an article that recommended EQing sounds in the mix (not solo) and then finding the most prominent frequency range (by sweeping a heavily boosted paramteric EQ) and boost that just as much as needed to bring out the target sound in the mix, not more.

Then use a heavily cut parametric EQ and sweep below the frequency you just boosted, to see if you can find a frequency range that is good to cut in order to bring the target sound out in the mix even further.

I find I often use cutting frequencies to remove irritating ringings, rumble, noise etc but I don't think I've thought about it in terms of actually listening if it brings out the sound more in the mix by subtracting some of the frequencies of said sound.


on some sounds where it seems too sharp & hurts your ears, lower/notch it at around 3KHz

i definitely think that its best to start by cutting frequencies rather than boosting as this gives you a lot more room to play! you can allways boost things a bit more later if you need more OOMPH in that freq range!

fatness at 120-240Hz
boing at 400Hz
crispness at 5kHz
snap at 10kHz

Voice: presence (5 kHz), sibilance (7.5 - 10 kHz), boominess (200 - 240 kHz), fullness (120 Hz)
Electric Guitar: fullness (240 Hz), bite (2.5 kHz), air / sizzle (8 kHz)
Bass Guitar: bottom (60 - 80 Hz), attack (700 - 1000 Hz), string noise (2.5 kHz)
Snare Drum: fatness (240 Hz), crispness (5 kHz)
Kick Drum: bottom (60 - 80 Hz), slap (4 kHz)
Hi Hat & Cymbals: sizzle (7.5 - 10 kHz), clank (200 Hz)
Toms: attack (5 kHz), fullness (120 - 240 Hz)
Acoustic Guitar: harshness / bite (2 kHz), boominess (120 - 200 Hz), cut (7 - 10 kHz)

*Bassdrum:*
EQ>Cut below 80Hz to remove rumble
Boost between 80 -125 Hz for bass
Boost between 3 - 5kHz to get the slap
PROCESSING> Compression 4:1/6:1 slow attack med release.
Reverb: Tight room reverb (0.1-0.2ms)

*Snaredrum:*
EQ> Boost above 2kHz for that crisp edge
Cut at 1kHz to get rid of the sharp peak
Boost at 125Hz for a full snare sound
Cut at 80Hz to remove rumble
PROCESSING> Compression 4:1 slow attack med release.
Reverb: Tight room reverb (0.1-0.2ms)

*Hi-Hat:*
EQ> Boost above 5kHz for sharp sparkle
Cut at 1kHz to remove jangling
PROCESSING> Compression use high ratio for high energy feel
Reverb: Looser than Bass n Snare allow the hats and especially the Rides to ring a little

*BASS:*
Compressed, EQ'd with a full bottom end and some mids

I find myself often having to boost the midrange in my drums lately, last night I did a track and had to put a +3 dB EQ in the 800-3000 Hz range on the final mix (obviously not the most optimal choice but I'll fix it in the sequencer later with specific channel EQing and so on).

*EQ Reference: Frequencies*


50Hz
Boost: To thicken up bass drums and sub-bass parts.
Cut: Below this frequency on all vocal tracks. This should reduce the effect of any microphone 'pops'.

70-100Hz
Boost: For bass lines and bass drums.
Cut: For vocals.
General: Be wary of boosting the bass of too many tracks. Low frequency sounds are particularly vulnerable to phase cancellation between sounds of similar frequency. This can result in a net 'cut of the bass frequencies.

200-400Hz
Boost: To add warmth to vocals or to thicken a guitar sound.
Cut: To bring more clarity to vocals or to thin cymbals and higher frequency percussion.
Boost or Cut: to control the 'woody' sound of a snare.

400-800Hz
Boost: To add warmth to toms.
Boost or Cut: To control bass clarity, or to thicken or thin guitar sounds.
General: In can be worthwhile applying cut to some of the instruments in the mix to bring more clarity to the bass within the overall mix.

800Hz-1KHz
Boost: To thicken vocal tracks. At 1 KHz apply boost to add a knock to a bass drum.

1-3KHz
Boost: To make a piano more aggressive. Applying boost between 1KHz and 5KHz will also make guitars and basslines more cutting.
Cut: Apply cut between 2 KHz and 3KHz to smooth a harsh sounding vocal part.
General: This frequency range is often used to make instruments stand out in a mix.

3-6KHz
Boost: For a more 'plucked' sounding bass part. Apply boost at around 6KHz to add some definition to vocal parts and distorted guitars.
Cut: Apply cut at about 3KHz to remove the hard edge of piercing vocals. Apply cut between 5KHZ and 6KHz to dull down some parts in a mix.

6-10KHz
Boost: To sweeten vocals. The higher the frequency you boost the more 'airy/breathy' the result will be. Also boost to add definition to the sound of acoustic guitars or to add edge to synth sounds or strings or to enhance the sound of a variety of percussion sounds. For example boost this range to:

Bring out cymbals.
Add ring to a snare.
Add edge to a bass drum.

10-16KHz
Boost: To make vocals more 'airy' or for crisp cymbals and percussion. Also boost this frequency to add sparkle to pads, but only if the frequency is present in the original sound, otherwise you will just be adding hiss to the recording.

*Specific Instruments*


Vocals

General:
Roll off below 60Hz using a High Pass Filter. This range is unlikely to contain anything useful, so you may as well reduce the noise the track contributes to the mix.

Treat Harsh Vocals:
To soften vocals apply cut in a narrow bandwidth somewhere in the 2.5KHz to 4KHz range.

Get An Open Sound:
Apply a gentle boost above 6KHz using a shelving filter.

Get Brightness, Not Harshness:
Apply a gentle boost using a wide-band Bandpass Filter above 6KHz. Use the Sweep control to sweep the frequencies to get it right.

Get Smoothness:
Apply some cut in a narrow band in the 1KHz to 2KHz range.

Bring Out The Bass:
Apply some boost in a reasonably narrow band somewhere in the 200Hz to 600Hz range.

Radio Vocal Effect:
Apply some cut at the High Frequencies, lots of boost about 1.5KHz and lots of cut below 700Hz.

Telephone Effect:
Apply lots of compression pre EQ, and a little analogue distortion by turning up the input gain. Apply some cut at the High Frequencies, lots of boost about 1.5KHz and lots of cut below 700Hz.

Hi-Hats

Get Definition:
Roll off everything below 600Hz using a High Pass Filter.

Get Sizzle:
Apply boost at 10KHz using a Band Pass Filter. Adjust the bandwidth to get the sound right.

Treat Clangy Hats:
Apply some cut between 1KHz and 4KHz.


Bass Drum

General:
Apply a little cut at 300Hz and some boost between 40Hz and 80Hz.

Control The Attack:
Apply boost or cut around 4KHz to 6KHz.

Treat Muddiness:
Apply cut somewhere in the 100Hz to 500Hz range.


Guitar

Treat Unclear Vocals:
Apply some cut to the guitar between 1KHz and 5KHz to bring the vocals to the front of the mix.

General:
Apply a little boost between 100Hz and 250Hz and again between 10KHz and 12KHz.


Acoustic Guitar

Add Sparkle:
Try some gentle boost at 10KHz using a Band Pass Filter with a medium bandwidth.

General:
Try applying some mid-range cut to the rhythm section to make vocals and other instruments more clearly heard.

kick>> bottom depth at 60 - 80 Hz, slap attack at 2.5Hz

snare>> fatness at 240HZ, crispness at 5 KHz

hi hats/cymbals>> clank or gong sound at 200 Hz, shimmer at 7.5 kHz - 12 kHz

rack toms>> fullness at 240 Hz, attack at 5 kHz

floor toms>> fullness at 80 - 120 Hz, attack at 5 kHz

horns>> fullness at 120 - 240 Hz, shrill at 5 - 7.5 kHz

strings>> fullness at 240 Hz, scratchiness at 7.5 - 10 kHz

conga/bongo>> resonance at 200 - 240 Hz, slap at 5 kHz

vocals>> fullness at 120 Hz, boominess at 200 - 240 Hz, presence at 5 kHz, sibilance at 7.5 - 10 kHz

When mixing bassline and kick drum, give the kick some extra dBs at 90-something Hz (listen to the sound and find where it has it's punch) and remove a few dB from the bassline sound at this same frequency. Then go to around 400 Hz on the kick drum (where it's boxiness resides) and remove a few dB, this will make it feel more punchy and thumpy, in a nice way (at least it has worked well for me in the sound I am trying to achieve). Finally add a few dB to the bassline at this same 400-something frequency, this will increase the presence and audibility of the bassline when played at the same time as the kick.

Good point - those frequency tips are taken from many different sources and I think I've learned more over the time now so I wouldn't say that particular tip is really something to rely on. I more often cut at around 400 Hz, add at around 100 Hz, notch at 250 Hz and also I always cut my kicks at 70-80 Hz. Though sometimes I also layer sub hits underneath

just to add to the bass-kick debate, for those using fm kicks ala; teebee, dom n roland. I found that cutting 16-30hz and boost at 250hz worked a treat. But I'm increasingly coming to the conclusion that there really is no one size fits all rule when it comes to kicks, apart from getting rid of the lower end of the bass spectrum to make way for any basslines in your tunes.


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## marco_ktl

This should be put as a sticky!


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## Kirill

marco_ktl said:


> This should be put as a sticky!


Indeed! :T


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## PepAX7

Sounds like this guy has been doing FOH for a while!!! This could go over to the Sound reinforcement area or live sound. I agree with a lot of this. Good technique!

Pep


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## Kirill

PepAX7 said:


> Sounds like this guy has been doing FOH for a while!!! This could go over to the Sound reinforcement area or live sound. I agree with a lot of this. Good technique!


Well you don't really have to be a FOH engineer to know this things, just need to be a sound engineer with an experience really. :whistling: But definitely great material. And most definitely it deserves to be pinched to the wall. Hehehe. Good stuff. :T


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## trifidmaster

Yep, make it sticky.

Now, I can imagine a soft/plug what will do all of this for you for "free" and have a good mix.

Of course mixing is an art, but still...


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## immortalgropher

I want to add to this, rather than using a high shelf, use a baxandall curve. Sounds muuuch better
and more natural.


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## blessedfingas

Here' s a interactive frequency chart


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## mbeckler

Dude, this is awesome. :T


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## mrinc

:T:T AWESOME man. 

I am using this now with my music.
Sounding so much better.

Thanks


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## oyo

Thanks. Will print this out for the sound crew at my church. Some of 'em are scared to touch the EQ. Probably a good thing in some cases...


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## soundman85

Now I don't have to transcribe all my notes from class. These are pretty good starting points. It would be helpful to know what mics the author uses and the usual placement. The right mic and placement should do most of these EQ moves for you, but that is much trial and error. I agree, STICKY!


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## ruffneck_12

suh-weeeeeet


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## SongJohn

Thanks dragon music! I was thinking about finding a sheet like this just this morning!!!! Awesome


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## madmadmusic

trifidmaster said:


> Yep, make it sticky.
> 
> Now, I can imagine a soft/plug what will do all of this for you for "free" and have a good mix.
> 
> Of course mixing is an art, but still...


I once researched the possibility for a software that could read the frequency signature of a track and then look at other tracks and see if they were significantly stepping on each other. The Software could then suggest or make gentle cuts to clear out the mix. However, every mixer/engineer I spoke to about developing it was deeply offended by the idea that a plugin or piece of software could even begin to make the choices that the human ear needs to make.

That's probably a good thing in the end. 

Jon


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## audiofreq

Thank you so much!! I will memorize this by heart as it will help me from "fumbling" about in the dark!:clap::bigsmile:


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## fyos

Only just joined this forum and this is the very first post i look at - really useful material this. Thanks


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## rpw

Thank you for taking the time to put all the hints together! I'm going to copy them all, put them in a word doc and print them out. So cool, dude!:clap::clap::clap:


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## jlird808

madmadmusic said:


> I once researched the possibility for a software that could read the frequency signature of a track and then look at other tracks and see if they were significantly stepping on each other. The Software could then suggest or make gentle cuts to clear out the mix....


While no software plugin does this completely...there is ONE EQ (I believe its a Voxengo, going to look into it later) that Ive read about that does this on an elementary level.

Basically u put EQ "X" on multiple/all tracks. With any one instance of the plugin open, u turn on its spectrum analyzer. With just a few more clicks, u can also view the other spectrum analyses from the other tracks!! So basically, it would layer (and color code I assume) the live spectrums of all of the tracks u have the plugin on. Whether or not u can edit ALL of the EQ filters from all tracks in one plugin instance, I doubt, but still....it has its potential.

Great post btw....love stuff like this!!! Ive been in the REW forums for over a year now and never came over here lol...THANKS!!!


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## phazewolf

You can't hear below 20hz but you can still surely feel it quite a bit. Why cut it when there are people with systems that can reproduce it? Does it hurt things too leave it in?


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## boavida

Nice topic, it sure helps a lot as a good starting point for those who want to start mixing and don't have a clue about equalization. Thank you.:T


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## rocksure

phazewolf said:


> You can't hear below 20hz but you can still surely feel it quite a bit. Why cut it when there are people with systems that can reproduce it? Does it hurt things too leave it in?


Having frequencies down that low can eat into your available headroom unnecessarily. Even though you can't hear them down that low, as you say you can feel them. But you can feel enough thump from bass frequencies higher than that without needing those below 20 Hz.
Generally I have a roll-off that starts at about 45 and cuts progressively harder the lower the frequencies are below that.


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## phazewolf

Thanks that makes sense.


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## Syd26147

Here is some additional related material:
http://prosoundweb.com/studyhall/lastudyhall/murray_eq_paper.pdf
http://www.prosonicsolutions.com/articles/Equalization Revisited.pdf
http://www.prosonicsolutions.com/articles/Sound System Gain Structure.pdf
http://www.prosonicsolutions.com/articles/Sound System Equalization.pdf
http://onefryshort.org/images/frequency_chart_lg.gif
http://www.podcomplex.com/images/podcomplex-frequency-overview-chart.gif


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## MultiCore

Nice to see my thread is still posted as a sticky.
Posted this with another user name btw, was a mod back then when the pro audio had his own forum.

Cheers.


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## Dub King

I always thought 20-20,000 Hz was a bit too round a number to accurately describe human hearing. I think many _more_ people can hear 16-16,000 Hz than can hear 20-20,000. For centuries before the invention of loudspeakers the lowest musical note was considered subcontra C (C0) which is 16.352 Hz - This is the 'bottom' of the musical scale because it was/is considered the lowest note that could be recognized/differentiated for the adjacent notes. subcontra D is 18.354 Hz and subcontra E is 20.6 Hz.

From a practical perspective, when dealing with a P.A. it may be more efficient to ignore those two notes since compositions that use them are rare and the cost in watts and excursion capability may be too high to accommodate... but 20Hz should not be a 'hard line' because they are legitimate musical notes. _Sometimes_ 16Hz could be a better cutoff. A Church or concert hall that wishes to replace a pipe organ with a P.A. and subwoofers should at least consider this and see if there is a way to make it work.


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## audio-e

will definitely try this out in my next gig!


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## jef252

This is great material that I will use in class!


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## planetnine

There isn't really a "hard edge" in audio frequency range, if you look at the curves on a Fletcher-Munson graph, you'll see that we just get less and less sensitive to frequencies at the extremes. 

Ok the drop-off may end up exponential, but at least that's a slope 

On the subject of "cheat-sheets" for EQ-ing, you could try using a spectrum analyser or even a spectrogram on a laptop to help you see where the dominant frequencies are.

I used this little plug-in yesterday to tame the sound and harmonics of a bell as unobtrusively as I could...















>


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## oyo

planetnine said:


> I used this little plug-in yesterday to tame the sound and harmonics of a bell as unobtrusively as I could...
> 
> >


Going for the "no bell" prize? :whistling:


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## planetnine

Oh dear...



>


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## ArnoldNL

Like to point out that it's more common practice to roll off vocal frequencies at 125Hz, not 50Hz. Nobody is gonna complain about having 'not enough sub' on vocals, and it clears the way for a good drum and bass low-end that you actually can define by just listening, instead of feeling.


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## planetnine

ArnoldNL said:


> Like to point out that it's more common practice to roll off vocal frequencies at 125Hz, not 50Hz. Nobody is gonna complain about having 'not enough sub' on vocals, and it clears the way for a good drum and bass low-end that you actually can define by just listening, instead of feeling.


"-ish" -you should use your ears 

+1 about not needing sub on vocals, but don't cut without listening also.

I start at "about" 100 Hz, but it's very dependent on the vocal itself, and often what accompanies it. Naked vocal might need some of that bottom end (or at least have it controlled rather than removed), but some mixes might allow 125Hz or even higher to be rolled off. As is the same with all EQ "cheats", use your ears, and check it in the context of the mix, not just on it's own...


>


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## AudiocRaver

planetnine said:


> On the subject of "cheat-sheets" for EQ-ing, you could try using a spectrum analyser or even a spectrogram on a laptop to help you see where the dominant frequencies are.


Well spoken, planetnine.

Cheat sheets can be helpful. Direct knowledge can be, too. Voxengo's SPAN plug-in is free, an excellent real-time spectrum analyzer plug-in that helps you see the frequencies involved with a sound, helps you figure out what to boost and cut. It is the one plug-in I have running ALL THE TIME while recording and mixing.

Don't forget to use your ears. I enjoy going to local clubs to hear local and traveling bands, it is sad how many sound-reinforcement-type-people take the approach of "make everything as loud as possible," usually with abysmal results.


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## SmithAudio

What about the "smiley curve"??
Doesn't that work for anything EVERYWHERE ??
Seriously though: ...have to agree with the OP. 
Very nice cheat sheet indeed. :clap:


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## xtralarge

Useful info, I'll pass on to my son who's getting into recording, Thanks. :T


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## Greenster

Ok this has to be one of my new favorite threads on here. Thanks for the info guys.


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## stuartconcept

it's really cool. 

thanks for the hard work with this cheatsheet


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## dangerbeard

love this thread!


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## stiffandcold

Well done guide, I think this is the most complete one i have seen so far. Bookmarked


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## Phoenix 441

Man just adjusted my eq on my Yamaha RX-V677 with 2 KLH AV5001AB and **** like night and day??? Thank to the OP!


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## pmo1

60Hz with a Q of 1.4 -- Add fullness to kicks.
100Hz with a Q of 1.0 -- Add fullness to snare
200Hz - 250Hz with a Q of 1.4 -- Adds wood to snares
3Khz with a Q of 1.4 -- Adds attack to snare.
5Khz with a Q of 2.8 -- Adds attack to Kicks
7Khz with a Q of 2.8 -- Adds Sharpness to snares and percussion
10Khz with a Q of 1.0 -- Adds brightness to hats and cymbals


Is the above applies to the subwoofer too?


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