EQ before compression, or vice versa ?

[Paulie]

I remember seeing in a macprovideo tutorail an instructor saying that he likes to EQ his tracks before adding compression. A book I'm reading suggests the opposite. What are you doing?

[Cruciform]

Whichever gives you the better fitting sound for the track. There are no rules, only results.

[andygabrys]

both.

If you have a sound (IDK acoustic guitar, vocal, or whatever) its usually got some resonances in it, its also got a built in eq curve.

If you compress that, you sometimes make those resonances more noticeable. And its also hard to add a bunch of bottom to kick or bass and then compress it, because once you compress the sound, you tend to get more of whatever was the most prevalent part - and if that wasn't the bass freq, then it comes out nasally as midrange.

With some comrpessors, you can key the side chain to listen to certain frequencies. Like the "Glue" is a model of an SSL compressor. You can tune the side chain to listen to say 500 hz and above, and on a mix that will mean it won't clamp down every time the kick drum or bass play, which can be handy.

so, you can do whatever you want that makes sense and works. On a console like an SSL, typically the signal flow would be high / low pass filters > Compressor > EQ but you could also flip the eq to be before the compressor. Then if you did that, you had no eq left to sweeten after compression. So it was an amazing system, but a little limited compared to a DAW with unlimited plugins.

So what I do, and what a lot of people seem to do:

1) clean up the sound using subtractive eq. Take off excessive rumble, bottom, mid range resonances, excessive harsh high end (like above 8 kHz on guitar amp sim tracks)
2) compress as needed
3) eq to sweeten

As Rob O just said - there isn't a rule as long as you get the right sound in the end. Bruce Swedien was quoted as saying something like "I don't care if you have to turn the eq knob around backwards as long as it sounds right"

[Len911]

I'd probably say it depends on what you are doing, and the circumstance.

If you are recording a vocal you might say compression, however, if the mic you are using has a hi-pass switch like some do, and you use it, you are eq'ing first. It also depends on the headroom and whether you are cutting or boosting.

The elysia alpha compressor plugin contains a filter or eq, in the signal chain after the compression.

Then you also have plugins like dynamic eq, doing both at the same time.

Also a de-esser might compress certain frequencies, like the Sonnox Supresser, which is a linear phase dynamic eq that you can use full scale 20-20k and increase or decrease Q.

[dougstronach]

I EQ before compression in order to have the compressor only react to the portions of the signal I want it to react to....too much low end is typically what I'm taking out if eq'ing before compression. If doing parallel compression, you can EQ on the way in or out depending on the sound you want to have mixed back in with the original. It really depends on what you want the specific outcome to be.

Eq'ing after compression is just tone shaping...it's obviously not doing anything to make the compressor work differently which is the main reason you'd insert an EQ before the compressor. Side chaining is another way to accomplish the same thing while still keeping the full signal unaltered. Many compressors have SC and hi pass filters to help with these tasks.

Doug s.

[TheElement]

not sure how the stock Cubase EQ is setup. It looks like its after all the inserts. I like the stock EQ that comes on each track. for the master I have a digital adaptation of an analog EQ as first insert.

For filter sweeps etc I have Fabfilter Simplon as first insert. I use Fabfilter Simplon for fx...sweeps etc. sometimes I will also use it to cut the low end while I'm at it.

[andygabrys]

not sure how the stock Cubase EQ is setup. It looks like its after all the inserts. I like the stock EQ that comes on each track. for the master I have a digital adaptation of an analog EQ as first insert.

For filter sweeps etc I have Fabfilter Simplon as first insert. I use Fabfilter Simplon for fx...sweeps etc. sometimes I will also use it to cut the low end while I'm at it.

its more complicated than that if you are Cubase 8

https://ask.audio/articles/understandin ... n-cubase-8

Looks like you can use the EQ part of the "strip" to be pre-inserts, then either use the compressor in the strip or another inserted after that, and then the EQ comes after the inserts but before inserts 7-8 which are post fader. Complicated. I am sure its got some good things about it once you learn it.

[mojobone]

both.


1) clean up the sound using subtractive eq. Take off excessive rumble, bottom, mid range resonances, excessive harsh high end (like above 8 kHz on guitar amp sim tracks)
2) compress as needed
3) eq to sweeten

Ah, the eternal question! I do what Andy does, except my first step is to try to use mic choice and positioning to get the sound I want at the source. Most of the battle is in knowing what you can get from the room, the mics and the source and how it's all gonna behave at mixdown. You know how they say in sales, "Always Be Closing"? The mix starts while you're talking to the client about their goals for the project.

[Telefunkin]

I'm not qualified to even offer my opinion, but I came across this from someone who is...
https://www.producelikeapro.com/top-5-mixing-secrets/
There's a few nice tips in this video, so its worth a few minutes of viewing.

Cheers,
Graham.
P.S. You might have to subscribe to watch it, but that's as painless as it gets.

[mojobone]

It's pretty much the same approach, known as pre-emphasis/de-emphasis; I do the same except in nearly all instances, I'll cut low mids ahead of the master multiband compressor with a linear phase EQ and make it up on the other side, in the same fashion, and neat trick? flip through some mastering presets to get close to what I want/need, then finesse the multiband's crossover points and, if necessary, output levels to completely re-shape the lows, mids and highs.