23/09/2023 01:51 Ultimate Guide: How to EQ Vocals for Beginners

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December 20, 2022 by Chris Wainwright

Ultimate Guide: How to EQ

Vocals for Beginners
Learn how to EQ vocals by gaining a better understanding of vocal
frequencies, analyzing vocal recordings, and discovering the best
EQ settings for vocals.

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Learn how to EQ vocals:

How to EQ vocals
1. Remove unwanted low end
2. Balance body and warmth
3. Remove hollow or boxy frequencies

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4. Remove unwanted resonances in the nasal cavity

5. Improve presence and intelligibility
6. Address sibilance
7. Add sparkle
8. Pay attention to airiness
9. De-ess the vocal
Final results of vocal EQ

Learn more about How to EQ Vocals in part 1 of this article.

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Learn more about How to EQ Vocals in part 1 of this article.

How to EQ vocals

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Apart from creating an impactful musical mix by way of level balancing and
panning, EQ is our next most powerful tool. Unlike level which allows us to
increase or decrease the volume of an entire signal, EQ settings for vocals
allow us to increase or decrease the volume of specific frequency ranges
within a signal, allowing us to change its overall tonal character.

With EQ we can make a vocal darker or brighter, smoother or more crisp, dull
or sparkly, light and airy, or any other creative characteristic you can think of.

In the following steps we will process the verse of our original audio
example, which consists of a male vocal in the key of D maj.

1. Remove unwanted low end (1 Hz–100

Hz)
What lives below 80 Hz in a vocal recording is most often low frequency
room rumble, microphone handling noise, microphone bleed from
unintended sources, or inherent equipment noise.

It may not always be audible, but if left unchecked, any audio information
within this frequency range can build up when combined with other signals,
potentially muddying up the low end of your entire mix or even diminishing
the overall headroom of your master bus.

For this reason, when working with a vocal, the very first thing I do is engage
a HPF (High pass filter) with a steep slope (Q) and remove everything from
anywhere between 50–100 Hz and below.

To find the correct frequency, a good rule of thumb is to engage a HPF

starting at 20 Hz. slowly move it up the frequency spectrum until it begins
affecting the vocal, then back it off just a bit.

For our example recording I have set the HPF to 90Hz with a slope (Q) of 48
dB per octave.

Before and after EQ adjustments, 1 Hz–100 Hz

Removing Unwanted Low End

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Before After

Vocal EQ settings for 1 Hz–100 Hz

As very little of the vocal lives below 90 Hz, the difference will be extremely
subtle. It is more likely that you notice the low end of the kick drum is now
ever so slightly more focused without the masking of any low frequency
rumble in the vocal recording that may have been conflicting with it. Again, it
may not sound like much, but when you have multiple layers of vocal
doubles, triples, harmonies, etc. it can add up.

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2. Balance body and warmth (100 Hz–400

Hz)
The fundamental frequencies of a vocal are typically found between 100 and
400 Hz. This is where the main body and warmth of a vocal lives.

Too much of this frequency range and the vocal will sound boomy, lack
clarity and potentially muddy up the low end of your mix. Too little of this
frequency range and the vocal will sound thin and weak.

In our example, the recording is a touch boomy in the 100–400 Hz frequency

range.

Referring to our analysis from earlier, we know that any frequencies, within
this range, that represent the notes, D, F#, or A, are potential frequencies to
boost or cut. However, we must also use our ears.

To find any overly resonant or troublesome frequencies, a common

technique is the “boost and sweep” method. This is done by boosting any
frequency using a “bell filter,” typically with a medium to tight Q, and then
sweeping it across the frequency spectrum until the overly resonant or
troublesome frequency reveals itself.

Once discovered, make an EQ cut at that frequency.

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Boost and sweep in Neutron

With Neutron’s EQ you also have the option to “solo” any frequency.

Neutron EQ solo function

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By using this method, I found the most resonance was centered at 185 Hz
and 370 Hz, so I made my cuts here. I set the Q a bit wide in this instance to
reduce some additional frequencies both above and below 185 Hz.

Before and after EQ adjustments, 100 Hz–400 Hz

Balancing Body and Warmth

Before After

This should be immediately noticeable. The vocal is still warm, not thin, and
overall more clear and less boomy.

3. Remove hollow or boxy frequencies

(400 Hz–800 Hz)
A great deal of vocal character resides in the frequency range of 400 Hz–800
Hz.

Too much of this frequency range will accentuate the throatiness of a vocal
causing it to sound papery or boxy. Too little of this frequency range and the
vocal can sound hollow and unnatural.

Again, using the “boost and sweep” method I found a bit of an unwanted
“papery" resonance at 657 Hz and made a very small cut.

Before and after EQ adjustments, 400 Hz–800 Hz

Removing Papery Resonances

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Before After

Neutron vocal EQ settings, 400 Hz–800 Hz

Again, this is a very subtle change, but with this cut, the vocal is a bit less
papery and sounds a touch more natural.

4. Remove unwanted resonances in the

nasal cavity (800 Hz–1.5 kHz)
The mid range of a vocal from 800 Hz–1.5 kHz, (sometimes a bit higher
depending on the singer), is where the human nasal cavity resonates the
most.
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Too much of this frequency range can cause a vocal to sound a bit honky or
nasally.

If there is any unwanted resonance in this area, it often has less to do with
the key or melody of the song. It more often depends on the size and shape
of an individual vocalists' physical nasal cavity. For this reason, the “boost
and sweep” method is very helpful here.

It should also be mentioned that the frequency of the nasal resonance, once
discovered, is fairly constant. Using a tighter Q in order to avoid reducing too
many frequencies above and below the center frequency is common.

In our example I found the majority of the nasal resonance to be at 931 Hz.

Before and after EQ adjustments, 800 Hz–1.5 kHz

Removing Unwanted Nasal Resonance

Before After

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Neutron vocal EQ settings, 800 Hz–1.5 kHz

Again, much like our previous cut at 657 Hz, the difference is subtle, but
offers a similar result. The vocal should now sound a bit less stuffy, less
nasally, and more natural.

5. Improve presence and intelligibility (1.5

kHz–5 kHz)
Although the range of human hearing is from 20 Hz–20 kHz, our ears are
most sensitive to frequencies in the range of 2 kHz–5 kHz. This also
happens to be the frequency range in which human speech is most
intelligible. For this reason, any EQ applied to this area of the frequency
spectrum should be handled carefully. Making small boosts or cuts in this
area, no more than 1 or 2 dB is common.

Too much in this frequency range and the vocal quickly becomes harsh and
aggressive.

Too little in this frequency range and the vocal can sound flat or muffled.

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Before and after EQ adjustments, 1.5 kHz–5 kHz

Improving Presence and Intelligibility

Before After

Neutron vocal EQ settings, 1.5 kHz–5 kHz

After making a small cut at 3,577 Hz, you may notice that the vocal now
sounds slightly more dull. Although this may seem counter intuitive, it is
actually by design. This will allow me to boost and brighten up the vocal
later in the 8 kHz to 12 kHz. I prefer to brighten up a vocal in the 8 kHz to 12
kHz range more so than the 1.5 kHz to 5 kHz range as it leads to a smoother
and less harsh sounding vocal.

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6. Address sibilance (5 kHz–8 kHz)

Be aware that the bright resonance of “S’s” and “T’s” in a vocal performance,
referred to as “sibilance,” is most prominent in the frequency range of 5 kHz
to 8 kHz. By boosting EQ in this area, you will increase this sibilance.
However if you feel the vocal is too dark and can benefit from a boost in this
area, then you should do so. This should not be a deterrent, as sibilance can
be dealt with in other ways.

Although sibilance can be softened by cutting frequencies using EQ, doing

so can leave the rest of the vocal performance sounding dull and lifeless.

For this reason sibilance is better dealt with by manual editing of the
waveform itself, or by using a de-esser. I will demonstrate this in the last
step of this article.

In our example I have decided to leave this frequency range alone. I do not
think anything is needed here.

7. Add sparkle (8 kHz–12 kHz)

As we enter into the frequency range of 8 kHz and above we find a bit more
brilliance and sparkle in a vocal. As I mentioned in a previous step, I find that
by cutting a bit of the harshness between 2 kHz and 5 kHz, and contrasting
that with a small boost somewhere between 8 kHz and 12 kHz, brings back
any of the lost brightness without any of the harshness.

In our example I have boosted 9,357 Hz by about 1.5 dB with a fairly wide Q.

You may notice that by doing so I have also increased some sibilance in the
vocal. Again, this we will deal with later with the use of a de-esser.

Before and after EQ adjustments, 8 kHz–12 kHz

Adding Sparkle

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Before After

Neutron vocal EQ settings, 8 kHz–12 kHz

8. Pay attention to airiness (12 kHz–20

kHz)
The last frequency range I consider when working with a vocal is from 12
kHz and above. Although there is not very much tonal information in this
area, boosting just a bit in this upper frequency range can help a vocal to feel
more open and exciting.

For this purpose I prefer to use a different EQ to add a touch more character.
Ozone Vintage EQ is excellent for this as it is modeled after vintage analog
equipment.

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If the original recording is dark, I typically boost with a “high shelf” from 12
kHz and up. If the original recording is already fairly bright, I typically boost
with a “high shelf” from 16 kHz and up. In the case of our example, which is
quite dark, so I chose to boost by about 3 dB with a “high shelf” starting at
12 kHz.

The difference will be subtle, but you should hear the vocal open up just a bit
and be slightly less muffled.

Much like in the previous step, this extra boost in the high end may induce a
bit more sibilance, but in the final step we will add a de-esser to compensate
for this.

Before and after EQ adjustments, 12 kHz–20 kHz

Adding Character to High Frequencies

Before After

Ozone vocal EQ settings, 12 kHz–20 kHz

9. De-ess the vocal

iZotope Nectar has an excellent De-esser module. I set the frequency range
to start at 4.4 kHz and adjusted the threshold until I heard the S’s and T’s
reduce to a level that I felt sounded most natural.

It is important to not over de-ess. When this happens it creates a lisp

sounding vocal and a lack of intelligibility on certain words.

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De-essing the Vocal

Before After

Nectar De-esser settings

Final results of vocal EQ

Now that we have assessed our recording, completely examined our vocal
across the entire frequency spectrum from 20 HZ to 20 kHz and applied EQ
using iZotope Neutron, let’s take one more listen and compare the original to
our final product.

In these final listening examples I have brought the level of the vocal down a
bit so it sits better within the mix and also added a touch of reverb.

Let’s listen!

Unprocessed vocal vs. vocal with EQ and de-essing

Vocal EQ

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Before After

Start using vocal EQ

We have covered a lot of information in this article, however, it bears
repeating, that when applying EQ to a vocal, or any instrument for that
matter, there is no one size fits all solution.

In this exercise we looked at a male vocal recording of a song in the key of D

maj with an overall melody range of D3 to D4. The song that you work on
may involve a female vocalist performing in a different key with a wider
melodic range. This will certainly change what frequencies you choose to
boost or cut, however, the concepts and the techniques will remain the same,
and with practice and repetition you will quickly train your ears to hear many
of the minute subtleties that at first might escape you.

Finally, always remember, no one mixes in a vacuum. Do not underestimate

the power and importance of a good reference track!

Learn more about How to EQ Vocals in part 1 of this article.

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Learn more about EQ in mixing

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23/09/2023 01:51 Ultimate Guide: How to EQ Vocals for Beginners

How to EQ Drums
This guide will show you the essential steps for how to EQ drums, outlining the key
frequencies for each sound in your drum kit, both electronic drums and acoustic
kits.

December 7, 2022

How to EQ Guitars in Your Mix

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23/09/2023 01:51 Ultimate Guide: How to EQ Vocals for Beginners

In this tutorial, learn how to EQ guitars to reduce unwanted frequencies, bring

fullness and clarity to the guitars, and create space for other instruments in your
mix.

February 2, 2022

Principles of Equalization: How to EQ Your Mix

Learn about what EQ is, how equalization impacts the sound of your tracks, and
discover the different types of EQs used in audio production.

October 25, 2021

iZotope is now part of Native Instruments - Learn more about what that means for you on the
NI blog.

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