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educate me on the magic of mids

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shakinbacon

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Feb 5, 2008
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Could you help me understand the importance of LO and/or HI mids in getting a tone to cut through a mix?

For example, if a bass sounds too muddy with low frequencies, does adding LO mids help or hurt?

If a bass sounds too nasally, does adding HI mids help?


I'm looking for generalizations, I realize it will vary from application to application and that I should trust my ears.

While ultimately I'll use my ears, I want to check with others to see what their experience has been in terms of eq.

Thanks again,
shakinbacon
 
oli@bass

oli@bass

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Most of the time I found the bass to be muddy, cutting lo mids cleared up the sound. However, I don't talk about the Bongo preamp but a general observation.
 
MK Bass Weed

MK Bass Weed

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For me (Bongo HS)...the low Mids are where it's at to get me through the mash of Marshalls, Voxs and all that nasty guitar jangle.

I touch of high mids add clarification to that tone...

Mudd..to me, does NOT come from low mids..but the BASS knob on the amp. The frequency that makes you jeans blow forward, women faint, and beers to fizz in the glass, it's also the Mud.

As much as I love and adore the "Mid Scoop Smiley Eq" sound of the bass, when I'm playing All by Me self, that tone is pretty much unusable on stage, that's for me.

Nasal isn't bad in terms of cutting through, it's just NOT the only thing you need.
 
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Powman

Powman

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This is a good thread...it will help me when I finally get my Bongo. I agree that smiley faced scooped eq sounds great by itself, but gets lost in the mix.

So it looks like high mids are good? Is that what folks are saying here?
 
strummer

strummer

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Powman said:
This is a good thread...it will help me when I finally get my Bongo. I agree that smiley faced scooped eq sounds great by itself, but gets lost in the mix.

So it looks like high mids are good? Is that what folks are saying here?
Click to expand...

Yes, a smiley eq often gets lost in the mix, but the trick isn't to boost the high mids, but rather to start with the bass flat. Then, if you need more cut-throughness you might boost the high mids a little/cut down the lo mids a little, or whatever you need to get heard, but first and foremost lose the smiley eq altogether (unless you're Cliff Williams)
 
cellkirk74

cellkirk74

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In my expierience with very loud bands for many years, mids are most important for a good bass sound. In general I would start with the amp set flat and then boost some mids at 300 Hz and some at about 650-800 Hz. (I can do this with my Peavey Pro 500)

With the Genz Benz shuttle 6.0 or the markbass F1 the Bongo sound really good with all Eqs set flat and a very tiny midboost on the f1 and a tiny highcut on the Genz.

I know the center frequency for the Stingray mids (500 Hz), but not for the Bongo. I thin it will be at about 350 or 400 for the LoMids and about 800 for the highmids.

That said, I would use it with a little boost on the lo mids, a little high cut and and high mids to cut through in the band. Blend a bit towards bridge.

But most important: Talk to the guitar players. They tend to go for a fullrange tone with too much bass and lo mids while they do not belong there. Everything below 500 Hz should clearly be your territory for the bass.
 
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keko

keko

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We can discuss about that until tomorrow, but the point is not to disturb the kick drum settings!

So, everything depends how will your drummer, or sound man setup kick drum!

Sometimes, if playing some hard rock stuff, also could be problem with low mids from guitar player when playing on lower tone strings too!

If you can't influence to this two "noises", you just try by the ear to cut "disturbing" frequencies with bass preamp and your bass tone will cut through the band and PA "noise" (master sound)!

By the way, this so called "muddy" sound looks to me like to much lows, so try to keep bass pot in the center, or even cut some, and add some low mids instead with combination of pickup balance...etc. :rolleyes:

Sorry, that's the best I can do over the internet :D if I were there when You're having a sound check, I could solve all sound problems, but... You know :rolleyes: ...I'm just far, far away! ;)
 
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