Hardware Equalizer For Mixes

Kavie

a.k.a. Bishop Jackson
Didn't really know what to title this, I hope someone who can help actually takes the time to check it out.

I've just noticed recently that my setup, not sure if it's my monitors or my interface, is lacking in the mid and high end frequency range when playing back audio. After playing around with Winamp's equalizer, playing a mix that I did a while back, I noticed this. I have a pair of M-Audio Studiophile AV40s; I know they're not the best reference monitors for mixing, but they've lasted me six years and I have no real need to purchase a new set if I don't have to. My interface is an M-Audio Fast Track Ultra 8R. My question is, would inserting a hardware equalizer (I was looking at either the Behringer Ultragraph Pro FBQ1502 or the dbx 215s; I know that the dbx is going to be the better piece) between my interface and monitors and setting it to where I happy with the sound give me a more accurate reference of my mixes or make them worse?

I have an old Mackie mixer that I could try this out on before going out to buy anything, but I'd rather get some feedback on the actual process before I go behind this desk and start unplugging cables. It's a ***** moving this desk on this carpet.
 
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You'd be much better off getting a good pair of monitors and using software EQ's.... either plugin's you buy, or the ones you use stock in your D.A.W
 
My issue isn't the actual mixes, well to an extent. It's either the converters in the interface or the monitor just not being up to par. Spending $400+ on a pair of monitors would be a little hurting financially on me if I don't necessarily need them. I'm thinking that an EQ between the interface and monitors would be close to buying a good set of monitors. I'm asking if this would be a realistic idea and/or if it would work.
 
It's definitely not your converters... I actually have the FTU8R and don't have a problem getting good mixes out of it.

And no, it's not even close at all... because if you don't have a good set of speakers, the EQ decisions you're going to make are going to be wrong.... you'd actually be throwing money away on an outboard EQ in this situation.

I feel you on it being tough financially on you though... if it wasn't for my school refund I wouldn't have gotten the ones I got, and I wish I had a little more.. I spent 800 on mine, and really wanted a pair of Genelec's.... oh well.

Anyways, like I said.... it's best to just save money until you can afford a better pair of monitors.. other wise you're just throwing money away, and when you get your EQ you'll realize your mixes still sound bad to you because you didn't really do anything to improve them, know what I mean? It'd be like if your car needed new shocks but instead you just got new tires.....

And there's nothing a hardware EQ can do than a software EQ can't do, other than introduce some analog taste into your signal path, but there a lot of great plugin's that do that too.
 
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Though you're aware that you may not be in possession of the best monitors, what you need to understand is that what you hear out of them is pretty much what you put into them. This is why it's important to use various sound sources to reference your mixes.

Even on the low end, monitors are designed (ideally, anyway) to represent sound the way the engineer wants it to sound.

Ask yourself this: When you listen to purchased CDs or MP3s through those monitors, do you like the way the music sounds? If you do like the way the music you listen to sounds, then you can be pretty sure that it's your mixes that require some work on the freq spectrum you're concerned with. If you listen to high-quality product through them, but you find that THOSE mixes are lacking in the same freq range, then it is the monitors that are the major issue.

Peace.
 
Though you're aware that you may not be in possession of the best monitors, what you need to understand is that what you hear out of them is pretty much what you put into them. This is why it's important to use various sound sources to reference your mixes.

Even on the low end, monitors are designed (ideally, anyway) to represent sound the way the engineer wants it to sound.

Ask yourself this: When you listen to purchased CDs or MP3s through those monitors, do you like the way the music sounds? If you do like the way the music you listen to sounds, then you can be pretty sure that it's your mixes that require some work on the freq spectrum you're concerned with. If you listen to high-quality product through them, but you find that THOSE mixes are lacking in the same freq range, then it is the monitors that are the major issue.

Peace.

This is exactly the issue that I'm having. Playing music from CDs or music I've bought online has a lack in highs and high-mids. And when doing my mixes I tend to over compensate for them, not knowing it until I play the mixes on another source. This is why I had the idea to throw an equalizer between the interface and the monitors to (temporarily, until I can get some new monitors) add what the monitors are missing. I'm just curious is this would help the problem or make it worse.
 
You could strap an EQ across your main outputs. But if you already know that when you EQ, the monitors are capable of reproducing those frequencies, that's an indication that something else is wrong. As the fellas pointed out above, you probably need to reference more outside material (pro-mixed/mastered CD's).
Is your room treated? You will definitely be over-compensating on various frequencies if your room is not set-up for monitoring. It's also important to listen on a number of systems (as you've already discovered).

GJ
 
You could strap an EQ across your main outputs. But if you already know that when you EQ, the monitors are capable of reproducing those frequencies, that's an indication that something else is wrong. As the fellas pointed out above, you probably need to reference more outside material (pro-mixed/mastered CD's).
Is your room treated? You will definitely be over-compensating on various frequencies if your room is not set-up for monitoring. It's also important to listen on a number of systems (as you've already discovered).

GJ

No, my space isn't treated. And I'm aware that this could be an issue. I'll try the old Mackie mixer that I have first and see if the EQing on that gives me any acceptable results. I appreciate all the feedback.
 
Throwing an interface between your interface and monitors isn't going to reference your mix, it's going to alter it. It won't fix the mix at all, just the way you hear it.

How old are your interface and monitors? Did you buy them second-hand?

Peace.
 
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