Empirical Labs EL-Q - Manual (Page 12)

Example Settings
The Lil FrEQ provides a new level of Equalization power in a single device. However, using little or
no EQ and getting great sounds is usually preferable than using lots of EQ to get the same results.
If you are tracking (recording the source for the first time), there are many ways to alter the tone
other than with EQ, especially if microphones are used. Remember that the closer a source gets to
a microphone, the more bottom you will have, and the farther you move the microphone, the thinner
and less body it will have. Moving a singer slightly off axis, tilting a mic on a guitar amp speaker, re-
aiming a mic at the body of a trumpet only takes a few seconds and simple adjustments like these
can make EQing simpler or unnecessary. Especially when tracking, where it is possible to "overdo"
EQ’ing things. However, EQ is one of the major tools for an engineer. Bring professional
“reference” recordings to your sessions to clear your head and ears… and to sometimes even copy a
bit. There is also nothing better than to work alongside (or assist) major engineers that you respect
and watch all their tricks. Most major engineers started out assisting older major engineers.
Trying to generalize what EQ will add magic to your mixes… is ridiculous. That being said, here are
some sample settings that may provide a starting point… and maybe occasionally, actually improve
a sound, or a mix.
Mixes & Buss EQing - During tracking, mixdowns, and mastering, EQ is an indispensable tool. For
those who aren't used to the jargon... A “BUSS” is usually a pair of channels that have pre mixed
instruments or stereo music on them. The Left & Right outputs of your CD player could be
considered a 2 channel buss. In the recording studio, it is more often applied to the final left and
right channel mix, or to something such as all the drums mixed down to 2 tracks (a "submix") Instead
of moving 12 faders at once to move the drums up and down, you only have to grab two.
‰ EQing Whole Mixes – The most common problem with mixes is overall “dullness” or lack of
high end clarity. Try boosting the high frequency shelf first. Since this is smooth it may be just the
thing, or… it may make some pointy frequency ranges pop out, making them more obvious to the
engineer so he can focus on them. Often mid frequencies will pile up between 1 – 5Khz. Our ears
are most sensitive to this range and one can often pull 1 – 3 dB with a parametric band (-1.5@4K
.7oct) after high shelving has been applied, and make your mixes a little sweeter.
‰ Another way to do overall brightening is to use the Hi Frequency parametric sections as
High shelf EQ’s. If the HF shelf boosts too many upper mids, a wonderful shelf can be made by
setting the HF PEQ section to the highest frequency (20.5KHz), BW on .5 – 1.5, and set the boost to
desired amount. Cut 1.5dB @3K – 5K, .5oct if it pops out.
‰ Working the Low End - Sometimes you can do the opposite to brighten a mix by cutting the
low end. But, if the mix needs more bottom (low frequencies and bass), try boosting the low shelf
first, being ready to cut some subs or woofy mids with the parametric (-2@250Hz .7Oct?).
‰ Dealing with “Subs”. With digital recording, frequencies in the 10 – 60Hz range get passed
without any loss. This wasn’t the case with analog tape recorders. Many an engineer has let these
muddy frequencies get down on tracks such as vocals, acoustic instruments, and not even heard
them till much later… and possibly too late! Headphones such as the SONY MDR7506 are really
indispensable here. You will hear these sub frequencies in these and can prevent problems as early
as the tracking stage. Most speakers don’t go down below 60 or 70 Hz accurately, so a $100 set of
headphones is a good investment. The Lil FrEQ has some excellent high pass filters built in to rip
these subs out. These are steep and must be used wisely. However, cutting below 40Hz will not
affect most mixes at all, except it may keep the speakers from moving quite as much. I’ve
encountered some mixes that would be better if 50Hz on down was cut…but be careful! You may
lose the kick drum thump, or the body of a bass and not ever get it back.
‰ Use the Parametric section as a low frequency shelving equalizer Using the low frequency
band is more controllable here than the “Lo Shelf” on the Lil FrEQ. One can get a great bass boost
or cut by putting the LF Parametric on 40Hz and the Bandwidth to .7 to 1.5 oct. This will basically be
a Low Frequency shelf since it is wide and starts below most of the mid frequencies. If you are
boosting you may find putting on the 30 or 60Hz HP filter to shelve off the subs works great.
Sometimes pulling a dB or two at 200 – 400Hz might be necessary after a LF boost.
‰ Another common problem is mud or woofyness in the lower mids. Pulling out frequencies
between 200 – 600 can often clear up a whole mix, making the low end and high end come out in a
pleasing way. If there are vocals present, watch out for losing their pleasant warmth and body.
Mastering mixes is almost always an art of compromise.
‰ Smooth the top end with the DS Section. Applying the DS to smooth and integrate high
frequencies is extremely useful. The HF Limit will do the smoothest general softening, where as the
De-ess mode will pinpoint overwhelming sibilance. Start by setting the frequency to 6KHz.
3
DS Section
(Section Details cont’d)
This Dynamic Section is another unique feature of the Lil FrEQ. It has two modes of operation:
1) As a standard De-Esser Start by setting the frequency to 6KHz.
2) As an unusual high frequency limiter/compressor with a soft knee.
The high frequency limiter can be used to smooth and integrate the high frequencies when they
pile up, giving an analog tape like high end to sources.
Again, great care was taken to ensure this DS section meets the Empirical Labs reputation for
originality and ease of use. For instance, the De-Ess mode is level insensitive, responding only to
the difference in the amount of high frequency content vs. low frequency content. If the input
changes from level trims, or compressors inserted or adjusted etc., the De-ess doesn’t need re-
adjusting!
The HF limiter on the other hand, is level sensitive and is probably the first carefully tailored soft
knee HF limiter in existence. We believe both modes offer the highest performance of any similar
device. We use the latest technology VCA, specially selected for glitch free, distortion free, and
noise free performance. The time constants were carefully selected and the corner frequency is
user adjustable with a high performance active crossover. The DS section can be moved before
or after the EQ, which allows the EQ to be affected by the DS, or unaffected.
The DS Bargraph - Since it isn’t marked on the front panel, the 4 LED bargraph indicates the
following Gain Reduction: Green LED = -1.5dB, Yellow LED = 7dB, Orange = 14 dB, Red = 24dB.
Remember, a BLUE LED must be lit for either the De-Ess or HF LIM mode to be on.
Wiring the Lil FrEQ
Connect AC line cord to 3 prong IEC jack, plug in XLR or phone plug ins and outs, and you're
wired. The rear panel phone and XLR input jacks are both differential. At the output, only the XLRs
are differential (balanced). The output phone jack tip is wired to pin 2 of the XLR out, and therefore is
in phase with that pin. The Instrument Input on the front has gain and is single ended. If you have
an instrument like a bass, guitar, or synth that needs pre-amping, use this input.
The only real problems you may have are at the outputs. Don’t short any of the Active XLR
output pins 2 or 3 to ground. Let the unused pin “float” (stay unconnected). Separate
amplifier drives each of these pins, so grounding one of them will short the associated amplifier out.
Therefore, if you only use pin 2 on your output cable, leave pin 3 unconnected and vice-versa.
The reverse is true with the Class A Transformer Output. Always connect pins 2 and 3 to
something, either an input or to ground. Pin 1 is shipped un-grounded on the Transformer Output
XLR, but a jumper inside on the rear of the “Power Supply” board can connect this pin to ground.
When going to a single ended patch bay or other device, using quarter inch phone plugs
(guitar cables) will work just fine, and take some guesswork out of wiring. To use the
Transformer Output single ended, short pin 3 to ground on the XLR at the patch bay, or other
device. Patch bays seem to be the cause of many phase, buzz, or fidelity-loss problems.
Cable Facts… and Fiction
CABLES GENERALLY DO NOT MAKE A BIG DIFFERENCE IN SOUND. As long as a cable is
wired properly, shielded properly, and not damaged, no one will be able to hear the difference in a
length of decent cable 40 feet or shorter... regardless of what Munster Cable or anyone tells you!
To our knowledge, no AB/X listening tests have ever found any difference between a short, properly
wired low cost cable, and a premium “audiophile” cable in low impedance situations. But even
though there are cable companies who have made millions propagating misconceptions, some
cables are indeed lower impedance, better shielded, and break-free than others. Mogami is a great
price/value in our opinion. The big “gotcha” is that between patch bays and remote wiring, the
accumulative lengths can exceed 60 ft or more for a professional studio “patch”. These longer
lengths can start to show shortcomings of cables, since the capacitance vs. inductance begins to
mount and causes slight phase shift and high frequency loss, especially in high impedance sources
such as “passive” guitars, basses, and certain microphones.
Speaker cables are generally not as sensitive as long as they are heavy gauge. For monitors,
10 – 14 guage zip cord should handle most anything (for some reason the lower the guage, the
thicker the wire). Huge PA systems with long runs to amplifiers require a little more care. The same
applies to the AC power cables. We have seen $150 power cables, claiming added definition,
musicality, and even “sincerity”! As long as a $1 six foot AC cable isn’t worn, and is less than 16
guage, signal processors such as the Lil FrEQ will perform just as superbly as with any $150 cable.
Almost all musical gear has a regulated DC power supply that does an incredible job at completely
isolating whatever flaky AC comes in. 12
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