You'll often hear people say that you should always cut before you boost when using an EQ.

While I agree somewhat with this concept in the analog world, as boosting really limits the headroom on a channel, there is another reason this theory has made its way into many textbooks and classrooms on EQ.  Since each harmonic has a distinct pitch, not all harmonics are musically related to the fundamental in a way that is pleasing. So decreasing these harmonics can clean up the sound and make the sound much more pleasing to listen to.

Over the years I have become sickened with the number of EQ Tips and Tricks videos I see.  They rarely teach you anything useful, and do nothing but take up your time, money, or even worse, both.  Many tutorials also teach you to trust your ears. This is terrible advice for anyone starting out with EQ.  If I was in need of heart surgery and my friend said he watched how to perform the surgery in a tips and tricks video and the most important thing he learned was to trust his hands you’d better believe I would be going to see a doctor!  You can only trust your ears AFTER you learn to use them. This takes time and dedication to achieve.

In this tutorial series, we will break down EQ in a way that can be applied to any situation you come across by teaching you how to use an EQ based on harmonic content.