MIDS!!! How do YOU treat yours?

[Rip Van Dan]

Mid frequencies, especially low mids, find themselves in any tonal conversation, whether we're talking about live or recording applications. They really are the secret sauce to tone. I've heard so many people say boosting your low mids (anywhere from about 220 to 500) will help you be heard and more present in a mix. I used to be in that camp, with a slight bump in my low mids, and a slight cut in my high mids (with bass and treble flat).

However, in recent years I've reversed my thoughts on that, and favored a slight cut in the low mids, and a slight boost in high mids to give me a little rasp, some airy punch in the articulation, and just a hair of glass on the top end. I'm running a fender jazz (60's voices) through a Markbass lm3 and MB cabs.

Tell me: 1) Where are your mids these days? 2) What bass and amplification are you running it through, and...3) How does that lend to *your* sound?

I run a 1982 Olympic White Jazz bass with white-bound all maple neck and 70's era pickup spacing (4" center to center). I run the controls on the bass dimed. I currently use three different amps: an Eden WT500/800 (400-watts rms per channel into 4Ω or 800-watts bridged into 8Ω), an Eden TN-226 (225-watts rms into 4Ω, and a DNA-800 (400-watts rms into 8Ω, 800-watts into either 4Ω or 2Ω). I also use an Eden WTDI, which is a DI pedal with a built-in Eden WT preamp.

With my Eden amps, I run the Enhance (shape control) all the way off; bypass the auto-compressor; run the bass, high-mids, and treble flat; boost my low mids at 250Hz up to about 1:30. With my WTDI, same basic set up except it has only one mids control that can be toggled between 500Hz and 2KHz. So I run that with 500Hz selected.

On my DNA-800 I bypass the adjustable compressor; turn the shape control off (all the way to the left); boost the Bass EQ to ~1 o'clock, the low-mids (500Hz) to 1:30, and the high mids (2KHz) and treble (everything above 2KHz) flat. I run the Bass EQ up just a bit on the DNA-800 because it is a shelving control set at 35Hz and the Bass EQ on the Eden amps is set at 30Hz. Just giving it that little boost on the DNA Bass EQ gives me the same sound that I get from my Eden amps.

I have run the boost a 2KHz in the high-bids before and find it gives an edgier sound. I don't really care for that though, so I don't use it. It can also get pretty crowded in the high mids with the guitar and keys reaching down in there, which degrades definition of the bass in the mix. I might add that my '82 Jazz is a bit brighter in sound and has a lot more sustain than my 1965 Jazz that I bought in 1966 did. My '65 had a rosewood fretboard on a maple neck and the 60's era (and current era) pickup spacing of 3.6" center to center. So my '82 Jazz is a little brighter on its own than my '65 was. Tragically, my '65 Jazz was stolen in 1976 along with all my touring gear.

By the way the best recorded sound I've gotten from it was on a recording session at a pro studio in Seattle in 2019. I was using my WTDI direct to the board because there was too much bleed over with the drums in the room we shared. Mids were set at 500Hz (low-mids) with everything else set flat. It amazed the sound engineer and the owner of the studio who both came in to get a good look at what I was using. Sound engineer said the only thing he adjusted on the raw takes was the level. He didn't change the EQ or use any compression on it at that point.

 

[makanudo]

200-500 is my yucky zone. I always cut them back at least 3 to 6 db to clear things up. Sometimes even 9 dB. Pretty much all the usual instruments and vocals have some information in that range so dialing it back is a good way of uncluttering things.

 

[Chickenwheels]

Mid frequencies, especially low mids, find themselves in any tonal conversation, whether we're talking about live or recording applications. They really are the secret sauce to tone. I've heard so many people say boosting your low mids (anywhere from about 220 to 500) will help you be heard and more present in a mix. I used to be in that camp, with a slight bump in my low mids, and a slight cut in my high mids (with bass and treble flat).

However, in recent years I've reversed my thoughts on that, and favored a slight cut in the low mids, and a slight boost in high mids to give me a little rasp, some airy punch in the articulation, and just a hair of glass on the top end. I'm running a fender jazz (60's voices) through a Markbass lm3 and MB cabs.

Tell me: 1) Where are your mids these days? 2) What bass and amplification are you running it through, and...3) How does that lend to *your* sound?

I’m with ya. Boosting low mids helps you hear yourself…by drowning everyone else in mud. A lil scoop of 200-250hz cleans this up so you can be louder without drowning everyone out.
I do it with all my amps.
I also raise all my cabs off the ground, best hpf going, plus speakers nearer to ears is always good.

 

[Chickenwheels]

Slight cut in low mids, and slight bump in high mids for a live rock mix. Bass doesn't need to "cut" in a live mix. As a prior guitarist, every bassist that tried to make their tone "pop" in the mix by boosting low mids made everything a muddy mess and absolutely irritated me.

This.

 

[Taustin Powers]

A slight boost in low mids (250 Hz) can be wonderful for my fingerstyle and slap playing. It adds punch and warmth, works well in my funk band. It's a fine line though, too big a boost can get boomy real quick!

 

[Nashrakh]

Two scenarios for me, both use a Markbass CMD 1x12 combo for amplification (HPF/LPF in front, set at 60Hz and 5kHz):

1) P bass with flats, I boost around 800 Hz to bring out more of that thuddy attack of my strings (La Bella DTF). Mostly jazz or 50s rocknroll gigs. Low end is not much of a priority here, it's most important that the band hear your quarter notes as clear as they can get.
2) Yamaha TRB 1006, I leave my mids alone in general, there's a slight boost in bass/low mids (not sure what frequency exactly), 8 piece jazz fusion band. There's so much going on in the upper frequencies with all the horns, synth and guitar that I try to stay below the band. If I want to "cut through" (which is sometimes necessary in fortissimo passages), I put on some +1 octave and dirt, I guess that pushes mids forward again.

 

[Deleted member 271037]

It depends on the song, the arrangement, the instrumentation and where you want the bass to sit in the mix.

Any adjustments RELATIVE TO YOUR STARTING POINT will also depend on your playing style, your bass, your choice of strings, your amp, your cab and any additional effects/processing in your signal chain. You might think of your starting point as a "flat" eq and a good reference point but it really isn't. Switch to a different bass/strings/amp/cab and your "flat" eq will suddenly sound very different.

This of course means that it's more or less worthless to make any blanket statements about how to adjust the mids. Any eq adjustments that work for YOU in a given situation can be a disaster for someone else.

Getting the mids right is VERY important though! Personally I think of the mids (in the context of electric bass guitar) as approximately 200 Hz to 2 kHz. That's a HUGE part of the audible range of a bass guitar. When listening on smaller speakers it's nearly ALL the audible range of a bass guitar. The midrange is THE most important part of the frequency range, even on a "bass" guitar. If you don't get the mids right you won't sound great in the mix.

 

[Rib 13]

2K is my secret weapon

I also use new-as-possible rounds

Making the bass present and articulate in a mix can often be an audio illusion: Sometimes, my isolated sound may seem wonky by itself when listening solo but plugs in perfectly in the complete mix with the other instruments. A lot depends on the room dimensions and the resonant frequencies of the open mics, especially drum mics

 

[The_Owl]

Crank them up!

 

[crapusername]

Not so much a California smile as a British frown for me

 

[_Tay_]

For me it's both. With my SA EQ2 at the end of my pedal chain I currently have a setting that cuts low mids, retains low end and sounds raspy. I also have a setting that is low mid heavy while cutting some higher mids.

Happy with both these sounds right now although with time that will fluctuate and evolve as it does for everyone.

 

[2thAche]

Live I often cut low mids and lows. Recording always end up cutting low mids and bumping high mids up like you're saying.

I have a 60s JB and it's definitely a more nasally tone, great for some things and hard to EQ for others when I jam with it.

 

[JC BASS 91]

I cut bass a bit, boost low and high mids a bit, and also boost treble a bit.

 

[rtslinger]

My settings are what ever the rooms acoustics call for so that is my best answer other than, I start out at everything flat
and boost or cut as need.

 

[Medicine Man]

My approach is a dumb one, but it works for me: P-bass with a flat EQ through an amp/cab setup that has no inherent scoop built in (Quilter Bass Block/AudioKinesis Changeling).

This "dumb" solution just works for me. The bass block into an AK Hathor just has the sound with just maybe a touch of bass cut in most venues. Love to Duke, and may his orders open back up so more people can just live the life. I went from active basses, a pedal board eq, and my amp eq that I needed to spend time dialing in to just a P into the amp and let the cab just do its thing. Sweetness. People ask me every show how I modded my p bass (I didn't), but the secret sauce is the cab.

 

[smtp4me]

Mid frequencies, especially low mids, find themselves in any tonal conversation, whether we're talking about live or recording applications. They really are the secret sauce to tone. I've heard so many people say boosting your low mids (anywhere from about 220 to 500) will help you be heard and more present in a mix. I used to be in that camp, with a slight bump in my low mids, and a slight cut in my high mids (with bass and treble flat).

However, in recent years I've reversed my thoughts on that, and favored a slight cut in the low mids, and a slight boost in high mids to give me a little rasp, some airy punch in the articulation, and just a hair of glass on the top end. I'm running a fender jazz (60's voices) through a Markbass lm3 and MB cabs.

Tell me: 1) Where are your mids these days? 2) What bass and amplification are you running it through, and...3) How does that lend to *your* sound?

My EQ is fairly simple. I use a high-pass filter set at either 40hz or 50hz to cut the rumble. Then I boost the mids around 1khz by about 3db. That's it.

I have a small practice amp that I occasionally use and the EQ is set as close to above as I can get with the simple bass/mid/treble buttons. I mostly play through my DAW and audio interface with amp sims/plugins, and the EQ is set as mentioned above.

I have more than one "sound". I have a clean sound that is, for lack of a better description, "round". Not muddy, not brittle - clear and audible in a mix. I have a dirty sound that is similar to clean but with enough mild distortion that it can be heard especially when I dig in (e.g. Geddy and Chris Squire). I also have separate settings for my fretless bass.

 

[JRA]

i'm with s.f.sorrow:

Any eq adjustments that work for YOU in a given situation can be a disaster for someone else, or in a different situation.

edit by JRA.

also, i don't have a formula for settings, but i do have preferences for the sound i want. the sound is fairly consistent, but the EQ settings (to get that sound) can vary wildly, depending on the room/situation.

and that "sound" makes my playing experience comfortable enough that i'm not fighting to be heard (by me). i need to hear every single note.

re: "mids" --- i don't regard the mids much differently than the other frequencies, i.e., they're there to be manipulated for an acceptable outcome.

 

[BobDeRosa]

Mid frequencies, especially low mids, find themselves in any tonal conversation, whether we're talking about live or recording applications. They really are the secret sauce to tone. I've heard so many people say boosting your low mids (anywhere from about 220 to 500) will help you be heard and more present in a mix. I used to be in that camp, with a slight bump in my low mids, and a slight cut in my high mids (with bass and treble flat).

However, in recent years I've reversed my thoughts on that, and favored a slight cut in the low mids, and a slight boost in high mids to give me a little rasp, some airy punch in the articulation, and just a hair of glass on the top end. I'm running a fender jazz (60's voices) through a Markbass lm3 and MB cabs.

Tell me: 1) Where are your mids these days? 2) What bass and amplification are you running it through, and...3) How does that lend to *your* sound?

Since everything depends on the room in live situations, it's tough to be absolutist about where you set your dials. Start with everything at high noon and adjust from there. Get out as far in front of your amp as possible, to be closer to what the audience is hearing. My guess is that in most cases, your Bass and Treble will stay right around noon, which makes it much easier to focus on mids. I've never recorded at home, so can't help there.

 

[Bonecat]

The Bergantino Super Pre has a pretty powerful PEQ that’s easy to use. I’m using an HPF that I change based on the room, but starts around 50Hz. I have a slight cut that usually lives somewhere between 230 and 500Hz, again changing based on the room. I always have a slight bump in the high mids that has a broad Q and spans around 1.5 to 3.5kHz. If I need more bark I push the bridge pickup a bit harder. So far, so good…

 

[Old Blastard]

Since everything depends on the room in live situations, it's tough to be absolutist about where you set your dials. Start with everything at high noon and adjust from there. Get out as far in front of your amp as possible, to be closer to what the audience is hearing. My guess is that in most cases, your Bass and Treble will stay right around noon, which makes it much easier to focus on mids. I've never recorded at home, so can't help there.

Pretty much this for me. I play a variety of basses, from A low-rent SUB stingray to a high-rent Drake custom. I play in an acoustic Americana trio and a loud alt-rock originals trio. My setting change all the time