EQing input

[John Deacon]

I use Cakewalk in a simple way, usually for live work. (I do use Ableton as well, but I prefer Cakewalk most of the time.)

So, hardly ever mixing for a final master, I realize I don't understand EQ, or at least the routing of the signal.

I have a guitar backing part I'm recording and it's booming at 80 - 120 Hz. Right I thought, I'll just EQ it. I used Pro Channel EQ. It had no effect. Ah I thought, perhaps you can't EQ the input, just like the volume slider doesn't work on the input; I'll bring the mic into a track, EQ that track and route that mic track to be the input of the audio track I'm recording to. Still no effect. The guitar gets recorded on its track but it hasn't been though the EQ.

I know the EQ works because I can apply to the recorded guitar track during playback. But I wanted to EQ the signal before recording it. In the past I would have simply used the mixer, but this particular microphone goes straight into the sound card.

What I am doing wrong or not understanding?

[scook]

CbB records the signal as it appears at the track input. This means before the track's plug-ins. It is possible to record a track and its plug-ins at the same time by routing the track to another track either using patch points or an aux track. Should also record the original track, just in case.

[John Deacon]

Hmm. That's what I think I am doing. I have a track with the mic as input. I EQ this mic track and route its output to second track's input via a patch point and record this second track. It doesn't get EQed.

Edited August 17, 2019 by jdeacon

[scook]

Works here,

This video shows the original signal recording in track 1 while sweeping an EQ band on the PC in track 1. Track 1 output is routed to Track 2 using a patch point and track 2 is setup to record.

The track wav images were scaled up after recording to make the difference more obvious.

[fitzj]

Nice one scook.

 

[mark skinner]

 I recently received a booming acoustic guitar track to add to a friends project. I got the boom out of the track but it still didn't sound like a keeper. I used to own the guitar he used , and know for a fact it's not a boomy guitar. I had him re record and keep the mic "away" from the sound hole.  The track came out much better , clean and crisp.  I think the first objective is to get the instrument sounding as good as it possibly can without any eq , then applying it to polish the track .   It'll save you a lot of time in the long run ..        mark

[John Deacon]

OK. Sorted now, thanks.

I don't quite know why I didn't get it to work the first time I tried a patch point. However, using a patch point between the two tracks, instead of choosing "Selected Track Input ..." for the recorded track's input to connect it to the ouput of the EQed mic track, is what is needed.