Why High-Pass Filters Are Ruining Your Mix 

Phase shift in filters - nice, I haven’t heard this mentioned in decades and had forgotten all about it, thank you!

Linear phase EQ’s wont have such a dramatic effect either, but definitely avoid using extreme sharp cuts. Ive rarely used anything harsher than 24db and never that much on low end. 6-12db combined with low shelf will do everything you need, just takes a bit more “ears” and less “eyes” when mixing.

I’ve gained more useful knowledge from this dudes 60 second clips than anyone else on RU-vid

I admit, I like my steep cuts or passes, but I usually check if there’s something wrong afterwards or unpleasant, and if it doesn’t and it sounds good, I’m good too ✌️ anyway, thanks for the vid, I’m trying the shelf method 👌

Thanks for this video! I was using ableton eq8 and I always choose 4x cut! Never thought that it’ll ruin my mix

I've been having this issue ever since I've started making music, i do a cut and the volume increases. When I use linear phase it loses energy. Thanks this made a big difference thanks 🙏🏽👍🏽

Thanks for sharing this. This channel really is about mixing ENGINEERING. Waiting for more!

Thank you for answering my confusion 🙏🏻 I'll take care of that phase for punch 👊

Adding HPF also changes tightness. Ive learned from using pultecs that if you want a tighter kick cut at 80, a bassier kick cut at 50. Cant go wrong

So true, I will never understand why people willingly make their mixes sound thin by removing all the low end from the parts that actually need it(the kick and bass)

Thank you sir! I got some mistakes to fix RIGHT now.

Thank you!!! I've been saying this for ages.....

I prefer to go for low or high shelves instead of filters, for this reason.

Finally some agrees that low shelf’s are better than hpf

Interesting. I’m definitely going to trying this. Thank you.

Didn't know that! And I thought it's a good idea to aggressively cut out unwanted frequencies... have been doing it for years. Not anymore. Much obliged.

Ive recently started low shelfing my bass instead of high passing and it keeps it warm but also gets out the way of the kick

Yeah I see this too often as well, people on about removing "mud" to make headroom on kicks and even their sub making the cut literally below 20hz 😂 when all they are doin is just shifting the phase of their low end. As long as you have a a good kick sample and nice smooth phase alignment between the kick and sub using a sidechain duck, then you don't need to worry about cutting out low end with a high pass. Just use an oscilloscope and line them up👌

Had no idea, great to know. Thx!

Low shelf is such a game changer. I hardly ever use high pass filters anymore unless it’s on things with no bass whatsoever.

That's why you need eliptical filters. They work a lot better on low end. 😛 Amazing stuff always Cableguys

Regardless of shape, slope or aggressiveness, HP filtering a signal will change the time based waveform by definition. This, can indeed increase peak levels, in my experience of up to even 12dB! No linear or low phase shift EQ will help you there.

I ALWAYS WONDERED WHY IT BOOSTED THE PEAK. THANJNYOU!!!!

If it makes it sound shit then it is wrong, however if it makes it sound good then it is correct. It is as simple as that.

Wow that's crazy I had no idea that was a thing. I wonder if for kicks you could still use a hard highpass but apply a subtle fade in to the kick

I don’t usually use subtraction eqing on kicks, unless I’m trying to cut out some high end from the kick. Most of the time if a kick is getting me the sound I want I look for a different kick sample.

high shelf filters so underrated i wish i could teach a lesson

I like to exploit this sometimes to make acoustic snares or kicks have more synthetic, ringy fundamentals. Its not always bad! You can also use extraordinary steep slopes to purposely lengthen individual frequencies by causing them to ring out.

if you mix your kick and bass together to phase align them, I would use a low shelf on the group as well instead of on the individual channels. Unless ofc you compensate for the shift after applying EQ cuts.

so this explained why my EQ was adding extra gain, found that out pretty recently (I have abletons EQ defaulted with a 25hz low cut)

I agree I use shelves a lot and also rarely cut steep.

thanks for this tip

Funny i accidentally stumbled upon this a few weeks ago didn’t know why it worked at the time but now i know :D

Thank you so much

There are many better options than this. If your kick is too subby: Pick a different kick that isn’t Turn the whole kick down until the sub frequencies are the right volume and then layer a clicky sample on top to get that high end back. Saturate the kick so it has more mids/highs and turn down until sub frequencies are balanced. ADVANCED: create your own eq using serum. Play the root note of your kick for the length of your kick. Shape the envelope to match your kicks envelope. Turn off random phase. Open wavetable editor and mess with the phase of the fundamental frequency until it’s 180 degrees out of phase with the kicks fundamental. Now the more you turn up serum the more it will cancel out or turn down the fundamental of your kick. You can add more partials in the wavetable editor to do the same thing with other frequencies. Just adjust the phase and amplitude of any frequency you want to cut or boost. In phase to boost, out of phase to cut. This is essentially how an EQ works except you have all the control over which specific frequencies phase shifted and by how much. You can do this to any sound btw 🤪

Very interesting, I'll take note of this because I'm one of those "cut it all and give me space!!" Kinda producers 😅

Could you do or link me to a explanation of the phase shift's effects? I've never understood how phase shift functions and why it can be a negative thing.

People often say using linear phase will solve the phasing issues, which is true. However I wouldn’t use linear phase on a kick (or any transient-rich sound) because it induces pre-ringing which “announces” the sound so to say. You probably won’t consciously hear the pre-ringing but you will feel like the kick lost all of it’s power/impact for seemingly no reason

For kicks I usually use a soft clipper and same for 808s and snares

I don't change how the samples are, for example the kick/snares, if they are already processed to sound good, and because i don't have any kinda of decent monitors... I don't even think about mess my samples.

Absolutely. EQ8 4x is hindering so many productions. Stopped using it a while ago.

Linear phase filter might help

Or just clip the kick after doing that. Adds some snap, which you can then tame in the highs if needed. Phase shift only really is an issue because you're shifting the bass into the transient.

Thank you for this!!!!

Even a small adjustment to the kick start point can help.

Low shelf for the win

This is gold.

Sometimes i want it to increase in peak by doing it then i compensate the volume fader

Thankyou

just sidechain lol.. I recently started use eq 8 on my kicks to SLIGHTLY remove some low end and then I put a compressor on my bass and sidechain to the kick.

I high pass every mix at 20 hz and low pass at 20 kHz. I hardly ever high pass a kick unless it’s a super punchy high kick 💯

Honestly highpassing kicks or bass has been one of my go too tricks if I’m having phase alignment issues with kick or bass. Works more often than not in my case

Also, nothing kills the warmth, fullness and "closeness" of a lead vocal (ie: a song's focal point) like high pass filtering "to make space" for other elements.

I noticed the same thing when removing all lows from my dirty snare, and it started clipping

6db per octave is a 90 degree phase shift, still detrimental to the low end. Low shelf or even better linear phase is the way.

Remove the sub bass of everything except the kick and bass. (Sometimes I leave the sub bass on the snare because it makes it hit just a litttle be harder)

I don't know how much I buy "for more headroom" when so much audio is mastered as a rectangle these days, tbh

or you just use linear phase filters. preringing sounds nice anyway. or you just softclip after the filter. that sounds nice on transients anyway. there are a lot of ways to deal with it

Use 2 eqs one hard and one soft hpf in sequence

Good tip

Best sound is 69db/octave but sometimes 420db/octave is required. Wait are we talking filters here or .... ?

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Who Hp with a 48db/oct ? Use a 6 or 12 … Deal with it later on in master to get the level up (more sub 30hz attenuation

I tried high oass and low pass and the song sounded more punchier

SUPER COOL

Why would you high pass a kick apart from as an effect? Some kick samples sound amazing on their own, just with a bit of maximising.

It's kind of funny that digital filters are still mimicking the effects of physical circuitry. Maybe there are filters that don't introduce phase shift--it's fully possible in a digital space.

Or just use harsh cuts, use your ears to see if the sound is ok, then use a clipper to make use of that saved headroom.

Thankiea

If you're hipassing to clean mud out and you can hear the filter, back it off!

jeff cavalier of music

How about using a natural phase setting and still making an aggressive low cut. Will that be okay?

tbh it has almost nothing to do with phase shift (at least in a case of one low-order filter) but just simple resonance nature of high-order filters. First-order filter (6dB per octave) simply can't have that resonance

Have anyone told you about FIR filters and linear phase filters?

the word roll off is used for a reason, not cut

What visualization tool you are using for the kick?

Can't you apply a phase less filter though? If you don't have access to a phase less algo you can play in reverse and filter the reversed time history after you do it forward.

just use gentle slopes you'll be fine. Theres no reason to use 12db on the slope its a killer for bass frequencies

or just use a linear phase eq

If you put linear phase?

doesnt the linear phase option minimise that?

Clip your kicks for headroom. Problem solved.

You dont need to cut the kick higher then 35hz at 45hz the eg in this video would be cutting frequency's that you can actually hear.

that's because you haven't reduced the Q band when high passing, man :)))

What is that Oscillator Waveform Viewer plugin that he's using?

Why would anyone high pass a kick?!😮

I'm new to producing so i dont get it: why are we lowering the lows of the bass in the first place? Isn't bass supposed to kick the hardest in the lowend?

I'm not worried about level like that. If you have to cut it, cut it.

-48db is a 360 rotation, worth it?

What is that linear spectrum analyzer is named please ?

People still use sine shifting equalizers.

Or fix it with a phaser pluggin in the master

Or use them just not to strong and in linear mode

You create the best TickTocks ever!

Out of curiosity - what is even the point of low-cutting kicks and sub basses? I've personally never done it

or use linear and natural phase filters?

Wtf this just happened to me TODAY.

Linear phase fixes this and wont increase gain. FL parametic eq 2 has the feauture.

Holy fuck I got Project Zomboid flashbacks second I heard the video

Then people will try compensate for this with a linear phase EQ and duh duh duh now you're kick has pretonal ringing😂