A. Classifying the Frequency Spectrum

Many guitarists fail to see their tone's EQ in terms of specific frequencies, instead defining it by the cookie-cutter names "bass", "mid", "presence", and "treble", due to such controls being built into most amps. Sure, these names work well when speaking in generalities. But when you want to dial in a specific tone, those amp knobs usually don't cut it. You may want to tweak "between" the knobs, or "narrower" or "fatter" than the knobs allow. Also, the precise frequencies these knobs control vary from amp to amp, forcing you to learn the nuances of the controls on each individual amp. Moreover, these controls don't necessarily adjust only EQ, especially if you are getting some power amp compression/distortion. Sometimes the knobs are gain-staged a certain way, so turning all the controls up to 100% affects tone differently than keeping them all at 50%. I still use those controls; I just don't rely on them exclusively.

When it comes to describing the frequency spectrum, I instead classify the frequency range using many more words. I use :

Frequency (HZ)	Description
0-100	Thump
100-200	Boom
200-350	Punch
350-600	Warmth
600-850	Honk
850-1,400	Cold Djent
1,400-2,600	Hot Djent/Presence
2,600-5,000	Fizz
5000-10,000	Sizzle
10,000+	Broken Glass

These names and frequencies are just a guideline. You may want to alter frequencies that span many of these sections, that peak "off-center", or that only affect a small part of one section.

Top of EQ

B. How to eq a Hard Rock Tone

In general the tone should be relatively flat - if you try to deviate too far from this, especially with narrow boosts or cuts, the tone will simply sound "off". It might sound good at low-volume or outside a mix, but when cranked it will sound weird, plastic, harsh, or get buried in the mix.

The slight deviations from "flat" will define what kind of tone you have: cold, warm, punchy, crisp, etc. Emphasizing mostly punch will give you a very metalcore chug-a-chug sound. Emphasizing cold djent and dialing back the warmth gives you that cold Meshuggah tone. Hot djent is the key to the older Metallica tone - kind of harsh and very crisp, add lots of bass to make it extremely heavy - the classic scooped thrash tone. Warmth gets you the creamy lead tone, and it can make a sterile-sounding rhythm tone come to life. Honk sounds like really vintage tone - I find it sounds a bit awkward in a modern metal tone but works for classic rock.

You can emphasize combinations of these to dial in what you like best, but don't go too extreme. If your tone's frequency response looks like a saw when viewed through a frequency spectrum analyzer, it's likely to sound goofy. If you want to dial a spot down, it's generally a good idea to do so mildly. If you cut too much, the tone just feels like part of it is missing - it isn't loud or "full" enough. It might sound good at a low volume, but when you crank the volume, you'll find the tone is very harsh or fake-sounding. If I'm cutting I only do so until that spot blends into the rest of the tone, not so that it completely disappears. Yes, even the "fizz".

When I emphasize some frequency range, I'll often boost it with a wide Q, so I'm also boosting the frequencies around it, just not as much. This keeps the tone "in balance".

Neither thump (and boom) nor sizzle should dominate a good guitar tone. It will sound odd to completely dial them out, but they generally get buried in a full mix anyway. I like to de-emphasize them; however, they are often de-emphasized to begin with - guitar speakers (as well as the Pod's cab/mic sims) tend to roll off the ultra-highs and lows. For many of the Pod's cab/mic combinations, the sizzle is actually too weak; so I turn it up.

If you have any "broken glass" in your tone, you should dial it out. It will be harsh and annoying. Only the Mid-Focus EQ will allow you to do so. See down the page for how it works. If it's just a little; however, you might not even be able to hear it in a mix. Still, it will interfere with the tone of the cymbals and will taint a recording or live performance.

Top of EQ