Trance2MoveU Posted January 7, 2013 Share Posted January 7, 2013 I used the search and didn't find a topic although I could swear I had seen it before. So sorry if I missed it. I'm listening to music on my computer (as always) and have a 10 band equalizer. How should I set it to get the most out of the awesome music? I realize that a lot of it depends on how the music was produced and probably what format I'm listening to. For example, I'm listening to Temple of Chaos and the bottom end sounds a bit rumbly and distorted. Anyone else experience this. IIRC someone mentioned it in the TOC review thread. What I'm looking for is a visual answer b/c I'm kinda visual. Mdk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sideffect... Posted January 7, 2013 Share Posted January 7, 2013 None, I resit to EQ, an album sounds like it sound... But if you had do it... Left is the base, center midi, right treble... You set the left almost high (85%), then go to the right , down bit by bit lower to the middle one (50%) and then you get higher one by one to set the right also at 85% That's what I did years ago when a lot of 128kbs mp3 were online... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest antic Posted January 7, 2013 Share Posted January 7, 2013 That's a really weird question, because "proper" settings are down to: - your preferences, - your HiFi / headphones, - specific album / CD, because they tend to be mastered (as you pointed out). I tend to not fiddle with EQ, but if I change anything I usually add (high) trebles and cut on mids. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Djuna Posted January 7, 2013 Share Posted January 7, 2013 That's a really weird question, because "proper" settings are down to: - your preferences, - your HiFi / headphones, - specific album / CD, because they tend to be mastered (as you pointed out). Exactly. If you are used to your monitors, headphones or whatever, don't change anything with each album you'll listen to. Your speakers and the room where you listen to music is your reference, you know and have an expectation (for good and bad) how certain things will sound there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sideffect... Posted January 7, 2013 Share Posted January 7, 2013 True, And if you are not satisfied, then your sound system/headphones are outdated or low quality. It's the only thing where I don't care how much money I spend (there is a limit off course) being music my largest hobby. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Veracohr Posted January 7, 2013 Share Posted January 7, 2013 I listen to everything flat, as the producers & engineers intended it. Sometimes in my car I'll adjust the bass a little on certain albums. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BraneFreeze Posted January 7, 2013 Share Posted January 7, 2013 I usually boost the treble, but leave the bass and mid-range alone. I think the dance floor heritage of this music tends to overemphasize the bass component. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dolmot Posted January 7, 2013 Share Posted January 7, 2013 I listen to everything flat, as the producers & engineers intended it. ...but have you measured that your output is completely flat? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sideffect... Posted January 7, 2013 Share Posted January 7, 2013 ...but have you measured that your output is completely flat? That's flat, All players are standard flat or you chose the EQ "normal" like in your car... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rotwang Posted January 7, 2013 Share Posted January 7, 2013 @Sideffect...: I think Dolmot's point was that speakers and headphones don't actually have flat frequency response curves, so even if your media player is outputting an unEQ'ed signal the result you hear still differs from what the producer intended. Equaliser settings can be used to correct for that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sideffect... Posted January 7, 2013 Share Posted January 7, 2013 @Sideffect...: I think Dolmot's point was that speakers and headphones don't actually have flat frequency response curves, so even if your media player is outputting an unEQ'ed signal the result you hear still differs from what the producer intended. Equaliser settings can be used to correct for that. That's true listening to my MP3 player with Bose headphones or Sennheiser is totally different, but how to do that? But I don't think there is a standard frequency... (I guess ) And isn't that just the quality you paid for? The last clasp in the chain... What is imo your responsibility how much money you are willing to spent, like I kinda mentioned above... So I'm guessing the quality from the soundsystem/headphones is low (cheap) and he wants to boost it up a little to have more (what is a good idea) Just thinking... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rotwang Posted January 7, 2013 Share Posted January 7, 2013 That's true listening to my MP3 player with Bose headphones or Sennheiser is totally different, but how to do that? How to do what? Do you mean how to determine the frequency response of your headphones or speakers? You can get specialist mics for that, but I expect they cost a bomb. And isn't that just the quality you paid for? No, unless you buy kit that is specifically designed for monitoring purposes (and even then it won't have a perfectly flat frequency curve). You can find more information on this kind of thing than you could possibly use here, here and here, and that's just for headphones. Speakers are more complicated because how they sound depends a lot on things beyond the manufacturers' control, such as the shape of your room. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Imba Posted January 8, 2013 Share Posted January 8, 2013 Also check soundcard control panel / manager. I don't know what soundcard you have but example for my shity integral Realtek there is EQ and sometimes because is chinese shit loads some random EQ presets. Last year there was 'Powerful' preset loaded on my soundcard for few months! I even made few tracks on it not knowing. I was suprised, what i learn over night to make stronger tracks? lol Then after few months i saw what is going on, turn off and then need to repair all mistakes i made Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Veracohr Posted January 8, 2013 Share Posted January 8, 2013 ...but have you measured that your output is completely flat? No, but it would be pointless. I listen to music in three ways: from my computer, in my car, on my iPod with earbud headphones. At home from my computer I have good-quality monitoring that needs no EQ. My room acoustics may suck, but EQ won't help that. In my opinion there's no point trying to make the sound in a car anything but whatever comes out. And iPod of course, is what it is. Most speakers these days don't have enormous EQ problems. Deficiencies are usually due to size, and some speakers are intentionally EQ'd to sound a certain way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sideffect... Posted January 8, 2013 Share Posted January 8, 2013 @ Rotwang: Good post, but that is, what I was afraid off, that it's almost impossible to determine because of the money, and the know how about your system + lot's of work.... Continue... Those cheap "surround" soundsystem with the base just coming from a woofer, and boxes for treble and midi have obvious lousy EQ! I have one of those for my laptop and you can hear the difference. I don't use them at all to be honest, Only when I'm too lazy and need some sound fast for watching movies instead of those tiny boxes onboard on my laptop.... What a waste of money But my boxes are B&W numark 303, and with those it sounds perfect. All they have is huge hole in the back that filters "the noise" so they have to be at least 50 cm from the wall, otherwise it bounces back... And my headphones are Bose (see avatar), and those are also pretty ok... I don't EQ my mp3 player and I don't EQ my amplifier, All there is, is a mixer where all players/input can be connected, because it gives more power/louder when I use the gain to chose my volume. My EQ's are all in the middle... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CoLoUr DoTZ Posted January 8, 2013 Share Posted January 8, 2013 I would advice not to Eq, and in case of equing, only to correct the response of the room and speakers in your system. all systems will sound different, and to make sure something translates good through all of them, what the music needs is a good mastering. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Panoptes Posted January 8, 2013 Share Posted January 8, 2013 I never eq my speakers/headphones. Like Veracohr I do eq the bass in my car because somethings its too much in such a small closed space Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Djuna Posted January 8, 2013 Share Posted January 8, 2013 How to do what? Do you mean how to determine the frequency response of your headphones or speakers? You can get specialist mics for that, but I expect they cost a bomb. Of course not, you can find those specs on every manufactures' page. EQ'ing for headphones for listening purposes is even more pointless imo... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sideffect... Posted January 8, 2013 Share Posted January 8, 2013 Then again when I do sports (running) I use cheap headphones from sennheiser, Those stay perfect on your head while running, With those I use EQ "rock" to get a more powerful sound because of the noise on the streets etc... And it's also a second mp3 player, creative, 50 euro, very light in my pockets + plastic around it for waterproof... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
travbrad1001 Posted January 8, 2013 Share Posted January 8, 2013 As others have said, EQing is more for adjusting for the room and speakers rather than EQing for specific artists or types or music. My headphones sound great when EQ'd flat, but my speakers need the upper frequencies tuned down slightly. I'm not sure the "original sound" can ever truly be recreated either, but it's a nice goal to aim for. Even if you were to get identical speakers in an identical room to the artist, your ears aren't the same, and your brain (which interprets/processes everything you hear) isn't the same either. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Padmapani Posted January 8, 2013 Share Posted January 8, 2013 As others have said, EQing is more for adjusting for the room and speakers rather than EQing for specific artists or types or music. exactly. my computer speakers are flat, the other set of speakers i have a my parents' house has a bit of bass boost on the amplifier as those speakers have too little bass otherwise and for the speakers in my car i've turned down the treble all the way to adjust for the hugely exaggerated highs, as well as given it a slight bass boost to compensate for engine noise. so a flat setting is ideal and eq is needed only if the speakers have severe shortcomings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rotwang Posted January 8, 2013 Share Posted January 8, 2013 Of course not, you can find those specs on every manufactures' page. Yes, but can you trust them? I expect the results at HeadRoom are more reliable than those you'll find on a manufacturer's site. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Djuna Posted January 8, 2013 Share Posted January 8, 2013 Yes, but can you trust them? I expect the results at HeadRoom are more reliable than those you'll find on a manufacturer's site. I'm sorry I thought you said frequency range. But yeah I guess so because they seem to copy/paste the specs. Not the graphs, of course. But I don't think any "passive" listener here would be any wiser because because of that, in my opinion it's not even that necessary. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oopie Posted January 8, 2013 Share Posted January 8, 2013 As many have replied, it depends on the particular album you listen and your sound system. Usually I keep the eq settings to normal, with old school goa it's sometimes alright to boost the bass a little. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
radi6404 Posted January 9, 2013 Share Posted January 9, 2013 No matter how the system of speakers or headphones is set up, you go to a shop, isten to various speakes and headphones and buy thpse, that deliver themost flat and neutral frequency response with not that sharp heights. I like magnat loudspeakers a lot, they have good Bass, but not too much, so they sound rather neutral. That is what you do, you don#t buy speakers, that do not sound flat and than you leave your eq on your soundcrd flat or raise the bass a little, but just a little. On my eq I raise the bass one or two steps, both, the dod speakers playing music similar to monitors, with enough bass, but t, they are really goeepest Bass and the one next to it on the media monkey eq, since really flat eq sounds a bit steril, but I do not touch any other frequencies. I think eq should not be touched a lot and if the speakers or headphones have a fake frequency response, then they should not be ussed instead of using an eq to correct the fake frequency response. Lately I listened to some quadral speakers, since I want to buy some new speakers, the frequency response was poor, the Bass was dominating and the middles lacked, however there was no deep bass, only kick bass down to 70 hz or so. Not to talk about Canton, way too uch bass coming from the canton GLE 496. That is why I love Magnat, enough Bass, but not too much bass so it dominates the other frequencies. Any frequency, which is dominating is fake and should be corrected or sound equipment changed. Sennheiser headphones deliver a goodbass, but not dominating and they deliver soft heights, just as Magnat, that do not hurt your ear, even whenyou play loud. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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