EQ is the most-used and most-abused tool in mixing. Most amateurs use EQ to add what they think is missing; pros use EQ to remove what does not belong, and add only sparingly. This cheat sheet is the working reference for the EQ moves that show up over and over in professional mixes. Every frequency listed here is a starting point — your specific recording will need its own sweep — but the patterns are reliable.
The universal first move on any instrument: high-pass filter to remove low-end content that does not belong. Vocals: 80 to 130 Hz. Acoustic guitar: 100 to 150 Hz. Electric guitar: 100 to 200 Hz. Snare: 100 to 200 Hz. Toms: 60 to 100 Hz. Overheads: 150 to 250 Hz. Hi-hat: 250 to 500 Hz. Piano (in band mix): 100 to 150 Hz. Synth pad: 200 to 400 Hz. Bass: 30 to 40 Hz only.
The mud zone (200 to 500 Hz) is where most mixes go wrong. Almost every instrument benefits from a 2 to 4 dB cut somewhere in this range. Sweep with a narrow boost first to find the offending frequency, then cut. Vocals: usually 250 to 350 Hz. Acoustic guitar: usually 200 to 400 Hz. Electric guitar: 300 to 500 Hz. Snare top: 400 Hz. Bass: 250 to 400 Hz. Piano: 250 to 500 Hz. The 300 Hz cut is so universal it has become a meme.
The honk zone (700 Hz to 2 kHz) is where instruments become nasal and boxy. Vocals can develop honk around 1 to 1.5 kHz; cut narrow if it is bothering you. Electric guitar nasalness usually lives around 800 Hz. Snare boxiness lives around 700 Hz. Use this cut sparingly — it is easy to over-EQ this zone and end up with a hollow sound.
The presence zone (2 to 5 kHz) is where instruments become audible on small speakers. Vocals: 3 to 4 kHz boost adds intelligibility. Acoustic guitar: 3 kHz boost adds pick attack. Electric guitar: 2 to 4 kHz boost adds bite. Snare: 4 to 6 kHz boost adds crack. Bass: 1 kHz boost adds string definition. Piano: 3 to 5 kHz boost adds attack.
The harshness zone (5 to 8 kHz) is where sibilance lives. De-ess vocals here. Cut electric guitar fizz here. Cut snare brashness here. Cut hi-hat brittleness here. The 6 to 8 kHz range is the most common source of "harsh" or "painful" mix complaints — when in doubt, pull this range down 1 to 3 dB on the master before assuming any individual track is the problem.
The air zone (8 to 18 kHz) is where mixes feel expensive. A high shelf boost of 2 to 4 dB at 10 to 15 kHz on vocals adds polish. A similar boost on overheads adds cymbal shimmer. On the master, a 1 to 2 dB shelf boost at 12 kHz adds the "polished" quality of a finished record. Be careful — too much air boost adds noise floor and digital harshness.
Bass-specific EQ. The 60 Hz boost adds chest-thump. The 100 to 150 Hz boost adds body. The 250 to 400 Hz cut removes mud. The 800 Hz to 1 kHz boost adds finger or pick definition. The 2 to 3 kHz boost adds string buzz. The 3 to 5 kHz boost adds the attack click on slap or pick bass.
Kick drum EQ. The 50 to 80 Hz boost adds sub-thump. The 100 to 200 Hz cut (around 250 Hz) removes box. The 1 to 2 kHz cut removes cardboard. The 4 to 5 kHz boost adds beater click for cut-through. The 8 to 10 kHz cut removes any high-end ringing.
Snare drum EQ. The 200 Hz boost adds body and thump. The 400 to 700 Hz cut removes box. The 5 kHz boost adds crack. The 10 to 12 kHz boost adds shimmer (be subtle — too much makes it brittle).
Hi-hat EQ. High-pass at 400 to 600 Hz to remove all the low-end bleed from the kick and snare. Cut around 800 Hz to remove clankiness. Boost at 12 kHz for sparkle. Cut everything below 1 kHz aggressively — you do not need any low end from the hi-hat.
Reverb return EQ. Always EQ the reverb return separately. High-pass at 300 to 500 Hz to keep mud out of your reverbs. Low-pass at 6 to 8 kHz to keep harshness out. The reverb should fill the air around the dry signal, not duplicate the dry signal's frequency content.
Common EQ mistakes: boosting wide instead of cutting narrow (creates phase issues), boosting in the same range as you boosted on another instrument (frequency masking), making the soloed instrument sound great instead of making it fit the mix (the solo trap), using the same EQ on every track of the same instrument type (each recording is different), forgetting to A/B with EQ bypassed (you may be making it worse).