When your room is EQ’d just right, people have a heavenly experience.
I’m talking about when the full frequency spectrum is covered at the right volume, creating this pleasant yet powerful sound.
It’s warm. It’s clear. It’s big and spatial.
It’s when the sound completely envelopes you. You almost forget where you are as you take in what you are experiencing.
I’ve been after this for over fifteen years, mixing great sound every week and teaching my ten thousand-plus students to do the same. And it wasn’t until recently that I nailed my strategy for EQing the room.
It all started with the equal loudness curve. This standardized measurement shows how the human ear prefers certain frequencies over others. This is where our ears hear all frequencies at the same loudness.
I EQ’d my room to this curve and didn’t like it.
It was too harsh. I couldn’t get the right power out of the mix without it becoming painful.
So, I set up a full-fledged PA in my office and went to work. I listened to pink noise for days as I worked to nail down the perfect curve for room EQ.
Then, I applied it in my church, and then in the overflow room, and then in an event venue, and even in a wedding venue. I did some fine-tuning throughout the journey, and finally, I figured it out.
How about I save you the painstaking process and just give you the curve?
They key is creating a 3kHz dip, keeping your sound from becoming painful at loud volumes. It softens those harsh frequencies and makes your sound feel warmer.
Watch the video above to listen to me EQ a room from scratch.
You can use this EQ curve in any room and with any sound system. I’ve already applied it to different rooms with different PA configurations, and it has proven itself time and time again.
I created a course that makes EQing Your Room easy. It covers every mixer and guides you step-by-step on connecting everything, setting up the software, EQing the room, and fine-tuning.
It even saves you from every potential pitfall and gives you a pro skill you will use for the rest of your life.
