Bass EQ cheat sheet
This bass EQ cheat sheet covers five bands: sub rumble below 35 Hz, weight at 40 to 100 Hz, mud at 200 to 300 Hz, growl at 700 Hz to 1.5 kHz and fizz above 3 kHz. Make room for the kick in the low end, then make sure the notes read on small speakers.
Bass EQ
Send & Return Audio| Band | Range | When it's wrong | The move |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sub rumble | below 35 Hz | Eats headroom you can't hear on most systems | High pass at 25 to 35 Hz |
| Weight | 40 to 100 Hz | Thin or weak on big speakers | Small boost of 1 to 2 dB, after the kick has its space |
| Mud | 200 to 300 Hz | Woolly, notes blur together | Cut of 2 to 4 dB |
| Growl | 700 Hz to 1.5 kHz | Notes vanish on phone speakers | Boost of 1 to 2 dB |
| Fizz | above 3 kHz | Clicky or fizzy string and amp noise | Low pass from about 6 kHz |
How to read this sheet
This sheet lists 5 bands for bass parts, from below 35 Hz up to above 3 kHz. Each row gives the range, what you hear when that band is wrong, and the move that fixes it.
Bass parts change from track to track, so treat every number as a place to start sweeping, not a rule. Print it on one page and keep it next to your screen.
Using this sheet
Play the bass with the kick and the rest of the mix. Pick the row whose symptom matches what you hear, sweep a band across that range, and make the move in the last column, starting with the smaller amount.
Start at the bottom of the bass, with the sub rumble filter, then deal with the mud. Leave the weight row until the kick has its space, since that is where the two parts compete. Then check the growl row on a phone or laptop speaker. If you can't follow the bass line there, that row needs work.
The fizz row matters most on bright bass guitars and distorted synths. On a soft, round bass you may not need it at all.
When the sheet is wrong
A pure sine sub bass breaks the growl row. It has no harmonics up there, so boosting 700 Hz to 1.5 kHz does nothing you can hear. Add a little saturation, or layer a second bass sound with more midrange, and EQ that layer instead.
A five string bass or a very low synth line can play notes close to the sub rumble filter. If the lowest notes lose weight, lower the high pass a little until they come back, and check that the kick still has room.
A kick that owns the deep sub changes the weight row. If your kick sits low and long, keep the bass weight flat or even cut a little where the kick's note is, so the two don't stack up.
Questions people ask
Is there a cheat sheet for bass guitar EQ?
Yes, this sheet works for bass guitar and synth bass. It covers five bands, from sub rumble below 35 Hz up to fizz above 3 kHz, with what goes wrong in each and the move to make. Print this page and keep it next to your screen.
Which EQ number is for bass?
On an equalizer, bass is the low end of the range, roughly everything from 30 Hz up to about 300 Hz. On this sheet that covers the sub rumble below 35 Hz, the weight at 40 to 100 Hz and the mud at 200 to 300 Hz. The growl that lets bass read on phones sits higher, at 700 Hz to 1.5 kHz.
What is the perfect EQ for bass guitar?
There is no perfect bass guitar EQ, because every bass, player and song is different, but this sheet gives a reliable start. Clear the rumble, cut the mud, add a little growl, and roll off string fizz. Then adjust each band against the kick, since the two share the low end.