Why LINEAR PHASE EQs can be DANGEROUS!

[@KohleAudioKult]

How are you guys using linear phase vs minimum phase EQs?

[@CrushingAxes]

I never cared much about linear phase eq, lately I've been trying to use on the master bus.

[@truckguy3]

I don’t… I use minimum/natural phase usually 100 percent of the time.

[@rebelproductions9086]

I tried it a few times without realy knowing what I was doing, because I read about that fase issue thing when using multiple mics... But I didn't realise this. So thanks for this video. Will listen for this in the future 😊

[@johannalvarsson9299]

I use my ears and decide what sounds better. (I use Linear when I LP/HP parallel tracks mostly.)

[@seventhlevelsound]

As you described, I typically use LinEQs if I need to shape individual parts that are then being routed into a single bus. IE Toms going into a drum group, or when I have multiple mics on kick or snare. And when I do its almost always cuts rather than boosts.

[@DanWorrall]

This is all good info. But being pedantic I feel like pointing at that all EQs ring. The problem with linear phase is pre-ringing: half the ringing comes before the impulse instead of after.

[@KohleAudioKult]

....which makes it so terribly audible on percussive material! Thanks for chiming in. Great to have you Dan!

[@xangrycatmanx5104]

My 2 favourite music production youtubers, is this a crossover episode?

[@st33Npuist]

@@xangrycatmanx5104 No, your bubble is closing

[@xangrycatmanx5104]

@@st33Npuist love Scratch Perry's production style so much

[@st33Npuist]

@@xangrycatmanx5104 Piece lil brother. ;)

[@Awaclus]

Dan Worrall has a video called F**k Tha Phase Police in which he shows that using zero-latency EQs on multiple tracks of the same source is still generally totally fine to do. The phase shift somewhat changes the shape of the boost/cut, but that's basically it, a boost still won't cut anything or vice versa and it's not going to sound phase-y or anything. And you're naturally going to compensate for that shape difference by using a different Q value than you otherwise would. It's basically only worth considering if you use high pass/low pass filters or plugins with oversampling (since the oversampling itself secretly puts a very high frequency low pass filter on the signal) because those types of filters have a different and much more drastic effect on the phase coherency.

[@firmansaragi498]

Dan Worall is amazing.

[@saitenkiller]

Dan Worrall is THE MAN. I could listen to him talking about boss-level-nerdy stuff all day. No clue how he does that.

[@acmeyakko]

I only came into the comments to post this. When in doubt, find one of his videos.

[@georgesimpson1406]

What's this about oversampling putting secret filters on? They'd be above human hearing range. Its only in 44.1k or lower where they encroach on hearing range, but that's not oversampling but any digitised music. All digital sampling of a waveform needs to accountfor aliasing (the misrepresentation of waves above half the frequency value of the rate, because minimum two values to interpolate a wave) so the frequencies in 48k above 24khz must be cut out, which is easier said than done as filters aren't steep without making artifacts. Nonetheless, how can we change the filter that our A/D conversion employs? How much do we worry about going over 48k unless we plan on slowing down material?

[@Awaclus]

​@@georgesimpson1406 The problem is not with a high sample rate, the problem is with temporarily going higher than your actual sample rate. The way oversampling works is that you temporarily get a higher sample rate so that your distortion plugin or whatever makes you higher harmonics instead of aliasing, and then it filters out the higher harmonics before it downsamples back to your actual sample rate so you get heavily reduced aliasing as a result, plus an extra low pass filter in your chain.

[@LockWithNoKeys]

This is the ONLY video where I have seen super clear explanation of which one to use, thanks so much!!! Also the rock examples are super useful for the audio but this is even more important in non rock music I’ll bet

[@Overxpossed]

Nice video mate. Loved the camera from the back and not talking to it. LOL!!!!!!!!!! You must!!! "(feel free)" XDDDD 🤘🤘🤘

[@andrewjacobs5579]

Massive thank you dude \m/. The last month or so I've been close to being done with recording & drumming (20+ years of severe unresolved spinal injuries preventing me from getting more/better equipment let alone playing well). Long story short the past few months I was saying Yep I'm actually done this time, one of your vids pops up & I see I'm right on track in the zone. I try the stuff you talk about with the stock stuff on my old Studio One.2 & I get closer & closer to an acceptable rough mix.

[@KohleAudioKult]

So great to hear that! Stay tuned!

[@MichaelDespairs]

This was really enlightening. Decades ago I heard a metal recording and the "click" or attack of the kick drum was subtly fading in and I couldn't figure out what could have caused it and thought it was possibly compression. BUT the effect was awesome. I seem to think it was in the age before widespread plugin use and this seems like a digital plugin thing and not an analog EQ one.

[@romano5222]

nice ! many people explained me pre/post ringing, you're the only one that made me hear it !

[@tomasgunn]

The mix already sounds great - look forward to hearing the final product 👍

[@KohleAudioKult]

Make sure to join the academy in October to see the whole story!

[@MichaelSmith-on1ig]

I can’t stress enough how valuable these pieces of advice are!

[@ThomannsGuitarsBasses]

Your videos are killer, man! I just learned something new. Cheers Kristian! //Kris

[@KeithMcKissick]

Very educational. I use linear phase only on my copied bass DI tracks. Never knew exactly why, but was taught to do that. I would've liked to see you show an example of when using a linear phase is correct and why. Just like you showed how it can be damaging.

[@KohleAudioKult]

Yes, that’s exactly the situation where you might want LP EQ!

[@TheStrykerProject]

Very much appreciate showing 'negative' affects of using a process. I'd love to see something like this video with compression and even reverb.

[@grahamschumann1549]

Kristian, just started watching your channel, I've learned more about recording metal in 4 of your videos then I have in years of hanging around studios. You're the fucking man! \m/

[@KohleAudioKult]

So great to hear that! Make sure you are on my email list so you don’t miss my academy in October! 🤘❤️

[@marcus268]

Fantastic ! I needed this.

[@jimshomestudio]

I typically use zero latency, without understanding phase and without any proper analysis tools. I’m here to learn, thank you.

[@freddyleal1756]

Awesome topic and little lesson!!

[@iamgeorgesears]

9:08 FINALLY someone giving a concrete fucking answer when to use them and when not. Also, props on recording in Czech Republic!

[@KajtoraMjuzik]

Oh my god. I started hearing this in the low end on my tracks when I master them that "whoop" sound. I thought that I was tripping. Thanks for this video!

[@cyskinsteinmonster9708]

Finally someone puts the cons of a product and actually works you thru it so i dont have to...

[@adamhaymanmusic]

Thank you! I saw Fluff say it should be on linear phase-medium a while back, but I had no idea the reason. Now I feel like I have a better understanding of this concept and will be switching my default back to no latency!

[@drummingjeremy11]

Thank you. This really helped me understand.

[@KohleAudioKult]

Glad it was helpful!

[@EricPeelMusic]

the pre-ringing is not "on all the frequencies you changed". It occurs more and more the steeper the EQ curve is. So the most affected areas are just below and above each filter. So you have 6 prominent areas. 3 of them are pre-ringing and 3 of them are post-ringing. All prominent areas with a zero latency EQ are post-ringing or a reduction in post-ringing, depending on which way the eq curve is sloping. So we don't really hear the post-ringing one's in linear phase EQ. Your fundamental boost Q is unnecessarily narrow. Widen it out or even replace it with a low shelf and you might not even notice it. If you make your mid cuts extremely narrow with an extreme db/oct like 96, and place the slopes in areas where there are very little sound, you can also hide them reasonably well.

[@soundclosetstudio]

Thanks again for these great tips and tricks🤘🤘

[@DONIRYU]

this is really useful, man! thanks for sharing

[@michaelking4501]

Love No Turning Back. Stoked for the doc.

[@metalenvyer]

Great video on PLEQ. I used one on a track and like you said it sounded like the beginning of quest for fire by iron maiden me and buddies was going WTF is that sound so I don't use them ever. So not I've cursed myself. Now every mix I get I'll to one NOT !! Thanks brother it's a dangerous tool

[@lahattec]

Song name... "No Turning Back From The Netherlands" :)

[@monkmusic5994]

Herr Kohle, sehr hilfreich! Gestern habe ich das auf meinem 2-Bus ausprobiert. Der Mix war danach schwachbrüstig. Wer braucht linear eq?

[@BetterMixes]

Thank you!!! I always see people using linear phase EQ because they just assume it's better.

[@FelipeGruberTV]

"Feel free to subscribe to my.. NO! you have to!" JAJAJA. Awesome live recording. Prost kumpel 🤘🏻

[@KohleAudioKult]

Haha! Höflichkeit muss ja nicht immer sein 🤘🤪

[@MartinvonBargen]

Great informative vid and I can't wait for the NTB documentary. 🤘🤘

[@KohleAudioKult]

It turned out great!

[@MartinvonBargen]

@@KohleAudioKult I'm from the days of recording LPs live in a small studio and I really miss the bits of spill and bleed that add some life to recordings. Will be cool to see a more HC band being recorded and see how the chuggy guitars are dealt with in a live take.

[@creativeheadroom]

Most of my plugins don't even have a Linear Phase mode. What I've been doing for years to preserve phase between sources is bus processing. Snare Top + Bottom are sent to a bus and then EQ is applied to both at the same time. Works like a charm. Gating can obviously be done individually.

[@KohleAudioKult]

Bus processing is very often superior! But not always the right thing to do

[@creativeheadroom]

@@KohleAudioKult There's a time and place for everything. Sometimes bus processing definitely doesn't get the job done. My method was born out of necessity (I didn't have a linear phase EQ at the time and couldn't afford to invest in more plugins) and it just became part of my workflow. At this point I'd just use a linear phase EQ for some stuff instead of going for bus processing. It all depends on the source, though.

[@charlesmayberry2825]

This is very true, I do have the tools, and often I'll still choose buss processing over linear phase EQ, However, there are times when it isn't the right move. So like you mentioned in your reply already, it all depends on the source. The best tool we have is our ears. if it sounds right, it is right, if doesn't sound right. it isn't right.

[@soundman1402]

I just use delay compensation in Pro Tools. Especially useful when I use both hardware inserts and software plugins in a mix.

[@ThomasECahill]

Very good, Thanks!

[@alexeysmirnovguitar]

For corrective tasks I just use stock eq in my DAW Studio one. Never felt the need to use linear phase EQ really. I listen to the whole mix carefully for something that sounds worse after processing. I tend to fine-tune high-pass filters for low-end sources by ear. Sometimes I apply a 100 Hz low-pass filter on the whole mix to isolate the low-end only, using headphones to actually hear lower frequencies. It can be time-consuming, but it works for me since I don't have any acoustic treatment in my room, so I can not trust my speakers in terms of low end.

[@saitenkiller]

Very, very intersting, thanks a lot for this!

[@alesnovak2906]

100% agree with everything but just to add another solution..In case we have two mics(tracks) on the same source(guitar) we can send both two sources to aux track and EQ them both at the same time on the aux track with "natural phase" EQ.Phase will still shift but it will shift equally on both sources so it will be unnoticeable.It's especially important if we are tracking on analog console where EQ's are not linear and we wanna blend two mics into one track.It's also a good solution when we're mixing ITB if we have,for example, 2 or more snare sources (live,sample,OH sample,room sample..) that we send them to a group and EQ them there all with one EQ if we wanna avoid phase shifting problems with "natural EQ".

[@KohleAudioKult]

That’s right!

[@Vincentpadrutt]

"Rough Mix" - Sounds 1000 times better than anything I've ever mixed on my best day :D

[@KohleAudioKult]

🤪 thanks! Make sure to join the academy in October and you’ll learn how to record / mix these tracks.

[@Vincentpadrutt]

@@KohleAudioKult Bin echt gespannt, was für Kurse du raushauen wirst! Dein Guitar Amp Micing Kurs war richtig nice!

[@chris-rb7bm]

thats exactly what I was doing recently! Yea I was doing my eq moves then stupidly just selecting linear mode and moving on. !!! Thanks for the info bro! :)

[@Hellseeker1]

I tend to just run my kick and snare tracks through the distressor plug-in, if it needs an EQ I’ll use something like a Pultec or API plugin, I feel like the Fab stuff is more for precise work. I barely use them so far. Still learning as always but usually just turning knobs till it sounds good.

[@MoreMeRecording]

Good catch, KK. Thanks!

[@michaeld.7520]

Thanks for bringing attention to this. It's sound wisdom to consider this when something isn't sounding right when using the Pro-Q.

[@threepe0]

Or, when using any EQ at all. As Dan pointed out, all EQs ring; it’s just a matter of how, and when. It’s definitely sound advice to understand and dig into the tools you’re using though

[@javierpena1455]

Great explanation! thank you!

[@Hassan_Omer]

So how about using linear eq for buses, instead of using it on individual track ? and maybe use very little zero latency eq on individual tracks.

[@cecilhope8911]

I just subscribed to your channels because you forced me to lol:) Really cool and informative tutorial. great stuff. Gruß aus Stuttgart

[@KohleAudioKult]

Gut so! Sonst gibt's Ärger! Haha!

[@cajun3197]

🤯🤜😵. I learned a lot in this one. Thank you! Similar to sonic maximizers we used in the effects loop of our amps back in the day?

[@KohleAudioKult]

Oh yeah, those things were serious tone suckers!

[@michaelkampf1001]

i never use the linear phase for tracks, but in the master plug in setting it works better, than a normal EQ...it ads basement and glimmer to the top freq ...please try it out

[@georgesimpson1406]

I agree, you can hear the delay relations i think, even when nothing is in parallel because its a very complex signal. Well, something is in parallel, say the 200hz vs the 2khz if only part of the waveform is shifted.

[@21stcenturymetal31]

I like running everything with maximum Linear phase and 3 metal zones. Its makes the entire track come to life. lol Great video Kohle

[@sdkee]

Linear phase filters are for keeping the delay at all frequencies the same. It is extremely useful in things like cell phone and wifi communications chips. But they are very unnatural as all real world filtering does not do this. The "ringing" you are hearing is likely comb filtering due to the unfiltered (not delayed) sound getting added to the filtered (delayed) one somewhere in the mix. IIR filters (the not linear phase ones) will only add interesting delay near the frequencies where you are making cuts and bumps (near frequencies with changes in the gain vs frequency) so it won't have this effect.

[@StigmatizedProductions]

I totally agree with Kristian here...I used at some point the Linear phase and i discovered the same problems plus one more : it creates a pre-ringing effect and for this reason it creates a tiny amount of a faded sound just before the "hit" starts (to be more specific, if e.g i use a midi "hit" exactly at the bar 2, use Zero latency mode and export it, everything works fine-the waveform is as expected (some samples exactly after the bar 2); if i use Linear Mode the sample starts before the bar 2 and this is the faded pre-ringing effect that you already noticed). This issue cost me hundrends of editing hours to correct thousand of my samples

[@KohleAudioKult]

Thanks man! That is actually the same problem! Pre-ringing because of the phase correction.

[@cerebralcoma4850]

Great Tutorial

[@hdaniels666]

What song is that? Sounds absolutely awesome 💪

[@KohleAudioKult]

Join the academy in October and you can get your hands on the multitracks! The band is called NO TURNING BACK

[@rakibmahmudovee5544]

that rough mix sounds better than my final mix

[@AmbrisonRose]

Very Helpful Thank You !!!

[@joelacina386]

Good stuff!\m/

[@miserypath]

This is really interesting. What about the "natural phase" mode? Does it have an equally negative effect?

[@KohleAudioKult]

It's actually a pretty good compromise.

[@alrecks619]

Natural Phase is meant to mimic the top end phase shift of analog EQs, iirc. Which minimum phase EQ tends to cramp down just before Nyquist.

[@weschilton]

Just a small opinion, but time spent getting the drum sound right on the way in, saves a lot of hassle trying to "fix it in the mix" later, including phase issues.

[@KohleAudioKult]

That's exactly my Mantra!

[@petralustich617]

Ich habe mal in einem Video gehört, das beim eq die Frequenzen die man lauter macht eigentlich garnicht lauter gemacht werden, sondern das diese Frequenzen früher kommen. Dadurch denkt man das die lauter ist weil man die früher hört. So wie in deinem Video. Ist aber natürlich nicht mit jedem eq so.

[@hxcguy4187]

No Turning Back are tough as f**k!!!! I’m stoked that and the band got to work together.

[@KohleAudioKult]

I have produced the last two albums already. But this is the first time we recorded live

[@SuperHk303]

regular eqs are detrimental if used in the low end of kick and bass in EDM particularly low cuts because as you said it shifts the phase, in the case of a tight edm kick and bass it throws the timing off and it is audible and it's clear in a oscilloscope, you can see the shift. that's the only time I might reach for a linear phase eq if there arnt any other options

[@MrMockigton]

alright so my question is this: if i have 12 drum tracks, which i totally have, that means i have at least 6 "snare" tracks, counting the rooms and overheads. should i do something about my phase then? they are obviously highly eqd, i dont have the proper room to create the perfect sound at the source.

[@KohleAudioKult]

That’s way too complicated to be answered here. You might consider joining the academy in October. There will be hours of content explaining how to track drums!

[@paulhilber1481]

great man! great teacher!

[@ConstantineM]

I use Linear Phase EQ only on my Mastering chain. Single tracks and buses is on Natural Phase EQ.

[@personalfreedom2700]

Looking forward to taking your course, as an imaging software teacher myself i like how you explain everything and engage with the audience… i tried puremix course and the senior citizens with grammys they have teaching most of those classes just put me to sleep.

[@KohleAudioKult]

You’re not gonna fall asleep in my courses! 🤪🪚🍺💥! But I feel your pain. Many world class mixers and producers are terrible educators.

[@machine-madedog5059]

Rest assured, Kristian is the opposite of someone like Dave Moulton.

[@charlesmayberry2825]

I was always told to not mess with it, unless it was a problem, So if I can get it sounding good with a traditional EQ, You don't need Natural or linear phase EQ. In the same vein as if a distresser does the trick you don't need a harsher compressor. If your buss compressor does the trick you don't need a harsher limiter/compressor. Basically I was taught minimalism in my production/processing. You want to hear the musicians. Hear the song. Not the producer. This is true in both live audio and a studio setting, you know they are good when everything sounds good, but you don't hear the sound guy.

[@CaseySabol]

man that production sounds sick...so refreshingly organic sounding

[@KohleAudioKult]

Thanks! You can watch the whole recording process and get the tracks if you join the Kult in October!

[@vlastneme]

great mix the energy is there dont touch anything ......

[@KohleAudioKult]

The power of a live recording

[@marianmusic7221]

All good info, though the thumbnail is very click-baity and wrongly pointing towards a well known EQ (FabFilter Pro Q), for clickbait purposes, instead of pointing at a certain category of EQs! And the fact that FabFilter Pro Q offers also the non-linear (zero-latency) option, beside the "tricky" linear-phase, makes it even more wrong still to say "don't use it" (see thumbnail of the video). In fact, Dan Worrall described the positives and the negatives of both options (linear and non-linear phase) on the FabFilter youtube channel many years ago (search for it). When will people learn to be sincere and share their info without using psychological manipulation (using clickbait titles) and without trying to hurt the others (unjustified and very wrong in this case)?

[@christophk3078]

Wie mixt man eigentlich mit einer Mütze über den Ohren?

[@KohleAudioKult]

Einfach immer Höhenshelving mit +6dB auf dem Monitor! Cool aussehen hat seinen Preis ;)

[@leaveitorsinkit242]

In that case… is it a bad idea to use speaker calibration EQ at the end of your master chain?

[@KohleAudioKult]

You better just use it on your monitoring chain

[@leaveitorsinkit242]

@@KohleAudioKult My DAW doesn’t have a monitoring chain. Point is… it’s a linear phase EQ. Should I be concerned about pre-ringing (even if it’s very minimal)?

[@hjl4754]

Hey bro, have you ever tried the dod death metal or the digitech death metal and got a killer death metal guitar tone?

[@KohleAudioKult]

Back in the 90s I did. But it's a good idea for a video! I'll try to find one

[@hjl4754]

@@KohleAudioKult Oh awesome, I actually used my dod fx86 death metal through the grindstein plugin using the eq and ir, I got such a killer tone 🤘🤘🤘

[@martindalesio]

killer info thanks!

[@BrofUJu]

I've seen people use the linear phase multiband on the master and I always feel like it's just murdering the track. Similar idea?

[@KohleAudioKult]

For multiband it’s a different story. Another video! 🤘

[@BrofUJu]

@@KohleAudioKult thanks Kohle!

[@rockerfromthebackstreets]

Good Stuff

[@Gdude899]

You didn't seem to explain why the transients smudge and this ring happens when all your doing is Eq'ing with a clever program that doesn't change the phase when you Eq, how is this process subtracting from the sound in such an unpleasant way?

[@SlightlyNasty]

Because it's not a simple thing to explain, it's to do with the mathematics of filter processing, and the interactions between the EQ filter and the corrective allpass stage.

[@Gdude899]

@@SlightlyNasty oh cool thanks, but wouldn't that mean transients can still smudge and probably have done when the linear phase Eq is used for its purpose e.g. Eqing the normal many mic's different distance same source in the DAW

[@SlightlyNasty]

@@Gdude899 Yes, the pre-ringing is inherent to linear-phase processing, it's up to the user to decide whether it's a better or worse artifact to deal with than the phase shifts of traditional EQ, on a case-by-case basis.

[@alrecks619]

that rough mix, though. It sounds way better than my productions 😳

[@KohleAudioKult]

Come join Kohle Audio Kult and you’ll get better!

[@lukesmusic317]

Wish I had this video about 8 years ago. For awhile I would put linear phase EQ on everything, especially my drums...

[@ajafterparty]

How come you skipped over the "natural phase" setting? probably the most valuable one. It gets rid of the harshness that zero latency gives you.

[@KohleAudioKult]

I wanted to cover the difference as clearly as possible! I don’t have a harshness problem with Zero Lately though!

[@ajafterparty]

@@KohleAudioKult the harshness is there by nature of the plug-in being efficient. When you put it in natural phase that nasty edginess goes away. Boost something in the top end and switch it between zero and natural. See if you hear what I’m talking about.

[@ajafterparty]

Try it on something resonant, like a saw synth, hi hats or maybe a vocal.

[@golbeatspro]

I don't see people talking about how zero latency messes up the stereo image, one of the reasons i use linear phase eqs is to protect the stereo image...

[@KohleAudioKult]

Really? You gotta explain that a little more detailed please!

[@CharLessMajor7Music]

I’m not sure but did Kirchhoff EQ fixed that with their mixed phase mode. 🤔

[@KohleAudioKult]

FabFilter also habe something in between called „Natural Phase“

[@DanWorrall]

@@KohleAudioKult not really in between tbh. Natural phase mode gives you more authentically analogue style phase shift in the high frequencies. It's still 'minimum phase'.

[@insertanynameyouwant5311]

what about natural phase in proq?

[@guitaristfirst9697]

Frankly i'll never use it and never had a wish to use it before.) I always use DMG audio EQuality and suits me perfectly. Because it sounds way better than sandy Fabfilter.) In rare cases i use Sonible SmartEQ.

[@tlepsh_band]

So u said it might be cool to use linear EQ to cut the low end of the guitars, but u also said not to use it for low end.. can u clarify? Btw I literally never liked or use a Linear EQ cause of the pre ringing effect. Cheers kohle

[@KohleAudioKult]

It makes sense if you lowcut guitars. But only if you capture the same performance with multiple mics. Don’t use it for very narrow EQ moves in the low end!

[@tlepsh_band]

@@KohleAudioKult I usually buss the multiple mics and just low cut the buss to preserve the phase, but I’m gonna checkout cutting the individual channels with the linear option next. As always, awesome video. See u in hell.

[@johnhehman]

@@tlepsh_band i do the same, please let me know how it works for ya!

[@tlepsh_band]

@@johnhehman ya sure, will do.

[@patknup4058]

Killer track

[@firmansaragi498]

I love linear phase eq for my master on the top end. Especially with modern metal that the snare sound too pokey. Linear phase eq will ease up the transient. Like using the weakness of linear phase eq on purpose.

[@lolaa2200]

Will it be a documentary ? or a rockumentary ?

[@KohleAudioKult]

You decide how to call it! But it will kick ass! 👌🤘❤️

[@lolaa2200]

@@KohleAudioKult somme will get the reff ;c)

[@artysanmobile]

Linear phase equalization has its place but is no panacea. Just use your ears. You will clearly hear preference for each if you look away from the screen.

[@joelybarish4618]

demonstrate the proper use case for linear phase EQ??

[@KohleAudioKult]

Agree! That’s something I should have added. Sorry! Next time.

[@RemyRAD]

So I've presented here a lot of information to ponder and take in. All solid, true and real. And because I also like designing and building control rooms for myself and others. And I want you to be proud of the recordings that you make. And I want you to make them well. I want everybody to go wow. When they hear your recording. Regardless of what it was made upon. And this is how you get there.. Thank goodness for the Internet and KZbin. Google not so much. Apple not so much. Because I have the Intel, on audio. That no one else actually has. There are a few. But very few. That truly understand, what's going on, in their rooms. Now, my control room. That I've had now for over, 32 years. Is in a, 25,000 pound, diesel box truck. And my control room is only, 10 x 8 x 8 feet. And that's too small for good sound. But the sound in my control room is better than that of some very sophisticated and expensive state-of-the-art control rooms. Why? My speakers are in phase together and in, positive polarity, together. In a fascinating occurrence one day. I had a, Acoustic Engineer, get angry in my control room. Why? He started ranting and yelling. That it should not sound as good! The dimensions are all wrong! You've got carpet on the walls! It's not supposed to sound as good! I told him he could leave. Because he didn't understand a thing! As to why my control room sounded so good! I've had plenty of bands come through that of also told me the same thing. But in a more complementary way. Such as…" I've been to some very large expensive studios. Why does your control room sound so much better than theirs?" So my control room is what I refer to as a, "Positive Pressure Wave Control Room Design". And yeah. It is too small! Oh well! It's in a truck! So you have to make it sound good. And I don't need a bunch of, Bass Traps and acoustic gobbledygook on my walls. There's just no room for that to begin with. And all you need is your speakers connected properly! So that you can really hear what you're doing and what you're getting. Even in a dinky sized control room that's too small. I mean that's smaller than your bedroom control room! And assembled on the cheap! Because I know how to do it right. I know what a control room needs to sound like. I know how engineers need to hear their speakers. So they don't have to struggle through a recording or a mix. This little bit of information I have provided here. Will be a game changer and change your life! But you have to accept something that is counterintuitive and technically correct that's wrong. It's amazingly stupid! It's that one little thing, that 99% of folks all get wrong. Including those with advanced college degrees. In the field of, ours. Amazingly inept! And I can show you with a simple diagram. Scratched out on a napkin. Why this is. It's so simple! So it really doesn't matter. How much money you spent on your room. How much money you have spent on your equipment. When you don't have your speakers connected correctly. And those self powered monitors are a big problem! Because you have to remove the speakers from the box. To flip their polarity, properly. And the difference it will make in your life. Will amaze others. Why does your cheap Chinese control room sound so much better than my expensive high-end control room? You've got your speakers connected correctly. That's why. Now you don't have to believe me. But you should. I'm not an amateur. Like everyone else is here on KZbin.. Even some of those people that are notable. They don't know that they are monitoring on in phase but out of polarity, speakers. They've gotten used to working that way. And some don't like this correction but most do. It's all a matter of personal taste. And I like stuff that tastes really good! So my sound does also. Now it's slightly creepy. When you are doing a live broadcast of a rock 'n' roll music Festival. With big-name bands.. And you've got, 3 million, to, 10 million people tuned in. To hear every mistake you're going to make. And so marijuana works well in that manner. So you don't overthink everything. And drive yourself crazy. Because you really can't tell what the FUCK you are listening to. When your speakers are in phase together but 180° out of positive polarity. And I tell those folks with $36,000 monitors. That they suck! To which they've gotten very angry at that comment. And I tell them no. You don't have lousy speakers. You just have them connected backwards. They are sucking! Not punching out toward you. Because an ounce of Punch. Is worth a, Pound of Sound! And that's what you want. That's what you need. And most of your acoustic aberrations. All disappear! And your stereo sound field is now huge! No matter where you sit or stand! It's an amazing difference. A truly incredible game changer. Give it a try! You'll be glad you did! And you can will me your equipment should you die. Because I'm also selling off my second and last, 36 input vintage 1970 Neve audio console. I've been having fun with it since 1984 and have owned it since 1996. Time to pay the goodness forward. If you pay me. Besides I've got plenty of extra APIs microphone preamps also. And while Bob Clearmountain doesn't like those. I do. I don't even think George Massenburg likes those? Because while George Massenburg used to use, JBL, L-100's. Which was the consumer version of the JBL 4311's. He now uses more expensive high-end, powered monitors. That are sucking. And that's the reason. Why he designed such elaborate acoustics. In his control rooms. He doesn't really need to. But even he doesn't know. That his speakers are sucking. Because technically they are correct. But acoustically they are wrong. So how can something right be wrong? As something wrong be so right? Well it's because. You have to understand exactly what is going on. And how it's working. Or not working for you. And sure! If you have a large enough control room and spend enough money on acoustic gobbledygook. You can probably get by with in phase but out of polarity monitors? Like he does today. And is still clueless. As to what actually is going on. This is why so many great rock 'n' roll hits from the 1970s. Sounded so great. Everybody was using those JBL 4311's. The don't suck. They punch. Because the plus and minus terminals are indicated backwards. You have to understand a little bit about DC theory 101. Even though our speakers are AC. DC theory still pertains to our AC speakers. And they do have polarity. And when the instruction diagrams show you. To connect the positive output terminal of your audio amplifier. To the positive input terminal on the speaker. Well? That's actually wrong. Because if you think about it in another way. Let's say. You just got a new flashlight. For a birthday present. And it requires 2 batteries. Do you put the plus terminals of the batteries together? Or the minus terminal of the batteries together? If you do? The flashlight will not work! What's wrong with this damn flashlight? It's because you have to connect the positive terminal. To the negative terminal. That's DC theory 101. So why would you keep everything in phase. Up to the output of your audio speaker amplifier.? And then connect them, backwards? That's stupid! So you connect the positive terminal on the output of the audio power amplifier. To the negative terminal. On most all other speaker manufacturers, speakers. Except for JBL. Because there terminals are actually indicated backwards. Plus is negative and minus is plus. So when you connect it. When you connect the plus to, plus. And the minus, to, minus. It'll be right with JBL's. Isn't that amazing? How clever of them! They make your stupidity work for you! But not other speaker manufacturers. LOL. All others. It's sad but true. Just ask any PA guy. They will all tell you they love their JBL speakers. But they find them out of phase. To all of their other speakers by other manufacturers. And there you go! So I'm getting tired of talking to my computer and myself. Time for you to take charge. Of your lives, control rooms and monitoring. And find out for yourself. How much of an improvement this will make in your life. Don't sweat your lousy acoustics. I've made great recordings in the worst acoustic environments. And have set up, fly pack, portable control rooms. In, God awful sounding rooms. Where everything still then sounds good. Because my speakers are not sucking. So you don't have to. Suck it up. This works! I mean suck it out. I don't think that's coming out right? But you get the idea. Don't let your speakers, suck. RemyRAD

[@RemyRAD]

So I had done a nice recording and live mix. Using lots of boost. Lots of rolloff's. And it sounded great! So now! I decide to do a remix in software. Now using only, linear phase EQ. Oh my goodness! Yes! It sounded horrible! WTF, is going on? I find that standard, variable phase EQ. Either, slows the audio down or, speeds the audio up. With its phase manipulation. This is not true of, linear phase EQ. And so linear phase EQ does not sound fast. It does not sound slow. It affects only the fundamental frequencies, you are manipulating. And nothing in the, overtones a.k.a. harmonics. Beyond set frequencies. H MMM? Interesting. Fascinating. The mix I got using linear phase EQ, was an, abomination. Albeit, it worked extremely well. It did, what it was designed, to do. But that is no reason, to use it as such. On everything. Though obviously, it has its place. Which I will get to. So when it comes to music tracks. Of some tracks just not sounding right. And no standard EQ will remedy or rectify that issue. This is where software-based, linear phase EQ really shines. Muddy or nondescript sounding musical tracks. Which does happen. Especially in actual live capture, situations. With a truly live recording. There is only so much one can do. With an old-fashioned analog audio console. So, some of this must be improved later. In audio postproduction and mixing. Where you then have the linear phase, EQ. As linear phase EQ. Really does not exist. From analog audio equipment. It's a mathematical function. And analog doesn't do math. Neither do I. I'm lousy at math. But phase variable EQ. Can be very helpful. In making something slow sounding, sound faster. So I have used some, linear phase EQ. On some musical instrument and vocal tracks. That were not recorded well. Due to a myriad of reasons. That could not be avoided at the time. But you do the best you can because you are live on the air via satellite, coast-to-coast and around the world. Such as for MTV, live broadcasts and such. So we actually really need. This huge pallet of numerous types of EQ. Some from the analog realm. Others from the digital realm. And when combined together. You get magic happening. Don't get me wrong here. I will still use that 1073 equalizer. To take out some 200-350 Hz. From a bass drum. A bass guitar. Other instruments and vocals, here and there. While also using a judicious amount of,, high pass filtering on vocals. It's amazing how much better they can sound. When you high pass your vocal at, 250-400 Hz, etc. Just roll all of that off in the low-end. Stick that vocals through a, FET, 1176 style limiter. With a ratio of 20:1 to that of 50:1. And be pulling, 10-15-20 DB worth of gain reduction. And inserting after the limiter. A downward expander/gate. On that vocalist. With 10-15 DB of gain ducking. Below their average vocal level. To reduce a, boatload of sludge. Between their words and phrasing. To have the background noise and sludge, woosh up. Between their words and phrasing. And where also, you might need some linear phase EQ. To reduce the fundamental frequencies. Of some of that background ambient noise. From certain brutal sounding instrumentation. Getting into the, lead vocal microphone. But when live on the air through an analog console. You have to do the best that you can. Without linear phase EQ. The linear phase EQ is much more appropriate for, audio postproduction purposes. But with today's more faster computers and real-time software. This can now also be done in closer to real-time. By looping those tracks through your computer and software. Whereas that can seldom be done, quickly in real time. So you do the best you can. Because you're on the air coast-to-coast. For a big live rock 'n' roll festival. From, say, a large park or NFL stadium. For instance. Where acoustics and bleed can be quite horrible. And where I am a world-class engineer. There's only so much I can do for Helen Keller. As she could neither, see nor hear anything! So, only so much we can do for Helen. As it seems a lot of listeners at home. Have hearing equivalent to hers. So, linear phase EQ definitely has its place. And time, to use it. But not something you would want to use overall on everything. Since your phase variable EQ. Will either enhance or depress, multiple harmonics of the fundamental. Outside of the center frequency. Of that selected frequency on the variable phase EQ. So what a lot of people also don't understand. And really neither did Rupert Neve. Which blew my mind! Is that of the, grunge. Of the harmonics. Because every piece of equipment. It is going to instill, its own characteristic, grunge. So in the end. I don't want perfect equipment and circuits! Because those have no color. No actual life. No chutzpah.. No character. They just sound perfect. And I don't want perfect! I want cool sounds that are very listenable. Lush, with its harmonic content, i.e., distortion characteristics. I want some of that musical grunge! And this is where the newest of the Rupert Neve Designs, equipment. Leaves me cold. As it doesn't sound like his earlier more flawed, circuitry design. Which we all know and love the sound of! Because it's not perfect! So in my engineering technique and selection of equipment and microphones. I don't go for perfection of sound. I go for familiarity, of sound. I love the sound of those classic rock 'n' roll hits. And they are filled with grunge. From the then, high-end equipment. So I have made marvelous recordings. Using that high-end equipment. But I have also made marvelous recordings. Using, the world's cheapest microphone preamp. In an, inexpensive portable audio console. With no transformers. With no transistors. Just a simple,, 5534 integrated circuit chip. It's amazing how good those can sound. When you understand gain staging. And don't top out its transients. Which makes everything sound flat and lifeless. When you do. So in that lesser expensive equipment. I will tweak gain staging. For maximum headroom. Which also introduces, maximum background noise. Of the equipment itself. But that can more easily be dealt with. Than peaks, forever clipped off and lost. So there are many folks out there. That can only afford those pieces of entry-level equipment. That lacks 10 or more db of, headroom. And this is where I was occasionally hired. To go to some of these, amateur, garage bands, home studios. With there is simply awful, horrid, TEAC/TASCAM style mixers. That had the worst sounding, mid band equalizers. And a total lack of overall headroom within. And I show them. I demonstrate. How to make that sorry piece of crap. Those horrible pieces of shit. Sound more like a Neve or API, console. Because I know how to cheat and expand, it's apparent headroom. As the increased noise, is seldom a problem. When then, the engineering on said, inexpensive audio consoles. Has its controls set in a very awkward appearing manner. It's really quite funny actually. To get another 12 db worth of headroom. Out of a TEAC/TASCAM mixer. And don't touch or use the mid band EQ. Just use the high-frequency and low-frequency, pots/controls. Want more presence? Roll off, the low-end and the high-end. And now you have more midrange. Without touching the mid band EQ. And tricks like that. Because silly rabbit. TR I X are for kids! And I know all the tricks. Some of them are friends of mine and colleagues also. But that's a different kind of trick. To a working girl. And while I am a professional woman. I'm not that kind of professional woman. I'm an engineer. And I know how to engineer excellent audio orgasms! So when boosting with even a software linear phase EQ. You might want to gain stage down, the input. To that linear phase software EQ. Before you boost. Because you have to know where your headroom lies. Within the circuitry, inside that gear.

[@slayabouts]

“I’m sure a lot of you have eq’d a snare drum or a kick drum or a tom in your life and then later just switched the eq to ‘linear phase mode’ believing that it would be something superior” Can’t switch it to linear phase mode and screw up your transients if you don’t know it’s even an option *taps forehead meme*

[@Take-the-Ticket]

I never understood why "introduces phase issues" is a bad thing, that to me is just how eq works. On the other hand, my music is 50% noise so what do I know :)

[@KohleAudioKult]

Take it to 100% brother!

[@Take-the-Ticket]

@@KohleAudioKult Thanks, I just may. I'm on Spotify if interested.

[@ufkrec]

I was using linear eq and then I changed to normal mode and it sounded so much better so I stopped using it

[@TheMilosDjuric]

Great description of the phase issues and artefacts one can introduce with different tools and methods, and how to realize if one is a victim of those inconsistencies as well. That 'reverse' ringing sound reminds me of some old tape recordings I made in the '90s. Do you think a cheap/missused tape recording setup was introducing a similar effect to my tracks? It shure sounded similar to this linear phase sound here. Rock on!

[@mephias3984]

I only use linear phase EQ to impress the ladies.

[@KohleAudioKult]

Haha! Best comment so far! 🤩

[@mfkrwill]

"Effect preeceeds cause this implies Time travel, and is the work of the devil" Dan Worall, Linear Phase eq video

[@queenpurple8433]

I’m still gonna use proq3

[@KohleAudioKult]

That's all right, haha! Just know when to (not) use the LP mode!

[@cmd_f5]

This is a very clear and well explained example of real world linear phase EQ gone wrong. I pretty much never use that mode in Pro-Q anyway. The first thing it reminded me of was how a lossy encoder at low bitrates will kind of pre-echo the transients before the actual transient, just in the low end of that snare. Couldn't help but laugh at how silly that sounds. Great stuff as always \M/

[@KohleAudioKult]

Thanks man!

[@RemyRAD]

So linear phase EQ is not the be-all, end-all for equalization. It's like not using a tuba. To replace the bass guitar. In a rock 'n' roll album. Which would sound like a tuba. Not a bass guitar. Even though the fundamental low notes are the same. What I want to know is. While there are guitars made for left-handed guitarists. Like Paul McCartney and others. How come nobody has built a left-hand piano? Where the low notes are on your right hand. And the high notes are on your left-hand. Nobody's ever done that yet! Even Ringo Starr who is left-handed. Plays a right-handed drum kit. Go figure? At that's all his grandmother's fault! Because most folks are right-handed. So if you want to cut some Beatles cover songs? And your drummer is right-handed. Tell your drummer to set up his drum set. For a left-handed drummer. And then tell him to play it that way. Then your Beatles cover, will sound more like Ringo. Because you won't be able to roll across the tom-toms properly. And you'll get that Beatles flavor. But then. You'll have to reverse those tracks. Because Ringo did not play a left-handed drum set. And was recorded like a right-handed drum set. Because it was. So if a right-handed drummer plays a left-handed drum set. You have to reverse the left and right channels to sound like Ringo. Isn't that simple? And it all makes sense. In a wacky way. But I like wacky! I am wacky! And that's part of my charm and engineering technique. In an unrelated incident. Similar but different. I had made a recording. In one of the prominent, national churches. In Washington DC. It was for a live album. With a full choir. And we had to come back later. For some retakes and corrections. When I then noticed a huge problem. I couldn't match up the sound from the live show. Why? I used the same microphones. The same settings. The same equipment. But now it's totally different sounding! What to do? Why did this happen? It was simple. There was no audience. The ambient structure was way different. But we had no audience now. What to do? So I got this brainstorm. Probably due to marijuana? And I took all of the cushions. From the pews. And removed them all. Then I placed them perpendicular. On top of the pews. And that reproduced the absorption. We would've had with, a full audience. Et voilà! Magic! Now the ambient structure, was the same again. Because I had introduced, more absorption. To replace the people. That now didn't exist.. And that required no electronics. Just seating cushions. Not sitting on the pews as they normally did. And the inter-cuts worked out great! Flawlessly! Because I replace the audience members with seating cushions. And this is what true audio engineering, is all about! That is how you engineer, Audio. When your acoustics are not ideal. You have to make them ideal. You have to think things through. Thank? Who knows how to do that anymore? Not many. Because they don't teach you this stuff at, Recordin' SK00L. And oh yes. I've also had to teach the college professors. Who teach the Recording Arts & Sciences. And notice that term. It's not called the Recording Sciences & Arts. It's the other way around. It's an, Art. First and foremost. And you use Science. To make it happen. It's not the other way around. And that small Nuance. Is the difference between a lousy recording and a great one. Where no equipment was actually involved. But I had to put my brain into high gear. To solve that problem. Acoustically. So when I cut narrative voiceovers. And any spoken word. Few people realize. That Natural Sound. It is obtained. In a very unnatural way. Everybody loves my spoken word and sung, vocals. They tell me how absolutely natural. All of my vocals sound. And what they don't know. Is that the vocals are highly processed. To the extreme! To make you think. It sounds natural. There is nothing natural about them. LOL. So I frequently use, a boatload of excessive EQ. Excessive dynamic range limiting. Followed by carefully tweaked, downward expansion. So you don't hear anybody, gulping or slurping, of air. All of their breaths are made to sound, natural. They are reduced. Now some college educated dorks. Tell me I could not change room acoustics. With a downward expander. No! They can't! They don't know how to? I do! And you can! Because you can change the reverb trail and timing, thereof. And that changes the acoustic structure of the sound. Without changing the acoustics. So when it comes to acoustics in studios. I really don't give a damn about them! Because I've had to make great recordings and really horrible sounding, acoustic locations. Another thing not covered here. And you might be surprised to learn. That 99% of all the speaker manufacturers. Have gotten their speakers wrong. Not that they don't have great drivers and great crossovers. They do. Not that they are out of phase. They are not. Everybody is in phase. As they should be. But what they don't realize is. While they are in phase. They are 180° out of polarity together. What does that mean? What this means is. Most speakers are sucking! Think about it. If everything you have is in phase. From microphone input. The line level output. Then into your audio power amplifier. And into your speakers. Which way should your woofers be moving, with the bass drum? If you set out toward you? You would be correct! Congratulations! But your speakers are not doing that! No! They are moving in the opposite direction. On the bass drum. They are sucking into the frame. Into the box. Nobody but myself. Along with JBL. Has understood this. They're the only ones. Along with me. Back from, the late 1970s. Oh my goodness! This is truly funny. But it's not. It's tragic! So I have corrected monitoring issues. At scads of studios and home facilities. Because even the acoustic engineers get this wrong! It's unbelievably stupid! And you will find JBL speakers. To be, " out of phase". When combined with any other speaker manufacturers. Because JBL got it! And there plus and minus posts. On the back of their passive speakers. Our actually indicated, backwards. So you get it right. When you wire it according to the amplifier and speakers, instructions and diagrams. So if you have powered, self powered, monitors? That's a little trickier. You have to have some technical skills there. Because those amplifiers and crossovers are built into each speaker box. And the polarity needs to be flipped on each speaker. So you must remove each speaker first. Un-soldering the connections. And soldering them up, backwards. Then you must reinstall the speakers and screw them down. Et voilà! This will change the way your self powered monitors sound. You won't believe your ears! The difference is profound! As this polarity flip. Must be done. At the output of the audio power amplifier. To the physical input of the speakers. You cannot flip the phase. Going into the audio power amplifier. Because that will simply invert the waveform overall. And your speakers will still be sucking. But sucking in, inverted phase together. Which really doesn't improve the situation any. So a lot of people think phase and polarity, are the same thing. In my book. They are not. Polarity is a power transfer factor. Phase is a small voltage timing factor. They are not the same! So I've blown a lot of people's minds. By telling them to flip the polarity. On both of their speakers at home. And they can hardly believe the results. It's a game changer! When you get the speakers both in phase together. And in positive polarity mode. So that they are protruding out toward you. You will then hear the sound from the speakers. Not coming from the speakers. The sound sounds like it's coming from, about a foot in front of the speakers! As it now actually basically is! Because they are not sucking! So when I got into some studios that have had, $36,000, monitor speakers. And the acoustic engineers and electrical engineers. Can't seem to fix the monitoring issues? It takes me all of 2 minutes. To correct their problem. Then. Any other acoustic aberrations in the room. Largely disappear. And your stereo sweet spot. Behind your audio console. Is now, incredibly broad! It almost doesn't matter where you sit or stand! You will hear, full stereo. Instead of just one speaker or the other. You are closest to. It's an amazing, psycho-acoustic difference! One for the books! That's not in any books!!! And it's taught all wrong! Because I know lots of morons. That have told me. They don't want any out of phase anything in their signal chain! But what about the place where it must be inverted? They have no understanding. They are blockheads. Knuckleheads. Lamebrain's. And you can't fix Stupid. This is such a serious issue. That, for years. I've wanted to present it at an, AES Convention. But I never have yet. Because it will shake people's belief to their core. Sort of like telling everybody. We've just found intelligent life on another planet. And they have no God. Never needed one. As they may be much more advanced than we are? As who's to say, everyone lives and evolves within the same timeline as ours? So even if there is intelligent life elsewhere in the cosmos? We'll never know about it. Because they are hundreds, thousands or, millions of light-years away from us. And we are seeing them. Prior to them even becoming monkeys.

[@BenedictRoffMarsh]

I have never been a fan of (or sucker for) Linear Phase (or really any of the technical obsessions) as Johnny Cash, George Jones, Dwight Yoakam, Duran Duran, Joy Division, Steely Dan... made great records with all the evils of phase in EQ. Thanks for showing this in action so clearly :-)

[@KohleAudioKult]

I agree! It’s a new toy that can be helpful if you know how to use it though, but of course you can make great records without it!