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how can i find the overpowering frequency in a wave file?


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how can i find the overpowering frequency in a wave file using soundforge? i ran the 'spectrum analysis',but i dont really understand how to read the graph..... i need to know the overpowering frequencies so that i can use EQ on that specific frequency to attenuate it, and make room for the vocals when i mix... thanks...
"Los niños escuchan el 'rap'...que les daña el cerebro"
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use a parametric eq, narrow Q, 12-15db boost. sweep the freq knob until the sound resonates the loudest (it may actually SCREAM at a few points). i do this to find "nasties" at different clubs. then simply turn the gain down and attenuate. spread the Q out a little, and adjust. your done. a 31band works well too, but the q is not as tight. digital shmigital. use your ears.
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No. I believe it's TDM only?? Same with Spectrafoo. There's another way, too: Look at the zero crossings of the waveforms when zoomed in as far as you can go. Look at either how many samples, or how many milliseconds from crossing to crossing. If in samples, and you're at 44.1k, divide 22,500 by your number. That's your answer. If at 48k, divide 24,000 by your number. That's your answer. If in milliseconds, divide 500 by your number. That's your answer. Does this help? Nika.
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Nika.....you just confused the hell outta me....... maybe i stated my question unclearly.... here's my scenario: i recently started mixing and mastering...... say i have a vocal track, and an instrumental track.......i want to find out the frequency that is the most powerful, or loudest,(i'm not sure about the term) in the instrumental, so i can attenuate it with EQ, and make room for when i mix in the vocal..........that's basically it.....soundforge has a spectrum analysis, which gives you a graph of DECIBELS vs FREQUENCY, but i dont really know how to read it to find out which frequency is the most 'booming'..... i'm still a novice with all this stuff......so i dont really know exactly what i'm doing.... thanks....peace
"Los niños escuchan el 'rap'...que les daña el cerebro"
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You have to watch that Nika...he explains it so perfectly that it's almost confusing... ;) If you zoom in on a waveform really close...you can see where it is crossing over the "center" line. If you zoom back out a bit and kinda' take an overall look at your wave sample you can see the high or low peaks or dips. Pick the highest or lowest peak or dip...and really zoom in on it and find the zero crossing (center line)...at one point...say the left, and then scroll to the right until you get to it's next zero crossing again. Mark off that region...read the # of samples for it and then divide by your sampling frequency...44.1, 48...etc. The resulting number is the frequency of that zero-to-zero wave….but JUST AT THAT POINT. I think that is what Nika was suggesting. However, after reading your reply...I think you are looking for something alltogether different. You deliberately use the word "booming", which implies that you are talking about something in the 125Hz-500Hz frequency range. Booming is usually a low frequency problem. Rather than staring at graphs and samples...USE YOUR EARS and a decent parametric EQ as coaster pointed out above. By starting at a low point and working your way up through the frequencies...GENTLY increase the level of a band...using a somewhat narrow Q (bandwidth) setting (.5-1)….not razor sharp. As you work your way up through the frequencies, when you hit the frequency that is annoying to "your sound"...you will know it! Just look at the EQ and it will tell you which band it is. Experiment with the Q (bandwidth) by making it a bit wider or narrower, to open up or really zoom in on a frequency(s). It may seem tedious at first and you may not be able to instantly recognize things...but this is the whole point of the exercise...EAR TRAINING. After awhile, you will easily know which frequencies are…or could…potentially cause problems to your mix, and you will learn to compensate either before, during or even after you've made your recording.

miroslav - miroslavmusic.com

 

"Just because it happened to you, it doesn't mean it's important."

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You can also play a CD by an artist you like, and are familiar with, through your mixer then, play around with your EQ. Boost, cut, sweep back and forth etc. You will begin to learn, and get used to, how the frequencies sound. Like miroslav said, Ear Training. Sly :cool:
Whasineva ehaiz, ehissgot ta be Funky!
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You can also play a CD by an artist you like, and are familiar with, through your mixer then, play around with your EQ. Boost, cut, sweep back and forth etc. You will begin to learn, and get used to, how the frequencies sound. Like miroslav said, Ear Training. Sly :cool:
Whasineva ehaiz, ehissgot ta be Funky!
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