Parametric Equalization: The Easiest Way To Remove Unwanted Noise From Your Audio Tracks

People always seem to be fascinated with the ability of a sound engineer to take an audio track filled with hisses, hums, or pops and seamlessly isolate the sound they want, successfully eliminating all unwanted noised. While this isn't a skill that most amateur recording hobbyists tend to have mastered, I'm here to tell you that it's not as hard as it sounds...                                                                                                                                 

The key to eliminating unwanted noises from your mixes is a process known as "Parametric EQ Sweeping." 

Don't let the big words scare you, the actual process is much easier to perform than it is to pronounce! In order to explain what parametric EQ sweeping is, you must first learn what is meant by "parametric EQ." Parametric EQ is a type of equalizer plugin that displays the frequencies of sound in a graph-like format, as shown in the picture above. The low frequencies are on the left side of the x-axis, and the high frequencies are on the right. To put this in perspective, think of it like this:

Why Using MIDI Is The Single Most Effective Way To Create Professional Quality Recordings

Ahhh MIDI... perhaps one of the most useful and convenient music production tools of the 21st century! Not only does it make for literally perfectly synced instrument tracks, but it is solely responsible for this relatively new era of electronically produced music.
So, what exactly is MIDI?

Compression Before EQ? Look No Further - The Answer's Here

One of the most consistent questions I get as a sound engineer is which effect to put first when in the post-production stage of recording: compression or EQ?
This is a very important concept when attempting to create that perfect sound you are looking for, and, as most things go with mixing techniques - it really depends on what the sound source is and what you're looking for.