18 - Frequency and Depth Map
Purpose
The guide maps which tool to grab for every job (01, 13, 14) but never the mix real estate those tools fight over. This page is that missing map: a default owner for each frequency band and each depth zone, so low end and EQ stop getting re-solved every session.
Use it as a starting allocation, not a law. The point is that two parts should not own the same band or the same depth at the same time — if they do, one is bloat or needs to move. For who gets which shared space, see 17 - Default Send Rack.
Main Rule
Every part owns a band and a depth. Decide both before EQ.
- If two parts fight, the fix is usually arrangement or register, not another EQ dip (see 01 - Start Here).
- One part per band in the danger zones (sub, mud, presence). Everywhere else, share politely.
- Carve with Pro-Q 4 (see 14); if the problem is dynamic, Pro-MB.
Frequency Real Estate
Default owner = the part that gets to be loud and uncarved in that band. Everyone else high-passes, dips, or steps aside.
| Band | Range | Default owner (from your palette) | Everyone else |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deep sub | 30–60 Hz | Sub synth (Diva sine/tri) or TR-808 sub | Mono only; HPF everything else here |
| Kick weight | 60–100 Hz | Kick | Bass ducks/sidechains; carve the overlap |
| Bass body | 100–250 Hz | Bass (main, mono) | HPF pads/guitars/synth-lows above this |
| Mud zone | 200–400 Hz | Nobody twice — pick one warm part, dip the rest | Default −2 to −4 dB dip on pads, synths, guitars |
| Low-mid body | 400–800 Hz | Chord bed / piano / vocal body | Keep clean; this is where density turns to clutter |
| Presence / intelligibility | 1–3 kHz | Lead vocal | Dip competing synths/guitars here |
| Vocal presence shelf | 3–5 kHz | Lead vocal (+ snare crack) | Carve pads/synths so the lyric stays forward |
| Air / sheen | 8–12 kHz+ | Vocal air, cymbals, shimmer | Add musically, not as a crutch; do not stack air on everything |
Anchor habits this enforces (already in 04): everything below ~120 Hz mono, no reverb on the sub, no two parts double-occupying 200–400 Hz, vocal owns 3–5 kHz.
Depth Real Estate
"Expensive" needs front-to-back layering, not a wall. Assign each part a depth lane and keep most parts out of the far lane.
| Lane | What lives here | How you put it there |
|---|---|---|
| Dry / close | Lead vocal, sub, kick, mono bass | Little/no send; stays present and centered |
| Mid | Snare, main synths, guitar, chord bed | S1 Dark Plate low, short predelay |
| Far | Atmosphere, pads-as-wash, blooms, throws | S2 Cinematic / S3 Dub Delay, automated as moments |
Rules of thumb:
- The focal point (usually the vocal) is the driest, most centered thing. If it is washed, it recedes.
- Width is not depth. Use
S4 Widthfor image, the reverb sends for distance — don't confuse the two. - A part can move lanes for a section (verse pad close → chorus pad far). Automate the send, don't add a layer.
How to Use This
- Name the part's role (19 - Arrangement Role to Routing Map).
- Assign it a band and a depth lane from the tables above.
- If it collides with an existing owner, move register/arrangement first; EQ-carve only the unavoidable overlap.
- Commit. Don't re-open the low end next session — that's what this page is for (see 05 - Locked vs Taste Commit Gate).