In hip hop, the vocal is key and should be front and center. The beat and everything else exist to prop up the focal point that is vocal to convey the vibe and message of the track. With that in mind, let’s cover the best EQ settings for hip hop to ensure that vocal is sitting just right to cut what we don’t need and keep the rest up front.
Best EQ Settings for Hip Hop
Let’s go band by band, move by move, in covering the best EQ settings for hip hop to explain why we’re doing what each step of the way.
High Pass at 100Hz
The first step in achieving the best EQ settings for hip hop vocals specifically involves inserting a high pass filter.
Specifically I like to create this filter around the 80-100Hz region.
This removes all the ambient room noise, outside noise, and anything in the vocal itself which isn’t contributing to the performance.
Ultimately a high pass filter around 100Hz at most with a 24dB/oct EQ slope will go a long way in cleaning up the vocal, not to mention buy yourself some mixing headroom.
Boost at 150-300Hz
The low end power of the hip hop vocal around 150-300Hz is essential for earning a subconscious kind of credit with the listener.
It’s the same area that radio personalities, podcasters, anyone who talks for a living on a microphone look to enhance and fully capture to earn some gravitas with the listener.
As an aside, it’s essential that you have a decent vocal microphone for hip hop in particular which is capable of faithfully capturing the low end of the voice which you can typically begin to find in the $200-$400 range (see my guide to the best vocal mic).
A small 1-2 boost at 150-300Hz helps to bring out some of that thickness in the body of the vocal which creates a nice anchor for the hip hop vocal.
Dynamic Cut at 500Hz
There’s a touch of boxiness which detracts from the clarity and works against the vocal in the 400-600Hz region.
This is exacerbated by certain rooms, certain microphones, the location of the microphone relative to the vocalist, not to mention some vocalists create more of a problem here than others.
A dynamic EQ cut is a reactive cut, meaning it cuts more (or less) as necessary.
I like a dynamic cut around 500Hz on hip hop vocals as this doesn’t cut more from this area than necessary where we have also have some important overtones, particularly on some notes more than others.
I like to set the threshold so that it pulls 2dB at most when reflections and buildup are at their highest to keep that vocal relatively clean.
This is a subtractive EQ cut in that it actually adds some vocal clarity without requiring more of a boost in the higher frequencies (which I’ll cover in a moment) than we need which is always ideal.
Instead, we’re removing the suffocating and unflattering tones – it’s always preferable to remove what’s NOT working.
Adjust 1k as Necessary
As is the case with most vocals, 1k doesn’t need to be touched in hip hop EQ but CAN be adjusted to address an issue on the vocal.
Specifically:
Boost 1-2dB around 1k IF your hip hop vocal sounds hollow. Hollow vocals are always a product of a poorly treated room, poorly placed microphone, or a bad position of the vocalist relative to the microphone.
If the vocal just sounds “off”, you might try a small 1-2dB boost on the vocal, specifically a dynamic boost as the hollow issue isn’t always a constant, particularly if it’s the product of the vocalist’s position.
Alternatively, you can CUT 1-2dB at 1k IF your hip hop vocal is sounding nasally.
Again, while some singers have a naturally more nasally timbre/nasally voice can be exacerbated by certain microphones, rooms, or the placement of the microphone relative to the singer.
Note that cutting TOO much here will have the inverse effect, meaning it will make your vocal sound hollow even if it didn’t before, and likewise boosting too much here will make the vocal sound more nasally/bring out more of that tone.
Boost at 4-6k for Punch/Presence
We addressed vocal clarity earlier with our dynamic cut in those boxy mids/low mids, but if you want a little more vocal sheen on your vocal hip hop EQ, you might try a small boost at 5k.
This adds a bit of presence which can help the vocal stand out above the beat, particularly by adding a touch more vocal punch on certain consonants which keep that all essential hip hop element right up front/in your face where it should be in the mix (see my guide to up front vocals).
High Shelf at 10k for Air
A high shelf around 10k creates a nice relatively flat 1dB or so boost all the way to our next and final filter.
This brings out more of the vocal air and sizzle which we typically just think of when we’re thinking of a pop vocal, but that air pairs nicely with the rest of the hip hop EQ we’ve put together all the way down to that body boost.
The 1dB or so isn’t enough to aggravate sibilant sounds, but you can still follow this up with some processing to tame that if necessary (see my guide to treating vocal sibilance).
Low Pass Around 15k
We can bring that shelf back down with a 12-24dB/oct low pass filter around 15k.
This rolls of the inaudible top end of the vocal to create a natural off ramp from that shelf, not to mention it buys you a little extra headroom and compliments the cymbals from the beat.
Best Hip Hop EQ Settings
- High pass your hip hop vocal at 80-100Hz with a 12-24dB/oct slope to remove those lowest inaudible frequencies which aren’t contributing to the vocal plus add headroom.
- Boost at 150Hz to bring out more of the vocal body and add some gravitas to your verses.
- Dynamic cut 1-2dB at most at 500Hz to add clarity via subtractive EQ and remove boxiness at most offending points.
- Boost 1-2dB at 1-2k for hollow sounding vocals, cut here for a nasal vocal sound.
- High shelf at 5k ~1dB to add some subtle presence, crispness, punch, and a touch of air to the hip hop vocal.
- Low pass around 15k to bring that shelf back down and complement other tracks.
