How to EQ Synth Bass – A Complete Cheat Sheet

Synth bass can be used alongside or in place of organic bass in tracks. I use it in some mixes to supplement a bass guitar at key moments in the song whereas I’ll use it as the dedicated or exclusive bass for more electronic and pop leaning tracks. Regardless of how you’re using your synth bass in your mix, the same principle applies and we must treat it as if it’s the huge element of the mix’s anchor that it is. With that in mind, I’ve put together this cheat sheet on how to EQ synth bass to get it sitting just right in your mix.

EQ Synth Bass Cheat Sheet

Like all of the cheat sheets taken from my ULTIMATE (and free) EQ cheat sheet, I’ve got a snapshot of the recommended moves which I like to make when EQing synth bass.

Before I share it, it comes with the caveat that there are a lot of different characters when it comes to synth bass.

Sometimes I’ll use a basic sine-based synth bass which is the roundest and simplest but sometimes I’ll use more of a sawtooth based synth bass to add some character and sizzle to the synth bass in the 2-3k range and beyond (which I’ll address as part of the snapshot).

Here is the cheat sheet on how to EQ synth bass:

eq synth bass

High Pass Around 20-40Hz

I preach high passing every track in your mix, even the low frequency rich and dependent tracks like synth bass, albeit at a lower frequency.

Specifically I like to high pass my synth bass around 20-40Hz, though this can very from mix to mix and genre to genre.

high pass synth bass

You don’t need that low end rattling with a surge at 20-40Hz in a lot of mixes and honestly it can add to the clarity of the mix by going that low.

Rather than high passing to roll it off altogether, you might try a low shelf at this point to simply pull it down roughly uniformly by a few dB before high passing at 20Hz.

Dynamic Sidechain (to Kick) Cut Around 70Hz (Kick Frequency)

I recently talked about how to mix drum and bass to work together in your mix, because if your mix’s low end isn’t clean, your entire mix will seriously suffer.

Part of that tutorial covered the importance of sidechaining your bass to your kick track, and this applies just as importantly when EQing synth bass.

Using an EQ with dynamic and sidechaining properties like the FabFilter Pro-Q 3 allows you to create a cut at the frequency of your kick (typically around 70Hz) and pull a few dB out on the synth bass whever that kick activates.

sidechain synth bass

Open the sidechain parameter (as I show in my overview on how to sidechain in your DAW) and select the source you want to control the behavior of this cut, or in this case your kick track.

FabFilter Pro-Q 3 allows you to set the max range and the threshold that kick needs to reach before it will pull down that frequency. I like to set this so I can get 3-5dB being pulled out. It doesn’t completely remove that frequency from the synth bass, but it ducks it out when the kick triggers to give the mix a cleaner and less competitive pocket for the kick to ring at its fundamental 60-70Hz.

This is a nice compromise as the synth bass’ approaching sub frequencies are strong there, so we don’t want to gut it altogether which this sidechain move achieves.

Boost at 100-200Hz to Bring Out Fundamental

The fundamental body of the synth bass is prominent just under 100Hz to 200Hz, so I like a small 1dB or so bump here, or at the very least enough to make up for the ducking we just created at 70Hz:

synth bass fundamental

When you need a little more of that synth bass fundamental, don’t turn up the fader, just give this a 1-2dB bump and see how it’s sitting.

Wide Cut Around 200-400Hz to Contour and Shape Tone

A low-mid cut on the synth bass around 200-400Hz helps to contour and shape its tone:

clean synth bass

This also helps to clean up the tone which is preferable over boosting higher frequencies. Always remove what’s not working or better said in this case what you don’t need as this will enhance the remaining frequencies via subtractive EQ while delivering a better clarity.

(Optional) Boost Around 2-3k

The final two moves relate to the higher end of the synth bass which may not be applicable to your synth bass.

In this case, I like boosting around 2-3k, particularly if I’ve got a triangular or sawtooth especially based synth bass tone:

synth bass 2k

This brings out a little excitement in the character center of your less square synth basses to bring a little more expressiveness to your tone.

This one is difficult to dive too deep into given the range of popular and practical synth bass tones out there, but suffice to say that the character usually resides in this pocket and a little boost brings out more of it.

(Optional) Low Pass Around 5-7k

Likewise, the exactly frequency we choose to low pass our synth pass can vary wildly depending on our synth bass. If it’s purely just for bass, I’ve low passed as LOW as 500-1000Hz.

When you’ve got additional overtones or maybe a layered synth bass working, you obviously want to keep the expression of the higher frequencies of that synth bass intact:

That said, we’re LIKELY not looking for that high end crispness associated with synths from our bass, and we still want to cut out room on that top end for the synths, cymbals, vocals, etc. in our mix which DO need it.

5-7k is a broad suggestion; your mileage may and will likely vary wildly, but it’s something to keep in mind.

EQ Synth Bass Tips

  • EQing your synth bass can clean up the tone, make it work better alongside your kick, and bring out more of its character.
  • High pass your synth around 20-40Hz (or to taste) to remove rumble and clean up the lowest of the low end and create headroom.
  • Add a dynamic cut which you sidechain to the kick such that it ducks the synth bass 3-5dB when the kick triggers to immensely improve your low end by removing the frequency conflict between the instruments.
  • Boost at 100-200Hz to bring out the body of the synth bass in its fundamental.
  • Contour and clean up the tone of your synth bass with a wide EQ cut around 200-400Hz.
  • This one mostly applies to synth bass instruments with more character and more going on that’s not purely bass. A sawtooth based synth bass, for example, can benefit from a small boost around the 2-3k range of a couple few dBs to bring out more of its character.
  • Another instrument specific move is to high pass to create space for the tracks which need it. On a purely bass based synth bass, you can afford to go down to 1000Hz as there’s little character or tone above 500Hz or so. In the case of a more expressive higher frequency synth bass (in the case of combo and complex synth basses), aim for a rough estimate of 5-7k to create space for the instruments which need the crispness and air of those frequencies.

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