Help EQ my Lyric using only the good EQ tools I have with the TC Acoustic Play

[Mischief]

Hi okay instead of a stand alone DI I bought a TC Acoustic play.
So far I have tried the factory Body Rez etc. although they are an improvement it's not great so I see I need to dive into the EQ etc.
here's what I have to work with

In custom body Rez
-12db to +12db range on EQ settings.
Hi shelf EQ
Low shelf EQ
Parametric EQ 1 frequency, width, gain
Parametric EQ 2 frequency, width, gain
Low cut filter
Notch filter 25% increments covering every frequency related note on the guitar.

There's also general body Rez that I believe can be used in conjunction.
Low +12db to -12 db
High +12db to -12 db
I believe these can be used to control a broader spectrum of frequencies that have not been EQ effected but perhaps it will effect everything including what's been EQ'd in the frequency range it controls?

It seems there's plenty of EQ power there to dial in a good sound.
But I'm a bit of a noob understanding what frequency areas I should target with what tool?
I've read where some experience their trouble frequencies. Combined they seem to be around 300Hz, 400Hz, 600Hz, 1000Hz, 3000Hz. Most seem to have about 2 problem areas.
I've also read a low cut can help.

I use a Pono L-30 guitar which is a size #2 so quite small. It's solid wood rosewood back and sides and engleman spruce top.

Any advice how to ball park some settings or where to start and how to go about figuring out how to set would be great.

I spent about 5 hours fooling around trying to cut certain frequencies that people complain of and I've got some okay results. But I don't think I'm using the tools the way I should and randomly guessing will not result in the best sound.

Thanks for any insight.



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[jseth]

You need to supply more information to get any help with this... what are you running the guitar through, for a pa or amp? THAT factor will be critical, as even very nice systems will vary in what frequencies may be accentuated or not...

Secondly, what is it about the Lyric that you DON'T like? What tones or characteristics aren't pleasing you? I'm talking about when you run the Lyric-equipped guitar straight into whatever amp or pa you are using... without the preamp/DI in the signal chain, and without ANY effects from the amp or PA...

You are ALWAYS better off to have a simpler signal chain, when possible... basically, don't use the eq if you don't need it.

I know the Lyric has some sort of switch on it for emphasizing low end or high end or some such; have you tried it in all the settings to see what sounds best?

Without hearing the guitar, it's tough to know how to eq it; what I want to hear from my guitar may not be what you want... and YOU are the important part of the equation.

Spend some time reading up on basic eq techniques and gain staging before you just start turning dials and hoping... I mean, you CAN do it that way, but it would be far better to understand why one control does what it does, and how it interacts with the other controls...

But the first place I'd start is NO EQ, NO EFFECTS, NO PREAMP... just the dry signal of the Lyric through whatever amp/pa you use... and then go from there. You have to be able to verbalize WHAT it is that you don't like or aren't hearing that you want to hear, or else no one can help you.

Good luck; it sounds like you have decent gear to work with, so I'm guessing you will be able to achieve good results in the end...

[Mischief]

Thanks
That's very insightful.
There is a frequency that seems to be too punchy. It's a midrange sound that dominates. It's very prominent in recordings. And sounds like a blown woofer on play back.
It's also very very bright with some upper frequencies that would rake on anyone's nerves. I have played with the lyric presence and it's currently set at about 40% of max.

I know that the amp etc will play a part but I'm really hoping to dial in a sound that I can use my peddle like any DI and just plug into the mixer for a usable sound that can be tweaked with the desk.
I'm not after tweaking to get that perfect sound rather to get rid of a few troublesome frequencies.

That said I'm plugging into a behringer 1002USB desk then into a Yamaha DBR 10. (I'd like to be able to go straight into the speaker sometimes if the desk failed or to simplify set up.

Having said that the troublesome frequencies are experienced with multiple pa and amps I have plugged directly into. Seems to have the same exact trouble. Originally I was in the market for a good DI but thought I'd kill a couple birds with one stone.....I hope

To tame the high frequency issues using the lyric presence control I end up almost there but it's dialed all the way as low as it will go. I've been told that is way too much and will limit me from obtaining a proper sound. It still does not cut out that midrange spot.
Here's a video plugged in at an open Mic this is direct in and the sound guy never changed the EQ for any guitars all night. Who knows how it is set.

http://youtu.be/RQJeThGx8KU

Hopefully you can hear some of the issues.

I have been reading about EQing etc. but I'm a bit out of my depth. Especially figuring out what range frequencies I should tackle with what tool and how the tools interact with the other. Which one I should tackle first etc.
I have a gig in 2 weeks and I hope I can get it dialed in by then.
Thanks again.



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[SpruceTop]

Although the following pertains to larger body guitars, it's something to try: When I had a Lyric installed in my 2012 Martin D-18 and my 2013 Taylor 528 First Edition, I achieved acceptable results by adjusting my Venue DI as follows:

Bass +3dB @ 90Hz (fixed frequency setting of Venue)
Low-Mid: -6dB @ 500Hz
High-Mid: -3dB @ 1000Hz
Presence: Flat @ 3kHz (fixed frequency setting of Venue)
Treble: Flat @ 10kHz (fixed frequency setting of Venue)

Presence Control on Lyric Module at about 1/3 of the way up from its lowest rotation.

The best thing is to experiment in adjusting your EQ by adjusting and playing for a few minutes > leave the room for several minutes > come back and play at your adjusted settings to hear if it still sounds as good as it did before your short break. If not, try another EQ adjustment and repeat above procedure. This helps reduce the ears becoming too accustomed to a less than satisfactory EQ'ing.

[guitaniac]

I'd try listening with headphones first (before verifying with your powered speaker), as you experiment with EQ.

You could set your parametric EQ for a relatively narrow band, and use the old trick of boosting the chosen band a full 12db. Then you sweep through your frequency range to find where the tone is the most annoying. Once you find that frequency, you can experiment to find the combination of bandwidth and cut depth (at that frequency) which seem to yield the most pleasing tone.

I get that fact that you'd rather not complicate your signal chain by adding a graphic EQ, but just experimenting with a simple seven band graphic EQ might give you a better idea of where the problem areas are which need to be addressed with your Acoustic Play's EQ. I've really been surprised at how much a simple Boss GE-7 can help with the tone from my MiniFlex2Mic.

I can't tell much from the quiet picking on the youtube vid, beyond the fact that the trebles do (as you've stated) sound a little harsh. It definitely sounds like an acoustic guitar, though.