Dave Darlington is a Grammy-winning studio engineer who's worked with the likes of Avicci, Sting, and David Guetta. In the video below, he shows us his easy fix for problem frequencies within vocal lines and cymbals, using Waves' versatile F6 Dynamic EQ plugin.
Although Dave will tell you all you need to know, a quick example for you: a vocalist’s tone changes throughout a performance, depending on their position to the microphone; an EQ setting that works well when the singer is close to the mic, and singing softly, will never be as effective when he or she backs away from the mic up and starts belting. Essentially, the F6 moves in time with the singer, and kicks in when the vocal level crosses a certain threshold that you’ve set. Equally, it lays off when it falls below that threshold.
With the F6, you can EQ more precisely, with filters that can be as narrow or as wide as you like: free-floating bands that can overlap, variable EQ shapes, and threshold-sensitive EQ settings, for example. It's an ideal solution for isolating specific problems on individual tracks, and fixing them transparently, only when they pop out. Its mid-side processing capabilities also allow you to carve out EQ space in a busy mix, so you can breathe more life into your mixes.
For more on the F6 click HERE.