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The usual protocol for editing picture is to just drop in audio clips and let the “audio people” deal with them sounding good. However, throughout the Cinema Sound education we stress how important it is to make things sound as good as possible at every step. It helps the director/producer get a better feel for the nature of the project, and it assists the audio team in getting sound post done quicker – and save money. Reaching for an NLE EQ – one that’s built into your editing system – is the quickest and best way to help your production in all these regards. The following is a listing of 10 reasons you MUST drop an EQ plugin onto an unruly clip or two in your timeline:

We talk about how and why to use EQ/Equalization/Parametric EQ in depth in this article and in the MZed Pro Member Education. But for a general overview, here are 10 Reasons You MUST Use NLE EQ In Your Timeline:

1. Most of the time, the sound problem isn’t that a clip is too loud, it’s that a particular frequency is too loud. Using an EQ to solve that allows the overall volume of the clip to be strong without competing with anything else.
2. It’s the only way to create a great sounding mix – even a temporary one – in the Audio Cube.
3. Most built-in NLE EQs have an additional gain feature with kills too birds with one stone for clips which are low volume:
   1. massive amounts of volume boost which isn’t available from just clip volume
   2. the ability to contour the sound after it’s been boosted.
4. There’s not a music track in the world that doesn’t need some kind of EQ to layer well with Dialog. Period.
5. There’s no other plugin which will allow you make your Dialog Basic Grade.
6. Using an EQ on a buss or master output allows you to easily contour the sound of the entire timeline without having to change each individual clip. Dope.
7. Dropping an EQ into a timeline makes you look like a god to your client.
8. You can begin the process of Distance To Camera mixing – which when implemented well – creates the Hollywood magic right from your timeline…and it’s something many “audio people” neglect.
9. Even if you’re listening to your timeline off your computer speakers, the low frequency rumble from the on-set dialog will destroy the experience of anyone who watches your mix on reasonable speakers. Why? Because they’ll hear the incredible amount of rumble in those mics which should have been rolled off. And you can insure this happens with a simple high-pass/low cut filter set to 85 Hz.
10. EQ is the most basic and most important tool audio folks use to make things sound great. The more facility you have with using EQs, the better and editor and filmmaker you’ll be. The more you use them, the more facility you’ll have. Nice.

Have your own experience with EQs in your timeline? Tell us about it, or Tweet about it!