Profiling with EQ matching plugins

    Hi everyone,


    there has been a lot of talk lately about tone matching, which basically means that you capture the EQ curve of a reference signal lets say your favourite guitar tone. Then you capture your own tone. The resulting differential EQ curve then can be applied to your own signal to create a very similar tone.


    Most KPA users get great tones by capturing their amps but many users never got in touch with recording, mixing or producing. This is why many users are not sure how to EQ their guitar tones in order to make them work nicely in a mix.


    I never really got into all those "eq matching" plugins so i thought i might be a nice opportunity to experiment a little bit since i wanted to test profiling through a DAW with VST plugins applied to the profiling signal. So the setup was as this: GUITAR -> KPA -> AMP -> CAB -> MIC -> DAW -> PLUGINS -> KPA Return. I used Izotope Ozone as EQ matching plugin which worked pretty nicely.


    First step is to choose a reference (guitar only) soundclip that you like and to capture the EQ curve with ozone. The resulting EQ curve will be the "target". Then record the same riff or lick with your KPA profiling setup to make it comparable and also capture this. The resulting EQ curve will be the "source" that will be tranformed.


    Then you need to set your own tone as "source" and the reference tone as "target". Now you can simply transform your tone into the target.


    My goal then was to apply this EQ curve to my profiling signal, while activating the real time monitoring which depends on the latency of the audio interface. The KPA seems to tolerate and compensate latency so this should not pose any problem. In my test the resulting profile came pretty close to the reference file. Don´t await a 100% match but it might be of use as a guideline for finding the right frquency balance for your guitar tones...


    Take care...


    Edit:


    Thx to HappyKemper, he send me this nice tutorial how to use eq matching with ozone.
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?f…er_embedded&v=zl684tupzpk

    Just tried to match a few classic metal tones. I used the same basic amp and mike setting for all tones, JVM + V30 + SM57. If you would tweak a little more or start with a closer basic tone the results might even get better. However it is pretty amazing what difference EQ settings do make on the same tone.


    Made a quick n dirty comparision clip for you. Originals are first.


    http://soundcloud.com/tylerhb/kpa-profiles-with-ozone-tone-1

    Very cool. I tried to do this a few weeks back but I kept getting the gain staging error for some reason on the KPA. I was trying to put the computer input through GR5, then to the EQ matching plugin, then back out to the KPA. But your method shouuld be a way to put a "mastered" profile into the KPA. I would think you should be able to get pretty darn close to most sounds this way.

    Quote from tylerhb

    Just tried to match a few classic metal tones. I used the same basic amp and mike setting for all tones, JVM + V30 + SM57. If you would tweak a little more or start with a closer basic tone the results might even get better. However it is pretty amazing what difference EQ settings do make on the same tone.


    Made a quick n dirty comparision clip for you. Originals are first.


    http://soundcloud.com/tylerhb/kpa-profiles-with-ozone-tone

    That sounds very impressive 8o is there Any chance you could share these profiles? :whistling:

    Why not... keep in mind they will sound different with other guitars...


    Here is a new version, a little bit tweaked:


    http://soundcloud.com/tylerhb/kpa-profiles-with-ozone-tone-1


    here are the profiles:
    http://dl.dropbox.com/u/5902643/TillS_eqmatch_20120514.zip


    I think i might ne nice to create some "artist profile packs"...

    nice idea.
    however, sorry to be a stuck in the mud, but the problem with artist profiles, is it really depends on your setup.. - you could make i.e a "Money for nothing" sound perfect, but the chance of that happining on another persons rig, with a different sound, moniters etc.. is very slim.

    Quote from and44

    nice idea.
    however, sorry to be a stuck in the mud, but the problem with artist profiles, is it really depends on your setup.. - you could make i.e a "Money for nothing" sound perfect, but the chance of that happining on another persons rig, with a different sound, moniters etc.. is very slim.

    This is true to some point. But the good news is that you easily can get the remaining few percents by just combining rigs with the corresponding eq curve in the DAW. This is very corfortable in ozone, since you can store and name as many curves as you want and import them on other DAWs. So if your recording doesnt fit 100%, just match it with the original and the result is nearly perfect. I am really beginning to love this software.

    Thanks, man! I was hoping someone would begin making some artist profiles! Any chance you could cop the clean tone from Metallica's "One"?

    "Heavy Metal does have a message for the rest of the world: Fuck You!" -Sebastian Bach

    Quote from tylerhb

    This is true to some point. But the good news is that you easily can get the remaining few percents by just combining rigs with the corresponding eq curve in the DAW. This is very corfortable in ozone, since you can store and name as many curves as you want and import them on other DAWs. So if your recording doesnt fit 100%, just match it with the original and the result is nearly perfect. I am really beginning to love this software.


    Oh I see, ok thats fair enough if you also give them the EQ file too, then yes the possibilities are endless with that one. : )

    Quote from and44

    Oh I see, ok thats fair enough if you also give them the EQ file too, then yes the possibilities are endless with that one. : )

    Well, good idea. Maybe a collection of EQ curves would make totally sense in this context. Starting with my ozone snapshot set you can test for youself:


    http://dl.dropbox.com/u/5902643/till_tonematch.snapshotset


    Just load in ozone matching EQ, duplicate riffs, set your own curve as source and set the reference curve as target and move the magic slider...

    This is mind-blowing-cool! You absolutely have to do a few more tones.


    PLEASE do Scott Ians Among the Living tone, say Skeletons in the Closet or Among the Living or I am the Law.


    Simply amazing, thank you SO much!

    Hi,


    I was wondering if I can do the following.


    Guitar --> KPA(Existing Profile)--> DAW--> CUBASE 6.5 (Ozone 5)--> KPA Return = EQed KPA Profile with my Monitors


    I want to use existing profile as I don't have Amps. Will this work?


    Thx

    USMC7312


    MY GEAR:
    Taylor T5 Koa, Taylor SBS1, Fender Select Koa Telecaster | PRS SE 50 w/ 2x12 Cab | Kemper Profiling Amp | 2x Tannoy 601a Monitors

    No, without a second KPA it is not possible to "profile a profile". If you really do not own any amp you can try one of the better software amps from your DAW in combination with Ozone. The EQ matching is so powerful that you might get decent results.

    Thanks for the feedback. If I can't do the profile, can I do the following


    Guitar --> KPA --> DAW --> Ozone --> Monitors


    I could then save the EQ.

    USMC7312


    MY GEAR:
    Taylor T5 Koa, Taylor SBS1, Fender Select Koa Telecaster | PRS SE 50 w/ 2x12 Cab | Kemper Profiling Amp | 2x Tannoy 601a Monitors

    Quote from USMC7312

    Thanks for the feedback. If I can't do the profile, can I do the following


    Guitar --> KPA --> DAW --> Ozone --> Monitors


    I could then save the EQ.

    Yes, this will work. This is very comfortable to do in Ozone, cause you can simply export and import the eq curves. So once you have the right curves you can transform your sound with a plugin preset and you´re done.