The Basics: Filters

Filtering Basics

Understanding filters is an essential basic concept of production. Placing a filter on a track allows you to alter what segments of the frequency spectrum are allowed to pass through the filter. 

There are 4 main types of filters:

High pass filter with an analyzer showing its effect on a white noise signal

High-Pass: High pass filters filter out low frequencies

Low-Pass: Low pass filters out high frequencies, leaving only 

our lower frequencies behind.

Low pass filter with an analyzer showing its effect on a white noise signal

Band-Pass: Band pass filters only allow a small band of frequencies to pass

Band pass filter with an analyzer showing its effect on a white noise signal

Band-Reject: Allows all frequencies to pass except for a predetermined band of frequencies

Band reject filter with an analyzer showing its effect on a white noise signal

Filter Controls:

Frequency: Controls where our frequency cut-off of our filter is.

Resonance / Q: Controls the width of the frequency band, or how quickly a HP or LP filter cuts off to 0