PureMix Frequency Quiz - Ear Training

[Elantric]

No one is born with the innate knowledge of what 250Hz sounds like. It'a a learned skill. It is a skill you need to practice to eliminate the hours of guess work you waste when mixing records and looking for bothersome peaks or holes in your tracks.

The pureMix Frequency Quiz will help you memorize the sound of crucial frequency and ranges and will help you speed up the equing process drastically over time.

The audio spectrum is divided in 10 octaves. The Quiz's first 3 levels will focus on the lower, middle and higher 5 octaves of the spectrum. Once you feel confident, you can challenge yourself with all the octaves simultaneously.

How To Use: To start the Quiz, click on the big play button. You'll hear flat pink noise for reference and then a couple seconds later you'll hear the noise change tone. An equalizer was used to apply a 14db boost to a specific frequency. The goal is to identify which frequency is being boosted. Select your choice and the system will give you the correct answer. In between guessing phases, you can click on each frequency in order to hear it and train your ear. Click the play button again for the next frequency quiz.

There are 10 samples per test. Stay focused. The frequencies picked are truly random so the test will be different every-time.(If you are taking the test on earbuds or laptop speakers => you are missing out and fooling yourself).

Have fun. Test yourself often. Get better faster.
http://www.puremix.net/ear-training.html

[Elantric]

http://www.centerpointaudio.com/HowSpeakersWork.aspx

http://www.centerpointaudio.com/HowToUnderstandSoundFrequencyResponseGraph.aspx

Sound Frequency Response

Sound is measured in terms of frequency. The loudness is measured in decibels based on pressure levels of the sound.

When we evaluate how well something (a speaker, microphone, ear, etc.) responds to a range of frequencies, we chart the results in the form of a frequency response graph.

How to read a Frequency Repsonse Graph

Below is an example of a frequency response graph. The graph shows how an earbud speaker responds to different sound frequencies. In this case, the word "respond" refers to the speaker's ability to reproduce audio frequencies.

Frequency Response Graph
Reading the chart is actually pretty simple. The chart shows the range of frequencies (from low to high) horizontally and the Sound Pressure Levels (SPL) in Decibels (dB) vertically. The frequency range respresented on this graph is 20Hz to 20,000Hz (20kHz), which is the range of typical human hearing.

By looking at this frequency response graph, we can see how capable the speaker is at reproducing the frequencies we can hear.

Bass, Midrange, and Treble Frequencies

Generally, the range of bass frequencies encompasses 20Hz-500Hz. Midrange frequencies would be 500Hz to 5,000Hz, and high frequencies would be 5,000Hz-20kHz. However, the range is often further divided into sub categories such as "midbass" and "upper midrange".

Familiarity with these ranges enables us to determine how a speaker should sound based on the Frequency Response Graph. Looking at the example above, we can see that the upper-midrange (where much acoustic detail is found) should be loud and clear. The bass frequencies appear to be lower (respectively).

However, a full understanding of sound frequency response charts requires knowledge of many other variables involved with the application. The human ear hearing capability, interaction with other speakers, speaker enclosures, room acoustics, and many other factors must be considered when reading a frequency response graph.

For instance, although the graph above shows a peak in the upper-midrange, since we know that the graph is for an earbud speaker, we can expect that in real-world listening the bass frequencies will actually be enhanced by the earbuds' contact with the inner ear. Had the chart shown a peak in the lower-midrange or bass frequencies, we may be wary that the earbuds will produce too much or "muddy" bass tones.




Flat Frequency Response

In our line of work, we get asked about 'flat' audio responses all the time: What is flat audio response? Is flat response good? Why is flat good? We also run into: "When I hear a system that has a supposedly flat response, I think it sounds stale," or the more general comment, "I don't like the way flat sounds!" We get these questions and comments all the time. As time and technology move forward, and culturally more and more people are listening to recorded audio through all sorts of devices, curiosity about technical, audio performance terms is increasing in our culture. In this article, we will uncover some of the mysteries about what flat audio response means (1), why it is important (2), and how you can use this knowledge to seek out equipment that suits your listening tastes or have really good arguments with your friends (3).

First off, if you are not familiar with the term frequency response, please refer to the article "Frequency Response in a nutshell," before continuing.

Flat Frequency Response Graph1.


To begin, let us pretend that we have a theoretically, perfectly, flat responding speaker in front of us and it is playing all the frequencies that we can hear at the same time. Now we are also going to pretend that we have an output device (amplifier) that is sending the speaker all the frequencies that we can hear at the exact same level. Barring any environmental effects, our pretend speakers will be voicing (playing/sounding) all the frequencies at the exact same level/volume; this is what flat response means in regards to speakers. If the speaker has a flat response, it will stay true to the variations in level differences from the amplifier; i.e. the speaker does not alter the sound coming from the source; it is flat (accurate). So why is this important?

2. Flat audio response is used as a reference in many different fields in the manufacturing industry. In regards to an audio product, the flatter the audio response is, the more accurate it reproduces the sound from an input source. Manufacturing audio gear that can closely achieve flat response can be expensive; a lot of math and technology goes into audio products with this property. In marketing, accuracy is promoted as a good thing and yes, to a certain degree, accuracy in audio products is good thing. However, accuracy is not always interpreted as "sounding good." Because each person's hearing is not the same as anyone else's, and there are some cultural aspects that play a part as well, what sounds good to one person may sound awful to another.

If someone, let's say, has a hearing deficiency in the upper frequency range (treble/highs), a speaker system with a flat audio response might sound slightly muffled; a criticism this person might give could be "the highs aren't clear or the bass and mids are over powering." This scenario is completely normal and very common*. It is for this reason that most good, quality sound systems allow the user(s) to make adjustments to the sound output by increasing/decreasing certain frequency areas. Our high frequency, deficient friend would take advantage of the "treble' adjustment by turning it up so he/she could hear the high frequencies to their liking.



The above is a rough example of what our friend's hearing response might look like. The red line indicates the high frequency deficiency.



This graph represents the areas of the audio spectrum that our friend might boost in order to percieve all the frequencies as being the same level.

Note: The music in our culture and what we commonly listen to plays a large role in how we like our music/audio to sound. Please see the article "Music and You," for more details.
http://www.centerpointaudio.com/MusicandYou.aspx

3. Listening to a flat response system can further your knowledge about what qualities you like in a sound system. If you are able to listen to music that you commonly enjoy on a flat system, you can pick out the areas of sound that you want more or less of. It would be even better if you are able to make adjustments to the sound (an equalizer) as you are listening so you can play around with it. You need no technical background in science or audio engineering to do this; turn the knobs or move the sliders but be careful with the volume control; we don't want you to hurt your ears. The results from this exercise can give you an idea of what audio properties you prefer your sound systems to have. For instance, when using a flat response system as a reference, I prefer a little boost of bass, a slight decrease in mids, and a pinch of extra treble to put it simply.


Sound systems come in all shapes and sizes. Each system has its own unique sound signature. If you find a sound system that you like, look into its properties (frequency response) and see what it is that you like. Remember, although 'flat' means accurate reproduction, it does not necessarily mean that you will like how it sounds when listening to music/audio that you are familiar with.

* "Facts about Hearing Loss", Center for Hearing and Communication, web. 2012

[Elantric]

http://www.musicappblog.com/heareq-review/

hearEQ review – EQ ear-training app from Ten Kettles
April 21, 2014 by John Leave a Comment
badge appstore lrg hearEQ review – EQ ear training app from Ten KettleshearEQ logo hearEQ review – EQ ear training app from Ten KettlesWhile iOS music apps tend to be things that allow you to make, record or manipulate sound, there are also a good crop of 'utility' apps available via the iTunes App Store that are aimed at musicians. These might fall into a number of types but one category would be instructional apps. For example, I've looked at apps such as Chordology (a chord dictionary), TempoTeacher (I'll let you guess), Jamn (music theory), Sing inTuna (ah!), Erol Singer's Studio (voice training), SongSheet (mobile song chart app), Guitar Gym (guitar tuition), Anytune Pro (music practice tool) and Guitar Toolkit (guitarist friendly Swiss army knife app) in the past. All these are very good at what they do and each, in its own way, demonstrate that your iOS hardware can be an excellent teacher, trainer or technician with the right app.
One area that lot's of recording musicians find difficult is in mixing and a major element of this – both for newbies and, it has to be said, even for the more experienced – can be applying suitable EQ to your various tracks so that the mix (a) hangs together as a coherent whole, (b) sounds balanced in terms of the overall EQ response and (c) all the key instruments are audible (when they need to be) and don't mask each other by competing for the same frequency ranges. This is a challenging area of mixing at the best of times and not helped if you are mixing in a less than ideal monitoring environment (that's most of us then).
So how do you improve your use of EQ in the mixing process? Well, the best way (obviously) is simple to do more of it; like any skill, the more you practice the better you get (10,000 hours and all that Malcolm Gladwell 'Outliers hearEQ review – EQ ear training app from Ten Kettles' stuff). However, you can help that process on its way with some ear training and Ten Kettles – led by developer Alexander Andrews – have an app for that; hearEQ. And at UK£0.69, a little bit of EQ education is pretty much within anyone's grasp.
heareq start screen 225x300 hearEQ review – EQ ear training app from Ten Kettles
Pick a song.... any song...

Incidentally, long-term residents of the Music App Blog might remember me reviewing Audioflie Engineering's rather splendid Quiztones app (UK£2.99) some time ago and which aims to do a similar job. The two apps do share some functional similarities in that both allow you to 'test' your ability to identify the sound of different EQ changes applied to example audio so, if this is something you think you need a little additional help with, that app might also be worth taking a look at.
Testing, testing

The principle behind hearEQ is beautifully straightforward (most good teaching approaches are). Essentially, you can take any audio file that you have in your iTunes library (so this could be a commercial track, one of your own compositions or an audio file containing a solo instrument such as a drum kit, bass, piano, guitar or vocal), audition it without any EQ changes and then, in varying degrees of complexity, test yourself to see if you can identify EQ changes that are applied by the app. These changes come in the form of a batch of ten different EQ setting changes and you get scored based on your performance.
On opening, the first step simply requires you to browse for a suitable file. Once done, you can choose to audition (the Learn option) to get your ears tuned in to how the audio sounds. Once playback has started, you get the option to add or subtract a fairly sizeable dollop of gain centered at any of 10 different frequencies. This allows you to experiment with how changing a single EQ band sounds when applied to your audio example.
heareq learn phase screen 225x300 hearEQ review – EQ ear training app from Ten Kettles
Once you have selected an audio file you can use the learn mode to get your ears accustomed to applying some EQ changes.

Once you have got your ears warmed up, you then execute the Begin option. This allows you to select which frequency bands are to be included in the training. This can be as many or as few of the 10 bands as you wish. This means that you can start with just a couple of bands that are perhaps widely separated (which ought to be easy), progress to a couple of bands that are close together (a bit more difficult) and then build from there as your ability to identify different frequencies develops. If this is not something you have tried to do in a systematic fashion before, do take it easy on yourself; it can be surprisingly difficult to start with but, also, very instructive :-)
Once you have chosen the required frequencies for training, you then get 10 random tests where the app applies a gain boost or cut at any of the frequencies chosen for testing. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to identify the frequency and whether it is a boost or cut that has been applied in each case. As the audio track plays back, you can toggle the EQ change on/off to compare the original with the EQ'ed version until you think you have it worked out. You then simply ask hearEQ to 'Check' your response...  and your score builds up (or doesn't!) as you progress through the 10 tests.
'ear, 'ear

And, in terms of features, that's about it; all very simple and straightforward. But, it has to said, also very effective and, at UK£0.69, worth it just so you are quickly put in your place about just how good (or not) your EQ sensitivity is. Running the app with a few tracks that you think you know well and switching on all the EQ bands for testing can be a sobering experience.


hearEQ's tests are simply in principle but, if you use a few more frequency bands that the example shown here, surprising challenging in practice.
However, what's great is that, even with a little repetition, things do start to improve and I suspect if you were to build some hearEQ into your daily musical routine, you would soon reap some positive benefits. I know... thinking about a little musical education is just another distraction from actually making music (and, in terms of attractiveness, it probably comes a distant second to buying another synth or effect app and distracting yourself with that for a few hours) but if you want to get 'better' at what you do musically, a little bit of skill development is never a bad thing. In terms of EQ training, hearEQ can do that in a simple and very convenient format.
If I was to compare hearEQ and Quiztones, I think that latter has the more comprehensive feature set (for example, you can also vary the amount of EQ used in the tests) but, equally, it is also the more expensive. In addition, some – particularly music technology newbies – may find the simplicity of the approach adopted by hearEQ to be attractive. The bottom line here is that both (and remember here, we are taking about pocket money pricing in both cases) of these apps, used regularly (and that's the key), will bring a little bit of very useful EQ education into your ears.
When it comes to the basics of the mixing process, there are a myriad of tasks to think about. However, once you have established which instruments are playing and when (your instrument arrangement), the four key elements are probably volume balance, EQ, compression and creating a sense of 'space' (a combination of panning, reverb and delay). Apps like hearEQ can help you improve your skills with one of these tasks; EQ. All we need now is a developer to think about apps for the other three and we can get this mixing lark sorted..... :-)
hearEQ


If you want to see Ten Kettles video introduction to hearEQ, then feel free to watch below:-

[admin]

Ear Training  for Frequency Response