EQ Your Metal Guitars Like a Pro (At 6 Different Stages)

Learn how to EQ metal guitars with six tone-shaping stages for heavier, more unique guitar tones. In this metal guitar EQ tutorial, I demonstrate how each stage of the signal chain changes your sound—from guitar DI EQ and your overdrive pedal’s tone control to amplifier EQ, an EQ pedal in the effects loop, mic preamp EQ, and EQ plugins in your DAW. If you’re relying only on amp settings and post-recording EQ, this walkthrough gives you four more opportunities to shape your heavy guitar tone. Using real guitar tone demonstrations, I show you how to dial in high-pass and low-pass filters, shape the mids, find your amp’s EQ sweet spots, and compare FabFilter Pro-Q 3, Pultec, and SSL EQ plugins. Stick around for the before-and-after comparison with all six EQ stages combined. This video is for metal, metalcore, and hardcore guitarists, home recording musicians, and producers who want to move beyond copycat amp sim presets. Download the free Axe Tracking Blueprint below for my guide to recording professional-quality guitars at home, then watch the next video for my five-step metal guitar mixing workflow. Chapters 00:00 – Metal Guitar EQ: 4 Tone-Shaping Stages You’re Missing 00:44 – Dialing In a Metal Guitar Tone From Scratch 00:55 – Stage 1: Guitar DI EQ Before the Amp 02:07 – Guitar DI EQ: Before and After 02:23 – Stage 2: Shape Your Tone With an Overdrive Pedal 02:48 – Free Guide to Recording Metal Guitars at Home 03:10 – Stage 3: Amp EQ—Why the Same Settings Sound Different 03:42 – How to Find Your Guitar Amp’s EQ Sweet Spot 04:54 – Stage 4: The Overlooked Effects Loop EQ Trick 06:11 – Stage 5: Mic Preamp EQ Before Recording 07:30 – Stage 6: Choosing EQ Plugins for Metal Guitars 08:17 – Pro-Q 3 vs. Pultec vs. SSL: Guitar EQ Comparison 08:47 – All 6 Guitar EQ Stages Combined: Before and After 09:21 – Next: My 5-Step Metal Guitar Mixing Workflow 🎚️ Work With Me: https://riffhavenaudio.com/work-with-me 🎸 Axe Tracking Blueprint (FREE): https://go.riffhavenaudio.com/blueprint 🤘 Follow me on social media: Instagram:   / riffhavenaudio   TikTok:   / riffhavenaudio   🎶 Music I've Worked On: https://riffhavenaudio.com/#row-rxenu...