Filter

Color category, section-level.

A multimode filter: low-pass, high-pass or band-pass. It is the effect behind the muffled intro, the sweep into the chorus, and the thin radio-voice breakdown.

Controls

Cutoff. The frequency the filter works around. What it does with that frequency depends on the mode.

Resonance. Emphasis right at the cutoff. Turned down the filter rolls off smoothly and naturally. Turned up it builds a peak at the cutoff that makes the filter's position obvious, which is where a sweep gets its screaming quality.

Mix. Balances the filtered signal against the original. Fully wet, the filter replaces the sound. Bring the original back and some brightness and definition survive even with the cutoff closed, which gives a behind-glass feel rather than a muffled one.

Mode. Which side of the cutoff the filter keeps.

• Low-Pass keeps what is below the cutoff and removes the highs. The classic muffle-and-sweep tool.
• High-Pass keeps what is above it and removes the lows. Use it on a lead, pad or pluck that is crowding the kick and bass.
• Band-Pass keeps only what is around the cutoff and removes both ends. Thin and mid-focused, the telephone or old-radio voicing.

Presets

Dark, Telephone, Sweep, Resonant, High-Pass, Band-Pass.

When to use it

Cutoff is a section-level control, and that is where its value is. Close the filter for a verse so the section sounds distant, then open it for the chorus and the lift arrives without a single note changing. The contrast between a filtered section and an open one is one of the cheapest ways to build energy.

Automate the cutoff for the gradual ramp that runs into a drop. See automation.