Hear it
One band gets boosted or cut. Flip EQ in and out until you hear what changed, then name it. From level 2, sometimes nothing changed at all.
EQ ear training · Free in your browser
Hear it. Find it. Fix it.
Short, focused exercises that train the ears you mix with. Hear an EQ move and name the band, then track problems down and cut them in real music.
About two minutesNo account neededHeadphones or good speakers
Made by Dan Murtagh, a Melbourne mix engineer: 20 years making records, teaching audio production at Collarts since 2016.
EQ InPink noise
Which band got −12 dB?
Three moves. The whole job.
Every exercise trains one of the three things you do at a mix: notice a change, track it to a frequency, and put it right without hurting everything else.
Find it
Something is ringing or poking out. Sweep a boost across the spectrum until it jumps at you, then mark it. Against the clock, if you like.
Fix it
Cut it on the right instrument, in a real mix, without hurting everything around it. Your score is how close the result gets to right.
Use headphones or decent speakers. Laptop and phone speakers can’t play the low bands, so 63 and 125 Hz turn into guesswork.
Seven exercises. Noise to a finished mix.
Start by naming bands on pink noise. Finish by finding the one instrument that’s muddying a full mix and cutting it. Every exercise has levels that get harder as you go.
- HearStart here
Identify
Hear a boost or cut and name the band. From level 2, sometimes nothing changed.
- Find
Sweep
Something has been boosted. Sweep to find it, against the clock.
- Find
Hunt
Sweep a boost to find a ringing resonance, then cut it out.
- Fix
Restore
One EQ band changed the sound. Put it back with a single band of your own.
- Hear
Solo to Context
Fix an instrument while it plays alone, then bring in the mix and decide again.
- Fix
Cuts Only
It sounds dull, thin or buried and you want to boost. Fix it with cuts alone.
- Mix
Fix the Mix
One instrument is making the mix muddy, boxy or harsh. Name it, find it, cut it.
Train daily. Watch your ears improve.
Ear training works the way practice does: a little, often. Mix Chops keeps score so you can see it working.
A new ear test every day
Twelve questions from pink noise to a full mix, weighted toward the bands you miss. Keep the streak alive and post your score.
Take today’s sessionYour weak spots, measured
Every answer is logged against its band. Mix Chops shows which ones you miss and drills them.
Weakest right now: 250 Hz and 4 kHz.
Rookie Ears to Golden Ears
Every right answer is XP. Climb five ranks and collect badges along the way.
- Rookie Ears0 XP
- Apprentice250
- Operator700
- Engineer1,500
- Golden Ears3,000
“We all hear changes that aren’t there. I’ve tweaked a bypassed EQ and sworn it sounded better.”
Dan Murtagh, in the feedback for a No change questionFree to start. Pro to go all the way.
The daily session and the first levels of every exercise are free for good. Pro opens every level and the whole track library.
Who’s behind it
Made by a working mix engineer
Dan Murtagh has been making records in Melbourne for 20 years and has taught audio production at Collarts since 2016. Every exercise, hint and explanation in Mix Chops is written the way he teaches: in plain words, around what you actually hear on real instruments.
20 years mixingCollarts since 2016Melbourne
Hear the idea. Then train it.
Short explainers and practice guides with a demo you can play: flip each move off and on, then practise it in the exercise that goes with it.
- Trains: Identify
What is EQ?
What an equaliser does to a sound, on a real mix: a range of frequencies turned up or down.
Hear it - Trains: Identify, Sweep
What each frequency sounds like
Play each of the nine bands boosted or cut, on noise and a mix, and learn a name for every one.
Hear it - Trains: Sweep, Restore
Parametric EQ
Frequency, gain and Q, the three controls on every bell band. Hear what each one does.
Hear it - Trains: Cuts Only
High-pass and low-pass filters
Take out everything below or above a point. Where a high-pass goes on a vocal, and when it goes too far.
Hear it - Trains: Cuts Only
Shelving EQ
Lift or lower everything above or below a frequency, and how a shelf differs from a bell and a filter.
Hear it - Trains: Fix the Mix, Hunt
Mix problems you can hear
Muddy, boxy, honky, harsh, sibilant and dull: what each sounds like and where to look for it.
Hear it - Trains: Daily Session
Mixing on headphones
It works if you know what your headphones hide. Check the low end, then train on what you mix on.
Hear it
Before you press play
Do I need headphones?
Headphones or decent speakers. Laptop and phone speakers can’t reproduce the low bands, so 63 and 125 Hz turn into guesswork. Use the sound check at the top of this page to set a comfortable level.
Is it really free?
Yes. The daily session and the first two levels of every exercise are free, with no account and no card. While Mix Chops is in early access, every level is open to everyone.
Do I need an account?
No. Your progress saves in this browser. Sign in with Google or an email link (no password) and it follows you to your phone or any other computer.
Does it work on a phone?
Yes, in any modern browser. Plug in headphones first.
What do I get with Pro?
Every level of all seven exercises, focus drills on any band, the full track library, and practising on your own songs when that arrives. Pro isn’t on sale yet: join the founding list and you’ll hear first. See Pro
Who is it for?
Anyone who mixes: students, producers, bands recording themselves, and engineers keeping their ears sharp between sessions.
How does it compare with SoundGym?
Mix Chops trains EQ only, in your browser, and goes past naming bands to finding and fixing the problem in a real mix. See how it compares with SoundGym and seven other ear trainers.
Your first session
Golden ears aren’t born. They’re trained.
Two minutes on pink noise, three bands to choose from. You’ll hear the first boost before you’ve finished reading this.
Start your first sessionFreeNo accountRuns in your browser