Understanding how EQ works and knowing when and how to apply it to a track or full mix are key to achieving great-sounding results. Without EQ we wouldn’t be able to shape the colour of sound, which is one of the fundamental processes we use to sit tracks together in a mix. EQ is also an essential corrective tool. Without it, we wouldn’t be able to correct things like annoying resonances that stick out in a track or low-end rumble on a dialog track.
EQ plug-ins come in all shapes and sizes. Many are surgical, parametric style EQ’s, others are emulations based on legendary analogue gear with a raft of cool EQ’s sitting somewhere between. No matter what is your go-to EQ plug-in, if you don’t know how to get the most from EQ your productions will suffer.
In this roundup, we have brought together several of our reviews, as well as free EQ tips and tutorial videos produced by The Production Expert Team. We take a tour of generic EQs, surgical EQs, EQ emulations, modern dynamic EQs and EQ matching tools that have the power to capture an EQ curve from one source and apply it to another.
Surgical EQs
Parametric EQ plug-ins are often the type of EQ tool you should be reaching for if you need to get surgical in a mix. These make it quick and easy to locate and decrease troublesome resonances as well as being great tools for overall tonal balancing. Every DAW ships with at least one free parametric EQ but if you feel you’ve outgrown your stock option then consider the following tools from third-party developers
Some EQ designs are better regarded in some applications over others because of the way they feel in use and this is, at least in part due to the Q/gain dependency of the equaliser's design.In this free video tutorial, Pro Tools Expert team member Julian Rodgers investigates the differences between the four EQ types available in the native version of the Sonnox Oxford EQ.
One of the most powerful but overlooked features of the Oxford EQ is the EQ modes and the effect of Q/Gain Dependency on how an EQ feels in use. Something you don’t get to try unless you have the AAX DSP version of Oxford EQ is the fifth mode - GML EQ. We investigate.
In this exclusive first look video we show you a selection of new features in FabFilter Pro-Q 3 including dynamic EQ, brick wall filter slopes, per band m/s, invert gain, tilt slope, Q-gain interaction and the new analyzer which displays the full EQ spectrum from other Pro-Q 3 instances in your sessions.
Dynamic EQs
In recent years a new breed of EQ plug-in has become ever more popular. Dynamic EQs are based around the format of parametric EQ plug-ins but include dynamic processing per band. This can sound very much like multi-band compression, but they are different. Learn how in our article Multi-Band Compression And Dynamic EQ - Do You Know The Difference? Many People Don't
Here are three hypothetical audio issues. Because they only present themselves some of the time, regular compression or EQ often don’t fix them satisfactorily. Do you use a multi-band compressor or a dynamic EQ to fix them? Which of you choose depends largely on personal preference and experience. Multi-band compression and dynamic EQ are different but there’s also an awful lot of overlap between them. We know there is a difference but may not exactly what is it?
After the fader, EQ is the bedrock on which successful mixes are based. There is a lot of choice out there when it comes to equalisers but do choices lead to better mixes? Julian looks at the options.
Delivering frequency-conscious envelope-following volume modulation with greater precision than a multiband compressor, dynamic EQ is the answer to all kinds of mixing and mastering problems. Here’s five of our favourites…
In this article, Julian looks at dynamic EQ’s and chooses 5 to highlight, though he stretches the category a little beyond what many would think of as a dynamic EQ.
Ever wondered what sidechain compression is or how top dance music producers apply it in their music? Sidechaining can often be a difficult topic for music production newbies to digest. In this article and free video tutorial, Dan Cooper from Waves Audio breaks down several sidechain compression workflows into bite-sized practical examples, to help you understand how sidechain compression works, and also to learn how to get the most out of creative sidechaining workflows in production.
I’m a big fan of the Sonnox Dynamic EQ. it’s flexible, sounds great and the user interface just lets you get on with the job. Part of the reason why I like it so much is because dynamic EQ makes much more sense to me than multiband compression, which is limited and in most cases is difficult to use. Here are three things about the Sonnox Dynamic Eq which I think make it one of the best out there.
In this exclusive first look video we show you a selection of new features in FabFilter Pro-Q 3 including dynamic EQ, brick wall filter slopes, per band m/s, invert gain, tilt slope, Q-gain interaction and the new analyzer which displays the full EQ spectrum from other Pro-Q 3 instances in your sessions.
In this free video tutorial brought to you in with the support of Plugin Alliance, Pro Tools Expert team member Julian Rodgers shows how the dynamic EQ band of bx_digital V3 can be used to tame single notes in a vocal.
In this free video tutorial, Pro Tools Expert team member Julian Rodgers uses the bx_dynEQ V2 from Plugin Alliance on drums to illustrate how dynamic EQ can be used to selectively deal with problem frequencies on drum overheads.
Watch to see how the F6 dynamic EQ controls shape the tone of the drums. Dan walks you through an F6 workflow that tightens up the image of drums while focusing the kick and snare core drum notes.
EQ Emulations
Back in the day, EQ used to mean analogue hardware. As the audio industry went digital people still wanted access to classic hardware. Enter the plugin emulation trend, which has seen the likes of nearly every notable channel strip EQ or outboard unit recreated in plugin form. Below are several very popular emulations of analogue EQ. These are typically used for adding colour, character and vibe over what surgical parametric EQs provide. This style of plugin, like the analogue versions that came before, force users to use their ears in their EQ decision-making process.
In a software EQ market awash with innovative modern designs of all shapes and sizes, there remain many ageless hardware emulations that will forever stand the test of time. Here are seven of our favourites.
In a software EQ market awash with innovative modern designs of all shapes and sizes, there remain many ageless hardware emulations that will forever stand the test of time. Here are half a dozen of our favourites.
How do you choose the right EQ? Ronan Macdonald explains the differences, the benefits of each to help you choose the right one for mixing.
One of the most powerful but overlooked features of the Oxford EQ is the EQ modes and the effect of Q/Gain Dependency on how an EQ feels in use. Something you don’t get to try unless you have the AAX DSP version of Oxford EQ is the fifth mode - GML EQ. We investigate.
In this free video tutorial Dan Cooper shows you a mastering EQ plug-in he’s really enthusiastic about. It’s utterly transparent and always manages to add that sheen to music through its simple to set EQ controls and the resulting masters don’t sound overly harsh or overdone.
In this exclusive video review we take Waves new CLA MixHub plug-in for an test drive. Do not for one second think that this is just another run-of-the-mill console emulation… there’s some real innovation in this plug-in that could very well change the way you mix with console emulations altogether.
As you may know, Steven and the team at Slate Digital have released their latest module for the Slate Virtual Mix Rack (VMR). The FG-A module is a 4 band EQ modelled after a very famous and popular 3 band American EQ, the API 550A. In this Mix Test, we take a look and listen to how you can use the FG-A along with other VMR modules and Slate Digital plug-ins to create a hard-hitting heavy rock mix.
In this video review Pro Tools Expert team member Dan Cooper takes a look at the Trident A-Range EQ plug-in by Softube.
In this free video tutorial brought to you in with the support of Plugin Alliance, Pro Tools Expert team member Julian Rodgers revisits an old friend - the Maag EQ4 from Plugin Alliance.
Pitch Tracking EQ
Pitch tracking EQ can be a difficult subject to get your head around, but it is easy to understand when you get to know EQ basics. Until now EQ bands have been static, the frequency is set. For example, if you have a band set at a steep and tight cut around 300Hz you may find an occasional note or two may dip in volume throughout the performance. This sort of dipping effect can easily be heard in bass guitar tracks with steep notches applied with EQ and is exactly what pitch tracking EQ sets out to remedy. Surfer EQ2 by Sound Radix enables users to shape the tone of instruments using static EQ bands in the traditional sense, but these bands move in relation to the performance ensuring the tone you stamp on your instruments won’t work against you or any of the notes in your performances.
Watch the video to see how the trademark Surf feature works and to hear how Surfer EQ2 can attenuate the low-end energy below the fundamental notes sung by a female using a combination of the Surf feature and the new dynamics processing.
EQ Based On Machine Learning Algorithms
Some plug-ins claim to make better EQ choices than those of audio engineers. While we know this won’t normally be the case, we do celebrate that there are some EQ plug-ins smart enough to provide us with some helpful starting point suggestions.
In this in-depth article we unpack all the new features introduced with Neutron 3 from iZotope and help you to be able to get the best out of Neutron 3 as well as sharing what we think about this latest release from iZotope.
Soundtheory has just announced the Windows version of their intelligent automatic EQ plug-in, Gullfoss and Windows users will get a first look at it at the 2019 NAMM Show that runs from January 24th to 27th 2019.
In this review, we take a look at Smart:EQ Live, Sonbiles latest A.I. EQ plug-in. Developed predominately for live music applications, we test its capabilities in DAW music mixing applications.
EQ Matching
A typical mastering challenge is getting the tone of two different mixes to sound together and unified in an album or playlist. This can, of course, be achieved with EQ and some skill, but is there an easier way to accomplish this? There is. These days there a handful of EQs available that listen and capture the tonal profile of one song and can simply apply an exact or similar curve to other tracks in a mastering project. Smart stuff…
Dan Worrall recently released a video slaying yet another audio head-scratcher; What EQ Should I Use? With so many tools vying for the engineer’s attention, which should they go for and when? We break down this excellent tutorial into its parts to aid eighteen minutes well-spent for any engineer.
In this article and free video tutorial from Nugen Audio, we are going to look at using Nugen Audio’s ISL true peak limiter and SEQ-S match and morph EQ as part of your surround workflow.
iZotope has launched Ozone 9, which brings their AI Rebalance tech from RX, New Low End Focus, improved Match EQ and more. In this article, we have all the info on Ozone 9, an exclusive demo video which shows that the new features can do and the first in-depth review. Check it out.
T-Racks 5 is the latest version of IK Multimedia's popular plug-in suite. It features a wealth of great sounding EQs, dynamics and effects. The latest version of T-Racks 5 debuted a new standalone mastering application along with four new modules. We take a look at Master Match, which automatically matches the sound of the songs you are mastering with up to three source tracks used as reference tracks, it's very good.