You simply put an instance on either side of a plugin and it shows you how it affects the EQ spectrum. I simply put the “generator” instance on the first track, then added 2 busses after it to it was easier to see and to drop a plugin into the Insert slot in the middle buss.
Like this…
A parameteric EQ just to verify it does what it says…
Your favorite modeled EQ. This is Overloud’s Gem EQ84 with a “HiQ” cut of -16dB at 4.8K, a low shelf of about 10dB at 70Hz, and a High Pass filter at 70hz. (It creates a big resonance right on the cutoff frequency of the High pass filter!)
Other plugins can be interesting to look at. You can see why they might be called “colored” plugins. Just by inserting them, they affect the EQ. Here is the Kush Omega N Transformer. You can see at its default settings, the is a pretty significant roll-off on the highs and some lows.
nice, I usually use span and js plugins to do this, but you have to get the settings just right in span to get it to show up correctly. I’ll give this one a shot.
Same here. I’ve played around with it with Span and Studio One tone generator and sort of got it working. Q-Clone from Waves has been on my list for forever, but I’ve just never felt compelled to pick up. This is great though, it’s just so easy to set up. I now have a dedicated “Plugin Analyzer” session so I can run any plugins through it I’m curious about.
It’s really interesting to run non-EQ plugins through and see what they do to the signal.
BTW, the background graphic EQ on T-Bone works great!
I’ve got plugin doctor, and have spent a worrying amount of time investigating various plugs that I’ve used often. It can be a useful way of working out what it is about a certain plugin that you like or dislike.
I’ve been demoing GEM EQ84, it’s really cool. Can’t quite justify the price to myself just now, though I did pick up the LA2/3a plug in the recent sale. And I was lucky enough to get their API 550 plugin when they were giving it away free, I use it a lot.
As for Omega N, I think it’s cheating - It’s fantastic sounding, but the high end roll off means it was always going to sound thick/rich/smooth. My favorite Neve preamp breakup comes from SKNote’s Marconi, which surprised me but there we are.
Yeah, I was really excited to find this one! Super interesting to see what plugins are doing with EQ.
Yes, I got the API EQ when they were giving it away a few years ago and like it as well. I got the EQ84 on a crazy one-off deal from TimeSpace.com. It’s the only plugin I’ve bought there to-date, but what a buy!
re:Omega - It gets better too. Try a high shelf after it. And the Tweaker on drums!
Oh, forgot to mention the one that made me laugh - PA’s BX Focusrite channel strip. Lots of talk on it is about how smooth the high shelf is - that’s because when you set it to +10dB, it’s barely giving you +5db.
EQ Curve Analyzer v1.1.5 has just been released, and will now show you the phase response of your plugin.
It also now supports stereo and will show magnitude and phase for each channel.
Enjoy
PS: Please read the “How to use” text file and/or watch the new video : There are some new settings that may need some explanations depending on what you want to do, particularly regarding the latency of what you’re analyzing.
I’ve tested a bunch of analog EQs, and I’ve found it surprising how far off the markings can be from the actual measurements. Some of these EQs are boosing up at 40kHz, so by the time you get down into the audible band, it’s barely boosting at all.
I find it strange to know what it’s doing. I still like it, it’s a go-to, but I used to need to remind myself “trust my ears” while dialing it in, because a little voice would be saying “+11.3dB high-shelf on the snare top mic? You’ve bloody cracked, mate.” But…now I know it’s actually +6db I don’t feel like a wild amateur, swinging away with crazed abandon. And when I want to know that the EQ’s doing what it’s telling me it’s doing, the likes of Hoser XT is there for me.
Harrison resisted putting frequency values on their Mixbus 32c DAW for ages because the markings bore basically no resemblance to the actual centre frequency.
- It’s fantastic sounding, but the high end roll off means it was always going to sound thick/rich/smooth. My favorite Neve preamp breakup comes from SKNote’s Marconi, which surprised me but there we are.
And the Tweaker on drums!