Wavosaur

[Elena]

I prefer using graphic equalizer, but i don't really know the difference (in term of sound of course!) or can't hear it.

What's the point in using a parametric es instead of o graphic eq ?
is there some situation where one is better than the other ?

And a last question : what are the best graphic & parametric eq in VST format ?

Thanks!

..

[xpander]

Like you know, on graphic EQ all the center frequencies are fixed and their Q (the bandwidth) is set so that each band overlaps the adjancent frequencies a little. You can not usually change the center frequencies nor the Q yourself, but only the level of each frequency center that you have available, represented visually by a slider/fader.

This makes graphic EQs easy and fast to adjust and they also offer the benefit of visually seeing the adjustments over the whole frequency range, with all those curves and dips....although, with software this visual difference has pretty much disappeared. On the other had, by their very design graphics are inflexible and don't allow you to do high precision adjustments, if needed. The fixed Q also means that on many occasions one ends up affecting a broader frequency range that would be necessary for the situation.

Using the standard 1/3-octave (31 band) equalizers will hopefully keep the bands narrow enough for regular use.

On parametric EQ one can change the frequency center and adjust both the width and the level. This gives you the possibility to do precise cuts or boosts in any frequency you'd like, without affecting any other frequencies. The limiting factor of parametric EQ is the number of frequency spots that are available, usually just a few.

It's also pretty common to see EQs which will have fixed low and high frequencies (low and high shelf) along with couple of parametric, freely adjustable centers. This is kind of a compromise, but works often pretty good.

Which EQ to use depends on your needs. At least in the hardware world, with graphic EQ you get more frequencies to adjust, it's easier to visually verify what you are adjusting and they are maybe faster to work with. With parametric EQ you can do surgical work, get rid of a specific annoying frequency or bring up just the right tonal spike you want to.

Combine them both or something totally new? Software plugins are nice on visual side, making even the fancier parametrics easier to handle than their hardware equivalents. There's also features once only dreamed of, like Stillwells Spectro, the real-time spectral editor mentioned below.


I'm no expert on plugins, but my EQ favorites have been PLparEQ, NyquistEQ, Electri-Q (posihfobit) and Spectro. None of them are graphic EQs as such, but work nicely for different occasions.

http://refinedaudiometrics.com/products-plpareq.shtml

http://magnus.smartelectronix.com/

http://www.aixcoustic.com/index.php/Electri-Q-posihfopit/30/0/

http://www.stillwellaudio.com/?page_id=32

[Elena]

Thanks a lot ! great explanations

[xpander]

Oh thanks, my pleasure, you're most welcome.

I'm happy if any of my ramblings made some sense, after all.

[monkeybumper]

Bump