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Chapter 5 Equalizers 109
Note: The Q parameter of band 1 and band 8 has no eect when the slope is set to 6 dB/Oct.
When the Q parameter is set to an extremely high value (such as 100), these lters aect only a
very narrow frequency band and can be used as notch lters.
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Link button: Click to turn on Gain-Q coupling, which automatically adjusts the Q (bandwidth)
when you raise or lower the gain on any EQ band, to preserve the perceived bandwidth of the
bell curve.
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Analyzer Mode buttons (Extended Parameters area): Click to choose Peak or RMS.
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Analyzer Decay slider and eld (Extended Parameters area): Drag to adjust the decay rate
(in dB per second) of the Analyzer curve (peak decay in Peak mode or an averaged decay in
RMS mode).
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Gain-Q Couple Strength pop-up menu (Extended Parameters area): Choose the amount of Gain-Q
coupling.
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Strong: Preserves most of the perceived bandwidth.
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Light and medium: Allows some change as you raise or lower the gain.
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Asymmetric: Features a stronger coupling for negative gain values than for positive values, so
the perceived bandwidth is more closely preserved when you cut, rather than boost, gain.
Note: If you play back automation of the Q parameter with a dierent Gain-Q Couple
Strength setting, the actual Q values will be dierent than they were when the automation
was recorded.
Linear Phase EQ use tips
Linear Phase EQ is typically used as a mastering tool that is inserted into master or output
channel strips. The way you use Linear Phase EQ depends on the audio material and your
intended outcome. A useful workow for many situations is as follows: Set Linear Phase EQ to
a at response (no frequencies boosted or cut), turn on the Analyzer, then play the audio signal.
Watch the graphic display to see which parts of the frequency spectrum have frequent peaks
and which parts of the spectrum stay at a low level. Pay attention to sections where the signal
distorts or clips. Use the graphic display or parameter controls to adjust the frequency bands.
You can reduce or eliminate unwanted frequencies and you can raise quieter frequencies to
make them more pronounced. You can adjust the center frequencies of bands 2 through 7
to aect a specic frequency—either one you want to emphasize, such as the root note of
the music, or one you want to eliminate, such as hum or other noise. Use the Q parameter or
parameters so that only a narrow range of frequencies is aected.
Each EQ band has a dierent color in the graphic display. You can graphically adjust the
frequency of a band by dragging horizontally. Drag vertically to adjust the amount of gain for
the band. For bands 1 and 8, the slope values can be changed only in the parameter area below
the graphic display. Each band has a pivot point (a small circle on the curve) at the location
of the band’s frequency; you can adjust the Q or width of the band by dragging the pivot
point vertically.
You can adjust the decibel scale of the graphic display by vertically dragging either the left
or right edge of the dB scale when the Analyzer is not active. When the Analyzer is active,
dragging the left edge adjusts the linear dB scale, and dragging the right edge adjusts the
Analyzer dB scale.
To increase the resolution of the EQ curve display in the area around the zero line, drag the left
side of the dB scale upward. Drag downward to decrease the resolution.