Plug-In Power
Precision EQ
By Dave Crane
The Precision Equalizer is the new flagship EQ plug-in from Universal Audio. This four-bands-per-channel EQ is the result of painstaking study and analysis of not just the sound of the best mastering EQs available, but also of the operational features that make those EQs valuable to mastering engineers.
“UA engineers spared no expense when making a mastering EQ that would be worthy of the Universal Audio name.”
Of course, the sound of an EQ is most important, and UA engineers spared no expense when making a mastering EQ that would be worthy of the Universal Audio name. Like our digital re-creations of the Pultec EQP-1A and MEQ-1A analog EQs, the Precision EQ upsamples incoming audio to 192k for the greatest resolution. Processing audio at 192k more closely resembles the way audio processing works in the analog domain, and replicating that behavior digitally is Universal Audio's mantra.
In this article, we take a close look at the Precision EQ, and show you why it is an indispensable tool for the mastering studio.
 |
|
Figure 1: UAD Precision Equalizer
|
- A) Stepped Frequency and Gain selectors
Like analog mastering EQs, the gain and frequency controls are stepped for ease of repeatability. While mastering, repeatability is important so you can return to exactly the same frequency and amplitude, in case you change to another value and then want to get right back to the original value.
- B) Specific Frequency choices
We chose specific frequencies that closely mirror high-end mastering EQs. The highest frequency is 27 kHz, and the lowest is 19 Hz. Shelving and parametric filters can be applied to all of the frequencies.
The highpass filter extends down to 10 Hz to eliminate low-frequency rumble and DC offset. Frequencies in this low range can rob your mix of audible headroom if they make it into your limiter or loudness maximizer. The highpass filter was designed to have minimum phase distortion and maximum coherency, which is vital to these low frequencies, and of course, to the music.
- C) Gentle Q shapes
The Q shapes were determined through the analysis of various high-end analog mastering EQs, and they are generally broad, even at the sharpest setting. Unless there is a narrow band problem with the stereo program material being mastered, a gentle Q is all you need. The Precision EQ has five Q values: 4, 6, 9, 14, and 20, with 20 being the sharpest. Even at 20, the Q is not as sharp as the Cambridge or EX-1 on the same setting. If the Q is very sharp, the change in phase is also very sharp, and on program material, the result can be an unnatural smearing of frequencies on either side of the center frequency, and this can cause transients to lose their impact. So if you are finding that the Q is not sharp enough to do what you want while mastering, a remix of the program material is probably in order.
- D) Stereo or Dual Mono operation
Sometimes a mix has different EQ needs for the right or left channels, as some instruments may be hard-panned there, and their harsh or muddy character may be throwing off the mix as a whole. The two channels can be unlinked to allow for dual mono operation, and each channel's frequency choices are identical.
The Precision EQ benefits in many ways from the fact that it is a software plug-in. Its capabilities are flexible; you can have seven mono or five stereo instances on a single UAD-1 card. And, of course, there's the price of only $199. Here are the other software-specific benefits of UA's Precision EQ:
- E) Enabling/Disabling bands
As with our Cambridge and EX-1 EQs, you can disable each band in the Precision EQ, auditioning its effect on your music. Leaving an unused band off also saves DSP power.
- F) A and B settings
The Precision Limiter lets you A/B your EQ settings. You can copy the A bank setting into the B bank, and then tweak the B bank, and then check A against B.
The Precision EQ and Precision Limiter are the first two in an expanding line of Mastering plug-ins from Universal Audio. Stay tuned for more Precision plug-ins from UA!