thEQblue12

Paramount MP Mastering EQ

A dozen precision variations on analog, all in one equalizer.

Beautiful analog Architectures, twelve in all, that will take your work out of the ordinary.

Yes, Your Blueness

The equalizer, a cornerstone in sound processing, has evolved over a century, with the parametric equalizer (PEQ) standing out since 1972. It offers flexibility with minimal controls. However, poorly designed versions can harm audio quality. The thEQblue is renowned in the field.

Despite the plethora of PEQs on the market, development stemmed from customer demand for improvement. Dr. Christoph meticulously studied analog EQs, resulting in a collection of traditional minimal phase EQs, distilling analog wisdom.

The product offers twelve variations of blue, refined by MAAT, ensuring diverse sonic options. Additional features include flexible stereo assignment and global gain adjustments without disrupting individual sections.

The Twelve

Analog was elevated to a new realm by reverse-engineering esteemed hardware EQs, crafting pristine digital counterparts devoid of analog artifacts like noise and distortion. thEQblue comprises the most comprehensive array of classic minimum phase equalizer architectures, alongside innovative new models. It serves as a sonic playground for mixing and mastering engineers, offering precise renditions of legendary analog circuitry and opportunities for experimentation.

Dither…For Your Brain

Despite thEQblue's acclaim among audio professionals, its sound quality, while exceptional, still fell short of benchmark analog. To address this, FiDef - a psychoacoustic stimulus developed by FideliQuest - was integrated into thEQblue. Acting like dither for the brain, FiDef enhances perception and attention, as demonstrated in laboratory tests. Simply put, try FiDef and see if you notice the improvement. Alternatively, offer your customers two nearly identical versions of a song - one with FiDef and one without - and let them decide.

Better By Design

thEQblue is built on the belief that exceptional fidelity, enhanced workflows and less visual fatigue are hallmarks of better quality toolsets. The reliance on hard science and focused research balanced by in–depth listening and customer feedback, redefines audio tools for you and your fellow hardcore media professionals worldwide.

Features

• The most complete collection of classic analog (recursive IIR) equalizer emulations
• One dozen different equalizer types: 10 serial & 2 parallel
• Up to twelve PEQ styles for every job: classic, vintage, modern and unconventional
• Exclusive proprietary FiDef® processing: the audience feels their music like never before
• Different Q characteristics: classic, constant–Q, proportional, ideal–Q and special
• True high resolution emulation of analog equalizers, not modeling: no added noise, distortion or other non–linearities
• Support for up to 384 kHz sample rate, suitable for HRA and game production and post
• Extended center and/or resonant frequencies up to 80 kHz for filtering and correction in the ultrasonic
• Bell filters in all PEQ types are normalized to look identically at +6 dB of gain and Q of 0.71, ideal for quick comparisons between types
• Twelve sections with 5 freely assignable parametric filter variants: bell, low shelf, high shelf, low cut and high cut
• Extremely low noise and low nonlinear distortion algorithms result in residual THD+N significantly lower than 24 bit quantization noise
• Adjustable Q Factor for shelving and cut filters
• Multiple low and high cut filters can be overlapped to achieve brickwall slopes
• Very low noise and distortion upsampling for analog–like filters at baseband sample rates
• 80 bit internals (long double floats) virtually eliminate rounding errors
• Resizable and zoomable frequency response rendering for precise adjustments
• Parameter editing via numerical fields or directly on the Graph
• Presets for quick setup comparison
• Several instances, each with different PEQ architectures, can be opened simultaneously
• Stereo/Left–only/Right–only/Mono/Diff mode for each Section for all Serial types
• Band grouping function lets you simultaneously alter ƒ, Q and gain for multiple Sections
• Six fMODES quantize the resonant ƒ setting of all Sections, including Massive Passive & Maselec
• Keyboard button enables you to target frequencies by ear then lock them to a Section with a click
• Tunable Keyboard so that the sonogram aligns with material’s tuning
• ƒ lock function when you’ve found your resonant frequency and want to alter just Q or gain
• True Peak metering alerts you to TP overs
• Sort button rearranges Sections in order, from low to high, with a single click

Applications

With a very wide range of choices, you are ready to tackle any job with a subtle or obvious approach.

• Tracking, mixing & mastering
• HRA post including ultrasonic tailoring
• Broadcast production & post
• Game production
• Reinforcement: microphone response improvement, speaker deficiencies correction, acoustic compensation
• Sound design & enhancement
• Restoration & correction of transmission losses