Lesson 13: Equalization - Posted on 2014-06-11 by Brian Mulvany

So many great things learned in this chapter about equalization.

Some points of historical significance include:

• William Thomson - the man who's endeavors began the development of frequency equalization
• Langevin EQ-215A - the forerunner to the modern day graphic EQ
• Analogue EQ types: Graphic EQ (Fixed Frequency), Program EQ, Parametric EQ

A rule of thumb pertaining to equalization, is that it is usually better to subtract than to add. Subtractive use of EQ has better results for a number of reasons. One such reason, is you can get to a desired sound much more effectively by simply cutting the unwanted frequencies from the audio, whereas if you boosted desired frequencies, you would either need more bands of EQ (thus complicating the process) or you would affect adjacent/unnecessary frequencies to the one you are boosting. 

Another reason, is that boosting desired frequencies will increase the overall perceived volume of the audio, thus causing the engineer to think that the sound has improved, when in reality it is only louder (and may actually sound worse!)