Waves Audio GEQ Graphic Equalizer User Guide
WAVES
GEQ
GRAPHIC EQUALIZER
USER GUIDE
TABLE OF CONTENTS
CHAPTER 1 – INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................... 3
WELCOME ............................................................................................................... 3
1.1
1.2
PRODUCT OVERVIEW ............................................................................................... 3
1.3
CONCEPTS AND TERMINOLOGY................................................................................. 4
1.4
COMPONENTS ......................................................................................................... 6
CHAPTER 2 – QUICK START GUIDE ............................................................................ 7
CHAPTER 3 – INTERFACE AND CONTROLS .............................................................. 9
INTERFACE .............................................................................................................. 9
3.1
3.2
CONTROLS ............................................................................................................ 10
CHAPTER 4 – THE WAVESYSTEM ............................................................................. 17
THE WAVESYSTEM TOOLBAR ................................................................................. 17
4.1
4.2
PRESET HANDLING ................................................................................................ 17
4.3
INTERFACE CONTROLS ........................................................................................... 20
4.4
WAVES PREFERENCES (PRO TOOLS ONLY) ............................................................. 22
Chapter 1 – Introduction
1.1 Welcome
Thank you for choosing Waves! In order to get the most out of your Waves plugins,
please take the time to read through this manual.
In conjunction, we also suggest that you become familiar with www.wavesupport.net
.
There you will find an extensive Answer Base, the latest Tech Specs, detailed
Installation guides, new Software Updates, and current information on Authorization
and Registration.
By signing up at www.wavesupport.net
, you will receive personalized information on
your registered products, reminders when updates are available, and information on
your authorization status.
1.2 Product Overview
Waves GEQ is a fu ll-featured graphic equalizer with both Classic and Modern mono and
stereo components, featuring 30 ISO bands plus high and low pass filters, a high
precision floating parametric EQ bell filter, and a real-time analyzer.
GEQ Classic components use traditional proportional Q filters inspired by the renowned
DN series 1/3 octave equalizers, which narrow the filter width as you increase a band’s
gain; GEQ Modern components utilize special Flat-Top filters which eliminate the
artifacts associated with band interaction, and provide perfect plateau and stair-stepped
responses. Set band gains one-by-one, or draw your curve via touch-screen or mouse.
Finally, GEQ’s integrated real-time analyzer lets you compare the difference between
two sources. Created for live sound but equally useful in the studio as well, GEQ is
powerful proof that all equalizers are not created equal.
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1.3 Concepts and Terminology
Graphic EQ
Most graphic equalizers consist of a bank of filters with pre-determined (fixed) cutoff
frequencies, typically divided into bands of 1/3 or one octave each, with frequency
cutoffs defined by ISO standards (International Organization for Standardization). It’s
common to see the gain controls set as a horizontal array of faders with the lowest
frequency on the left and the highest on the right. So if one were to draw a line that plots
the gain fader positions at any given time, the resultant line would be a graphical
representation of the equalizer’s current frequency response, hence the name “graphic
equalizer.”
The GEQ offers three bands per octave for a total of 30 bands, similar to the hardware
devices commonly used in live sound reinforcement systems. GEQ includes a faders
array as well as parametric graph, plus a real-time analyzer with flexible routing.
Proportional Q
For its 30 main bands, the GEQ Classic component uses “Proportional Q” filters. The Q
value is proportional to the gain adjustment; increasing a band’s gain narrows the filter
width.
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Flat-Top Filters
The GEQ Modern component utilizes special Flat-Top filters which eliminate the artifacts
associated with band interaction, and provide perfect plateau and stair-stepped
responses. Thus, boosting a set of consecutive bands by 6 dB will result in a 6 dB boost
plane, without additional boost due to band interaction.
Band Interaction
Close to 0 dB, Proportional Q bells have a fairly wide frequency range. This is not an
issue when boosting or cutting frequencies in different ranges; however, when boosting
adjacent bands, the two filters will overlap and interact, resulting in unintended gain
levels.
Classic Proportional Q Filters Modern Flat-Top Filters
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1.4 Components
WaveShell technology enables us to split Waves processors into smaller plugins, which
we call components. Having a choice of components for a particular processor gives you
the flexibility to choose the configuration best suited to your material.
GEQ has a total of four components:
• GEQ Classic Mono
• GEQ Classic Stereo
• GEQ Modern Mono
• GEQ Modern Stereo
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Chapter 2 – Quick Start Guide
Using the EQ
1. Open a mono or stereo GEQ component on a track.
2. Select Drag or Draw mode.
3. Drag mode: Select individual band faders, move each up or down to set its
boost/cut.
Draw mode: Select a band fader, move up or down and continuously left or right
to draw the EQ curve.
4. For further adjustments, use the floating Parametric EQ section to s et non-ISO
frequency cutoffs.
Setting and Calibrating the Analyzer
1. Open a mono or stereo GEQ component on an output track.
2. On the WaveSystem toolbar, go to RTA1 and select a source. (See Section 3.2.
3. On the WaveSystem toolbar, go to RTA2 and select a sidechain input. For
example, the sidechain input can receive its signal from a microphone which
measures the RTA1 source after passing through the PA system:
4. On the WaveSystem toolbar, act ivate Calibration Mode by clicking Calibration.
5. Select the RTA Mode: Fast or S low.
)
6. If req uired, calculate the delay between the two RTA input sources, and enter the
value in milliseconds into the RTA1 Delay field.
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