Match a reference.
Capture a record you love, and Match draws the curve that gets you closer.
Coming
What you draw is what you hear.
Neutral EQ is a 24-band parametric EQ plugin for Mac, as VST3 and Audio Unit. Clean, precise, and simple to use in any DAW.
Shape any sound, and only what you touch.
An EQ shapes the balance of a sound: less boom in a kick, more air on a vocal, a harsh ring taken out. Neutral EQ gives you up to 24 bands over a live view of your audio, and leaves alone everything you don't touch.
Accurate all the way up.
The curve on screen is the sound you hear, right up to the top of the audio range, at every sample rate, even with no added delay.
- Nothing added when it's off.
- With no band on, Zero Latency passes your audio bit for bit.
- No delay unless you ask for it.
- Zero Latency adds none. The other modes show their delay, and your DAW compensates.
- No account. No internet.
- Your key is checked on your Mac, and the plugin never connects.
See it, then shape it.
Your sound plays on the display as you work. Grab a peak and pull it down, or type a frequency.
Dynamic when you need it.
A band can move only when the sound flares, and another track can drive it, so the kick ducks the bass only where the kick sits.
Hear two tracks at once.
Open the EQ on the kick and on the bass to see both in one display, each in its track's color, with the overlap in red.
A mode for every stage.
Zero Latency for recording, Exact Curve for the shape and phase of an analog EQ, and Linear Phase for mastering.
Notes, not just numbers.
Show note names and a piano roll along the axis, so a ringing tone reads as the note it is.
Everything you'd expect.
Solo, A/B, undo in any DAW, and Auto Gain, so a louder sound never fools you into hearing a better one.
It works in the DAW you already use.
VST3 and AU in any Mac DAW that hosts them, on macOS 13 or later. Verified so far in Ableton Live, Bitwig Studio, Cubase, FL Studio, Logic Pro, REAPER, and Studio One. It follows your Mac's light and dark mode, resizes and remembers its size, and every control is named for VoiceOver.
Specifications
The basics first, then what the tests measure. Every measured number is a limit a release has to pass, through a real DAW.
The basics
- Formats
VST3 and Audio Unit, for any Mac DAW that hosts them.
- Bands
Up to 24.
- Filter types
Bell, low shelf, high shelf, tilt shelf, notch, band-pass, low cut, and high cut.
- Cut slopes
6, 12, 18, 24, 36, 48, 72, and 96 dB/oct.
- Placement
Stereo, left, right, mid, or side, per band.
- Ranges
Frequency 10 Hz to 30 kHz, gain ±30 dB, Q 0.1 to 30, output ±24 dB.
- Sample rates
44.1 to 192 kHz.
- Processing
64-bit floating point throughout.
The EQ's own rounding sits far below anything a converter can play.
- Latency
Zero Latency none. Exact Curve 7.3 ms at 44.1 kHz, 6.7 at 48, 6.0 at 96. Linear Phase 24.7 to 373.0 ms at 44.1 kHz by resolution, 22.7 to 342.7 at 48, 22.0 to 342.0 at 96.
Your DAW compensates for it, so tracks stay in time.
In samples: Exact Curve 320 at 44.1 and 48 kHz, 576 at 96 kHz; Linear Phase 1088 to 16448 at 44.1 and 48 kHz, 2112 to 32832 at 96 kHz.
Measured performance
- Curve accuracy, Zero Latency
Bell within 0.006 dB of the analog curve to 20 kHz at 44.1 and 192 kHz; shelf within 0.005 dB to 21.5 kHz.
The curve on screen is the curve you hear, with no added delay.
A +6 dB bell and +12 dB shelves, swept against the analog formula the manual prints.
- Curve accuracy, Exact Curve
Bell and shelf within 0.002 dB of the analog curve to 21.5 kHz at 44.1 kHz, phase within 0.05 degrees of the analog filter.
The shape and phase of an analog EQ, at any sample rate.
- Curve accuracy, Linear Phase
Bell within 0.02 dB of the analytic curve to 20.5 kHz, no phase shift.
- Types and rates tested
Eight types, the cuts at all 8 slopes, at 44.1, 96, and 192 kHz, on stereo, mid, and side.
- THD+N through a band
At or below −300 dB relative to the tone, in Zero Latency and in Exact Curve.
Distortion and noise a boost adds. Far below what any converter can play.
1 kHz at −6 dBFS through a +6 dB bell, captured in 64-bit; the rig reads its own tone below −330 dB.
- Worst-case noise
At or below −285 dB relative to the tone in the worst case, −300 dB at the extreme setting.
Even at the most demanding settings, the EQ's own rounding stays inaudible.
The worst case is a 96 dB/oct low cut with its corner on the tone; the extreme setting is a 20 Hz bell at Q 30 and +30 dB.
- Intermodulation, SMPTE
Below −250 dB against the 7 kHz tone.
No new tones appear when a low and a high sound play together.
60 Hz at −6 dBFS with 7 kHz at −18 dBFS, the 4:1 SMPTE pair, captured in 64-bit.
- Intermodulation, CCIF
Below −255 dB against the 20 kHz tone.
19 kHz and 20 kHz at −9 dBFS each, captured in 64-bit.
- Multitone TD+N
Below −275 dB relative to the total, everything that is not the tones, aliasing products included.
Nothing added to a busy, full-range signal.
24 tones spaced evenly in pitch, each fitted exactly and removed.
- No band on
Bit-exact in Zero Latency. Below −300 dB relative to the signal in Exact Curve and Linear Phase, through the delay the host compensates.
With nothing engaged, your audio passes through unchanged.
An impulse rendered through the plugin at defaults against the same render with no plugin.
- Bypass
Bit-exact and latency-matched, in every mode.
Bypass compares fairly, with no jump in time or level.
- Same result in another DAW
The same state rendered in REAPER and in Neutral Tracks nulls below −300 dB relative to the signal.
- Parameter moves
Artifact-free through band on and off, type switches, and frequency sweeps.
Moving or automating a band never clicks.
- Dynamic bands
One decibel per decibel over the threshold, within a tenth of a decibel.
- Auto Gain
Holds pink noise within 0.5 dB through a bell, a shelf, and a cut.
- Match
Recovers a three-bell target within 0.25 dB.
Requirements
- macOS 13 (Ventura) or later
- Apple Silicon, M1 or newer. Intel Macs are not supported
- VST3 and AU hosts. Verified so far in Ableton Live, Bitwig Studio, Cubase, FL Studio, Logic Pro, REAPER, and Studio One; more hosts as each is verified
- Pro Tools is not supported. It hosts AAX plugins only
- Never connects to the internet
Price
$49 once. Updates are free.
The plugin runs in full for 30 days, then mutes one second in every minute until a key is entered. One key licenses it in every DAW you use.
Questions
- What does an EQ do?
- An EQ turns parts of a sound up or down by frequency: less boom in a kick, more air on a vocal, a harsh ring taken out of a guitar. You draw a curve over the sound and the sound follows it. It's the plugin most producers use on almost every track.
- What makes Neutral EQ accurate?
- Each band is designed from the analog filter it models and corrected so the curve holds to the top of the audio range at every sample rate, even in Zero Latency. Every number in the specifications is measured in a real DAW on each release.
- Does Neutral EQ work in Logic, Ableton Live, Cubase, and REAPER?
- Yes. It installs as VST3 and Audio Unit, so it runs in any Mac DAW that hosts them. Pro Tools is the exception, because it hosts AAX plugins only.
- Does it add latency?
- Not in Zero Latency mode. Exact Curve adds about 7 ms at 44.1 kHz, and Linear Phase adds more, depending on the resolution you pick. The mode menu shows the exact delay of each at your session's rate, and your DAW compensates for it.
- How do I add a band?
- Press the plus in the strip, double-click on the display, or hover a peak in the spectrum and press it.
- How much of a Match should I use?
- Usually less than all of it. Set Gain Scale to 50 percent and listen, then adjust.
- What does Auto Gain do?
- It keeps the overall level steady as you shape the curve, so a boost doesn't sound better just because it's louder. It works from the curve, not from the signal, so it never pumps and two renders always match.
- Can I try it before buying?
- Yes. It runs in full for 30 days with no account and no signup. After that it mutes one second in every minute until you enter a key.
- Do I need an internet connection or an account?
- No. Neutral EQ never connects to the internet. Your license key is checked on your Mac, so it works offline, and there is no account to create.
- Do I need a separate license for each DAW?
- No. One key licenses it in every DAW you use.
- Will it run on an Intel Mac?
- No. It needs Apple Silicon, M1 or newer, on macOS 13 or later.
Neutral EQ is coming soon.
One email when it ships, and nothing in between.