Smith Island EQ
Confident moves on the master bus.Stepped controls - 24 frequencies, 5 bandwidths. Recallable.
BROAD mode - one toggle opens any band into a wider, two-to-three-octave bell.
Mid/Side, in one click - internal encode/decode, no routing puzzle.
Editing toolbar - Undo / Redo, A/B compare, Copy / Paste, INIT.
VST3 / CLAP / Standalone. Linux and Windows. Offline-first.
5 sections per channel
Lo Shelf - Lo - Mid - Hi - Hi Shelf. Same five on every strip, every routing mode.
Stepped controls
24 frequency positions and 5 bandwidth positions per band. Recallable settings, comparable across sessions.
BROAD mode
One toggle per band opens the Q into a sweeping musical bell across two-to-three octaves.
Mid/Side, one click
Encode and decode are internal. Same five bands now operate on mid and side independently.
Editing toolbar
Undo/Redo, A/B compare, Copy/Paste, INIT - every audio and control parameter is tracked.
Offline-first activation
No iLok. No dongle. No internet required after activation.
Five sections. Stepped knobs. BROAD bells. One-click Mid/Side.
Lo Shelf, Lo band, Mid band, Hi band, Hi Shelf. The same five on every strip, in every routing mode. Stepped frequencies (24 positions per band), stepped bandwidths (5, 8, 9, 11, 15), and a BROAD toggle on every band. Smooth knobs are great for surgery; stepped knobs are better for mastering.
BROAD: the wide musical posture.
Engaging BROAD multiplies the band's Q by 0.2, opening the bell into a wide musical curve across two-to-three octaves of the spectrum. Same centre frequency, different posture. The wide moves the standard Qs can't reach. One toggle. No second plugin instance.
Mid/Side, in one click.
A single M/S MODE toggle on each strip switches its routing from L/R to Mid/Side. Encode and decode are internal. Same five bands now operate on the mid and side signals independently. No decoder plugin, no routing trick, no extra license.
The GLOBAL panel.
Below the channel strips: M/S MODE (the routing toggle), CHANNEL LINK (mirrors moves between strips in real time), CHARACTER (small post-EQ tone shaping, modest by design), and per-strip INPUT and OUTPUT gain stages with optional L/R link. Use OUTPUT to compensate for perceived loudness when comparing dry/wet - the plugin doesn't auto-gain, your ear is in charge.
Editing comfort, built in.
Header toolbar: INIT (reset all parameters in one undoable step), Preset selector (browser, prev/next, save/rename/import/export), Undo/Redo (every audio and control change tracked), A/B compare (two snapshot slots, instant flip), Copy/Paste (full plugin settings state through the system clipboard). Trial chip in the header pulses red briefly during a demo burst, hides itself after activation.
Workflow in three habits.
Move, then OUTPUT-trim, then judge. Use A/B to compare two EQ decisions; use OUTPUT trim to judge them fairly. Settings are made to be recalled - stepped knobs plus an on-disk preset library mean today's move is tomorrow's move.
Where to insert it.
Master bus (the default position): tonal shaping before dynamics. Mix bus sweetening: after the glue compressor, before the master bus, with BROAD for the slow musical curves. Stereo group bus (drum/vocal/synth): stepped knobs let you A/B-match shapes across busses with confidence.
Don't.
Don't insert after the limiter and push top end - you're past the safety net. Don't A/B by ear while moving OUTPUT - your ear chases loudness. Don't stack Character on saturation, tape, or a hot limiter. Don't reach for narrow Qs to fix a master-bus problem - the problem is upstream.
| Control | Function |
|---|---|
| Lo Shelf | 50 / 100 Hz toggle, continuous gain, fixed slope · Use 80 Hz +1.0 dB for master bus weight |
| Lo / Mid / Hi bands | 24 stepped frequencies, 5 bandwidth positions, BROAD toggle per band · BROAD on for sweeping musical curves; narrower BWs for surgical moves |
| Hi Shelf | 5 stepped turnover frequencies (6.8 / 10 / 12.5 / 16 / 20 kHz) · 12 kHz +1.5 dB is a safe master bus air lift |
| M/S MODE | One toggle per strip; encode and decode internal · Use for side air lift / mid mud cut without external routing |
| CHANNEL LINK | Real-time mirroring of moves between strips · On for symmetric stereo work; off for asymmetric M/S moves |
| CHARACTER | Small post-EQ tone shaping, bypass-honest · Modest settings only - the last small touch after the EQ |
| INPUT / OUTPUT | Per-strip gain stages, optional L/R link · Trim OUTPUT to level-match before bypass A/B comparison |
| Editing toolbar | Undo / Redo, A/B compare, Copy/Paste, INIT, preset library · A/B is the move, not the test - keep two candidates active |
**Master bus - the default.** Standard mastering position. Tonal shaping before dynamics. Strips run in L/R or Mid/Side as needed. Use OUTPUT to keep the level into the next stage where you want it.
**Mix bus sweetening.** After your glue bus compressor, before the master bus. Use BROAD mode for slow musical curves on the bottom and top, narrower Qs for any specific problem range. Mid/Side is especially useful here for widening without phase tricks.
**Stereo group bus.** Same shape as the mastering use, applied at the bus level. The discrete steps mean you can A/B-match across busses with confidence - set the same shape on two busses and they actually have the same shape.
| OS | Linux 64-bit (Ubuntu 20.04+ / equivalent) and Windows 10/11 64-bit |
| CPU | Any 64-bit x86 |
| Ram minimum | 4 GB |
| Ram recommended | 8 GB+ |
| Disk | 50 MB |
| Host | Any VST3 or CLAP host |
| Sample rate | 44.1 kHz - 192 kHz |
| Latency | 0 samples reported to host |
| Network | Not required after activation |
| Activation | Email activation — No iLok, No Dongle |
| Formats | CLAP · STANDALONE · VST3 · Windows / Linux |
| Version | 1.0.0 |
A/B keeps two full plugin settings states in slot A and slot B; one click swaps between them. Copy/Paste moves the entire plugin settings state through the system clipboard so you can move a setting between two instances or between two sessions.