Audio equalization — Input checklist

Worked example

Name the problem before using EQ: rumble below 100 Hz, muddiness near 200 to 300 Hz and harshness at 3 to 8 kHz need different fixes.

Listen on decent headphones and describe what bothers you in plain words. A voice that sounds boxed in and thick is usually a muddiness problem, a steady low hum from an air conditioner is rumble, and sharp s sounds or a hissy top end are harshness. The tool offers four fixed presets, Balanced, Voice clarity, More bass and More detail, so the clearer your diagnosis, the easier the choice.

Consider a podcaster who recorded on a laptop microphone: the voice sounds distant and a fan hums underneath. That points to the Voice clarity preset, which cuts below 80 Hz and lifts the presence region, rather than More bass, which would make the hum louder.

A common mistake is trying to fix a recording that simply lacks the information. A phone call captured at narrow bandwidth has almost nothing above 3 to 4 kHz, so a treble boost only raises hiss. Check by playing the source and asking whether the sound you want is audible at all.

Check the level as well: the presets add up to 6 dB of gain at some frequencies, so a source whose loudest peaks already touch the top of the waveform can clip. If that is the case, lower the volume first in a separate pass.

Voice or music source

Frequency-adjusted export

EQ shifts the balance of what is already in the file; it cannot restore frequencies that were never recorded.