The Oxford EQ and Filters plug-in draws on the considerable experience in professional audio and studio systems earned by the Oxford Team, the team that designed the OXF-R3 console system. The Oxford EQ plug-in is based on the OXF-R3 EQ section and provides a truly professional EQ processor for Pro Tools, VST and Audio Units users.
The Oxford EQ is a fully functional 5-band application with selectable shelf settings on LF and HF sections. Additionally, separate variable slope low pass and high pass filters are provided. The EQ also features four different selectable EQ types that cover most of the EQ styles currently popular amongst professional users, including some legacy styles, which are renowned for their artistic capability. The use of novel coefficient generation and intelligent processing design provides unparalleled performance that surpasses analogue EQ in both sound quality and artistic freedom.
An additional GML 8200 emulation is available for Pro Tools TDM and AAX DSP.
Programme equalisers have expanded beyond their original use as distance correction devices for film and vision, into highly creative tools that represent a leading part of the sound engineer’s artistic palette. A great many EQ designs have been developed over the years that have been attributed with qualities that lend themselves to particular uses and sounds. The Oxford EQ plug-in is designed to be flexible enough to address as many of these generic types as possible from a single application, by presenting a variety of types to the user. The following pages are presented as a general explanation of many of the factors that affect EQ performance, and to illustrate how we have addressed these issues with the Oxford EQ plug in.
Many types of EQ exist with many differences. One of the most important areas is the issue of control ranges and interaction. Whilst it is true that with a parametric unit with continuous controls (ie. not quantised) any response could be obtained by matching their curves, many of the popular EQs have control dependencies that err towards specific application. One of the main areas where EQs differ is Gain / Q dependency. Most analogue EQs have Gain / Q dependency as a result of the circuits used. This factor can greatly affect the artistic style that an EQ presents by facilitating certain parameter settings and encouraging particular uses when the unit is operated.
In the Oxford EQ plug-in we have covered this situation by providing three different styles of EQ that take account of Gain / Q dependency as well as overall control ranges.