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Dec 1, 1999 12:00 PM, Phil Darg

           
 

STEINBERG FreeFilter (Mac/Win) Steinberg's FreeFilter ($199) is a one-third-octave equalizer plug-in that delivers precise, high-quality equalization for digital audio-and more. It also offers a unique EQ spectral analysis function that can "learn" the EQ signature of an existing sound file and apply it to a destination file.

FreeFilter is a 30-band (+/-15 dB per band) equalizer that can work in both real-time and passive editing modes. It uses a variety of drawing tools to create EQ peaks, notches, and roll-offs. It has two EQ displays: linear and logarithmic. The linear display concentrates on the more audible end of the spectrum, detailing the 16 Hz to 12 kHz range. The logarithmic display extends the spectrum upward, allowing for more detailed shaping in the upper end (see Fig. 1).

Free as a Filter? Steinberg designed FreeFilter to run as a VST plug-in, and this is the only available option on the Mac. On a Windows system, FreeFilter can also be used by any Microsoft DirectX host application. As with most DirectX plug-ins, its performance on your system will depend on many factors, particularly the manner in which your software implements DirectX support. There's no way to predict how FreeFilter will perform on your system, but during my own tests, it performed better under Steinberg's WaveLab and Cubase (which use the native VST plug-in format) than under any of the DirectX software I tried.

But what about the promise of EQ morphing? Does it really imprint the sound of a professionally equalized mix onto an amateur recording? The answer is yes and no. FreeFilter can learn the EQ signature of one sound file and apply it to another. This process will alter the destination file's EQ sound, but it won't improve a lack of clarity or change the tonal color of a poorly executed mix. So if you think FreeFilter will make a sludgy recording sound like Led Zeppelin, I'm afraid you'll be disappointed.

You can have FreeFilter learn an EQ curve used on a human voice and apply that curve to your own vocal material. This works especially well if you set FreeFilter's Morph feature to around 70 or 75 percent and make sure that the source and destination files are in the same key. I used this technique with a brief vocal passage from "Maybe I'm Amazed," in an attempt to morph my voice into Paul McCartney's. The result was interesting, but I didn't sound any more like Paul than I did before.

Analyze This One of the greatest unadvertised strengths of FreeFilter is its usefulness as a diagnostic tool. Because it can analyze audio, it can display frequency spikes in a track or mix. I made quite a few discoveries using FreeFilter this way, which helped me improve the overall sound of my music. In fact, FreeFilter enabled me to design the most precise vocal-EQ setting that I have ever developed.

Overall, Steinberg's FreeFilter is a powerful EQ and spectral diagnostic tool. FreeFilter's EQ quality in passive editing mode was excellent, surpassing the quality of the other traditional parametric EQs I've used by a wide margin. The results I attained were crisp and clear. FreeFilter is worth buying simply to guarantee a higher quality of equalization in digital post-production. However, there's no guarantee that you'll get acceptable real-time performance when using it as a non-VST application. Its EQ-learning function produced interesting but not always desirable results, and is not really a magical mystery morph.

Overall EM Rating (1 through 5): 4

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