Plugin Suggestion: EQDex!

[MickeyMoose555]

So I have had this idea for a while but I've been wanting it a lot more recently as I have thought of more features it could have. I noticed that if Vocodex's lower half were an EQ, it could have a lot of functionality that could compare to some leading effect plugins. This plugin could be a freeform equalizer, a de esser, a Trackspacer alternative, a Soothe2 alternative, a Gullfoss alternative, a spectral gate, and probably a lot more things that I can't think of. I'll explain how it can do those things in a bit. If I can figure out how to embed images, I will start using images of existing plugins to give visual aid to what I am saying. For now, verbal explanation will have to do.

I started looking at Vocodex as an eq when I was first looking to buy Pitchmap and wanted to get similar functionality within FL Studio. Setting Vocodex's band count to 96 will distribute bands evenly across semitones, and by manually drawing out the pentatonic scale you can add the colour bass tonality to the input sound. You can then select all of the points and reposition them depending on the scale of the song. The only issue with this is that the sound you feed in is still self-vocoded which is typically unwanted. If you set the modulator to a very fast sine sweep and turn only the hold to 100% with the others at 0%, you can essentially freeze the vocoder's bands and treat Vocodex as a freeform eq. However, it will still have the watery sound by the nature of Vocodex. With different methods, I found that Vocodex could also replicate the features of a freehand equalizer, Trackspacer, or Soothe if only it acted like a proper equalizer rather than a mistreated vocoder.

What if instead, there was a separate plugin that turned the lower half of Vocodex into an actual eq? It would have an interface similar to Vocodex and similar settings you could adjust. Band Gain Multiplier which would let you draw the equalizer shape, Band Distribution would let you adjust the placement of the bands, and Band Gain Offset could affect the level of each band linearly. Band Width could also be implemented, though its uses would be relatively limited. You could also have a variable number of bands like Vocodex so you could adjust the detail of the equalizer. With fewer bands, band distribution could be difficult to fine-tune, so specific frequency ranges would be impossible to pinpoint. For this reason, you could also adjust band width/distribution by dragging the edge of the band where you want it. The interface could also have an FFT analyzer so you can tell visually what part of the spectrum you are affecting.

The plugin I have in mind is essentially EQUO with many more features, and I was imagining it could potentially replace EQUO and adopt its notable features, like analyzing input audio and drawing a curve based on the input frequency content, the invertible mix knob which flips the eq curve when brought below 0%, and saving different banks to morph between (similar to Multiband Delay). I believe EQUO could have a lot more potential and usefulness with these new features.

Each band of the equalizer would also be a compressor, based on the input signal or a sidechain input. This would allow it to become a resonance suppressor like Soothe2 when the compressors are affected by the main input, or a multiband sidechain like the current Patcher preset or Trackspacer when the compressors react to a sidechain input. The threshold and attack/release of each band's compressor would be controlled like the band gain multiplier in Vocodex is currently controlled. With three bands aligned properly, the plugin could become a de esser, which is why dragging the edge of a band to adjust its range would be useful. Lowering the band gain offset across the entire spectrum could turn the plugin into a "spectral" noise gate. The plugin could also have a delta mode that would let you hear what the plugin is removing. This feature could be used to hear only the resonances of the signal, or it could turn the plugin right back into a vocoder when analyzing what a sidechain input is removing.

The band distribution could be adjusted to target any part of the frequency spectrum, for example targeting only the high end of the signal for finer precision in resonance suppression. There could also be a setting that will automatically level the frequency spectrum similar to Gullfoss. It could even be used to create impulse responses that match the frequency curve of an input signal if you wanted to recreate the eq curve of a room. There could be different settings to allow for linear phase processing if the bands are too thin and begin to ring. If you wanted more quality than the 100 bands allow, you can chain the plugin in Patcher and distribute the bands of each such that they are continuous, and doing this multiple times could give you a 300 or 400 band eq that you can then use for finer resonance suppression, eq matching, etc. Each band could also have a peak controller for Patcher wizards to use, but that is not an entirely necessary feature and may be overkill with a 100 band equalizer.

I would love to see this plugin in FL Studio, and I'm sure people could find even more uses for it than I specified. I’m curious to hear what people think of this idea!

[D3Mens]

+999

[Alphons]

Interesting concept, but I feel that the approa...

[MickeyMoose555]

Robiaster wrote: ↑Mon Jun 05, 2023 1:30 am You ...

[MickeyMoose555]

Okay so here's pretty much a proof of concept t...

[Apendica]

Was commissioned to make a 3 x Color bass sampl...

[♬ ♫ ♪ nΛve ♪ ♫ ♬]

MickeyMoose555 wrote: ↑Mon Jun 05, 2023 9:02 pm...

[MickeyMoose555]

"Carve your own guitar," I've never heard that ...

[levendis]

Fruity Convolver is pretty good at a freehand E...

[HowBoutSomeSnus]

Robiaster wrote: ↑Mon Jun 05, 2023 1:30 am Dew ...

[♬ ♫ ♪ nΛve ♪ ♫ ♬]

MickeyMoose555 wrote: ↑Tue Jun 06, 2023 12:37 a...

[MickeyMoose555]

levendis wrote: ↑Tue Jun 06, 2023 8:22 am Fruit...