The equaliser (or EQ) is one of the most fundamental tools anyone working in the world of sound can use. No video, film, score or voice over you hear is made without using one – they are quite literally essential if you want to create crisp, professional audio for your videos.

However, as with any specialised equipment, EQs take time and skill to learn how to use. Understanding the basics of what each parameter on an EQ vst does is one thing, but knowing how to fine tune the audio spectrum of a voiceover or sound effect so that it has maximum impact and seamlessly sits within your final mix is a whole other ball game. As made clear by all the people googling “setting equalizer for best sound”, it’s not an easy process.

Learning how to properly equalise audio is certainly a skill worth developing, however if you haven’t got the time, or you’re just looking to speed up your editing process, it might be worth investing in an automatic equalizer.

An automatic EQ is an equaliser which automatically (normally using AI) adjusts the levels of different frequencies in your sound source to make it sound its best. Different autoeq plugins work in different ways, some are applied to individual audio channels (i.e. one on your voice over and one on your backing music) to help each element sit better in your mix, whilst others are intended to sweeten your overall mix by working on your master output. Others are designed to combat specific spectral problems like resonant room frequencies and dodgy microphone frequency responses – there are loads of options out there! 

Looking for a standard EQ vst? We’ve got guides to the best paid for and free equalizers for video editors on the market right now.