OS X System Equalizer

96 Replies

I don’t have a music collection to listen to using iTunes. I listen to music through online streaming services like Pandora and Slacker. The downside to this is that Google Chrome doesn’t have a built-in audio equalizer like iTunes. I have a decent pair of headphones, Audio-Technica ATH-M50, and the default line-out from an Apple desktop machine has always sounded a little “empty” to me. Like they slightly tweak it for normal/smaller headphones. Today I finally figured out how to get a global system equalizer for OS X (for free) so I can push the bass up a little to compensate for the “emptiness”.

These steps are done on a Snow Leopard iMac (10.6.7 specifically) but I’m pretty sure they would work on a Tiger/Leopard (10.4/10.5) machine as well.

First thing is to install Soundflower which requires a restart. It’s similar to Audio Hijack Pro in the fact that it adds virtual sound devices but without any other capabilities like recording/sfx/etc (and it’s freeware).

Next you will need AU Lab from Apple. ~~It’s a bundled application with Xcode so either download it from Apple or install it from your OS X Install DVD if you don’t want to deal with the multi-GB download.~~ According to NicolasBalan in the comments below, you can now download AU Lab standalone from the rest of XCode (you will need an Apple Developer Login though), go to the Downloads for Developers page and search for “AU Lab” to get it.

And that’s it for software requirements!

Step 1) Change Audio Output Device

Change the output device in System Preferences->Sound, choose the Output tab. You should see Soundflower (2ch) in the list of devices. Select that one.

Step 2) Open AU Lab

Easiest to search for it in Spotlight or it’s default location is at /Developer/Applications/Audio/AU Lab.app

Step 3) Setup Input and Output devices in AU Lab

You’ll be prompted with “Document Configuration”, use the Factory Configuration “Stereo In/Stereo Out”. Change the Audio Input Device to “Soundflower (2ch)” and the Audio Output Device to “Built-in Output”. Finally, click Create Document.

Step 4) Add EQ Effect

Under “Ouput 1″ apply the effect Apple->AUGraphicEQ

Step 5) Edit the EQ

Tweak like mad with 31 bands or change it to 10 bands to get an EQ that looks more like the iTunes one.

Step 6) Save your preset

The 3rd drop down from the left of the EQ window lets you save/change presets.

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http://goncalossilva.com/ Gonçalo Silva

Thank you for this, wonderful tutorial!

I have a doubt, though: Is it possible to have this loading automatically on boot? I need to do AU Lab steps every time…
- dojohnso
  
  I’m hoping for the same. This is a fantastic utility.
  - http://www.dctrwatson.com John Watson
    
    On Snow Leopard, if you save the AU Lab document and add the document to your Login Items in System Preferences->Users & Groups, it will open automatically when you login.
    
    My current testing shows this does not work in Lion.
    - Thatslongformud
      
      Thanks for these steps, I’m using them daily! Have you figured out a way to not have to recreate the document each time in Lion?
      - http://twitter.com/ryentzer Yentzer
        
        Same here. Sure wish I didn’t have to set up everyday. But it does make such a huge improvement in the sound, it’s worth it if needed.
      - http://profile.yahoo.com/RNJY5T25YIBCJQK7BPZEUNRRSM Sean
        
        Did you ever figure out how to get this to automagically load on login?
      - http://www.dctrwatson.com John Watson
        
        No, sorry. Never had any luck with that.
        
        If you do figure out a solution, please do let me know so I can update the instructions.
- http://www.dctrwatson.com John Watson
  
  On Snow Leopard, if you save the AU Lab document and add the document to your Login Items in System Preferences->Users & Groups, it will open automatically when you login.
  
  My current testing shows this does not work in Lion.
Brian

I’ve done this all and I have now lost my sound. Any ideas as to why? I know when I set to Sunflower (2ch) I lose it.
- http://www.dctrwatson.com John Watson
  
  If your system preferences have the Soundflower set as the output, you have to have AU Lab running with the above settings for your sound to work.
  - Brian
    
    Yep. System preferences on Soundflower(not Sunflower as I previously wrote) and AU Lab running with the above settings. And…..crickets. no sound.
    - http://www.dctrwatson.com John Watson
      
      Whoa.. No applications can find a suitable sound device??
      
      I was just listening to Spotify yesterday too! Now I can’t either… I’ll see if I can’t figure out what’s going on
      - Brian
        
        I’ve already uninstalled it. Going a different route. Thank you for the help though.
    - http://www.dctrwatson.com John Watson
      
      Alright, I was able to fix this by restarting.
      
      Caveat #2: You cannot load the settings from a saved file anymore. You have to go through the AU Lab steps everytime…
      - http://www.facebook.com/people/Gabriela-Favre/1641142620 Gabriela Favre
        
        Hi,
        Do you always start a new document every restart?
      - http://www.dctrwatson.com John Watson
        
        It seems that way. I’m unsure why opening a saved document doesn’t work (on Lion at least).
      - berryp
        
        Did anyone find a solution to this issue on Lion? @dctrwatson:disqus
http://www.facebook.com/people/Gabriela-Favre/1641142620 Gabriela Favre

Hi!
Thank you for this great solution!!
One question: may I change Sample rate to 96000Hz in Audio MIDI Setup? Will that give more possibilities of getting a better sound when equalizing?
- http://www.dctrwatson.com John Watson
  
  Glad it could be some help to you too.
  
  I doubt it would help. Unless the source audio is that high there will probably be no difference in audio quality. I’ve never tried it though so I can’t say for sure.
Xxx

http://www.globaldelight.com/boom/
http://www.tiremoni.com Michael Schroettle

Great stuff. Thank you very much
http://twitter.com/ryentzer Yentzer

Perfect. Thanks!
Bill

Great EQ. Anyway of outputting to an Apple Airport Express?
- http://www.dctrwatson.com John Watson
  
  Try this: http://www.hersson.net/raopx
  
  Instead of setting “Built-in Output” in AU Lab, set it to “Soundflower (2ch)”.
  
  (I don’t have an AirPlay device to test this on)
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Todd Maroney

OK.. I must be a complete Dolt, because I can’t seem to get this to pipe through to “Built-in Output”… I Don’t see a screen like the one you show in Step 3. Don’t have a “Factory Configurations ” Screen or preset for Stereo in/Stereo out… have to manually add one input and one output, setting Soundflower as source.

Running Snow Leopard 10.6.8, current soundflower and current Xcode

If I set the source in Sound preferences to SoundFlower 2CH, and set up a new profile with Soundflower 2CH as source, I can see the EQ bars illuminating in AU Lab when playing sound through from Pandora, but no sound comes from headphones.

Help the monkey flip the switch please…
- Todd Maroney
  
  Nevermind.
  
  It’s called “software update”… there was a patch for Xcode to get the screens you posted…
  
  ###Wears @sshat for the rest of the day###
  
  …and the monkey flips the switch@
  
  Thanks for the tutorial!
Martin Bitar

Hey!
Wonderful tutorial! Everything sound better now.

Do you know about a place where I can see “standard equalizing” in 10 and 31 bands? Whats normal for rock, pop, and other genres? I feel like I have to do everything by my self, even though I have no experience on equalizing.
- http://www.dctrwatson.com John Watson
  
  I think the equalizer in iTunes is a 10 band equalizer. Its presets would probably be a good starting point that you can tweak to your own preference.
Claus

Hey! First of all “thanks for posting this.

I have set everything like shown in the tutorial, see the input in AU Lab-Plugins but cant get anything to hear from my iMac. (tripple-checked all settings)

Anyway I would prefer to listen to it through my motu8pre, but this also does not work. The basic idea of beeing able to EQ system-sound though appears fantastic to me.

Is Soundflower something like a plugin-slot, signal flow like: system-audio insert IN -> soundflower input -> Au LAB -> Soundflower output -> system audio insert out?

Would really love to get this work (.-) thanks for help in advance.

Claus
Jas

Hi, thanks for the great tutorial. It worked for me all this while until I’ve upgraded to Xcode 4.3 where the AU Lab was upgraded as a result. It doesn’t work now unfortunately. Was wondering if you are able to provide the instructions on how to set it up in the latest version of Au Lab that came as part of Xcode 4.3? Thanks.
- ln_zero1
  
  It works well with the Xcode 4.2.1 and AU Lab 2.2.1 maybe trying the 2.2.1 binary of AU Lab… i can send it to you
Matthew Peterson

Thanks for the help, but whenever I do this, an irritating buzzing comes out of my speakers along with the sound. I have a feeling it may be because I set my output to Soundflower, and in AU lab, I have it the output set to Built-In Output(Which, if I’m correct, is the system setting for output, which we’ve selected as Soundflower). Oh, also, a note: I’m trying to also send the audio through a connected set of speakers. I’m on a MacBook, so there’s only one audio port unfortunately.
Any tips on how to fix the buzzing?
guest

seems as though this doesn’t work with lion
Phil L.

I installed both AU Lab and Soundgarden and got it to work, but right away realized that the sound had suddenly become overall distorted and pretty much sounding like a low bit rate MP3 even with flat EQ. I had just installed “Hear” about 30 minuted prior to try and do the same kind of EQ function and can’t remember if the problem started then. But I uninstalled all 3 problems and my sound is still messed up on just the Mac OS portion. Switch over the Windows on the partition and it is fine. Getting the sound back to normal is super important for this computer. Any tips? Thanks so Much!
- Phil L.
  
  Think I figured it out, appears that Hear is/was the problem. Really hope reinstalling and uninstalling Hear fixes it.
danheberden

Another way that works with Lion and is pretty simple is AirFoil – you can pipe audio to remote devices but also the local computer and the software has an eq.
- Jens
  
  But this has a high latency which render it unusable for skype calls.
Jackshell

I paid a premium price for a Mac. Why should have to go thru all this and hope it works. Hey Apple are you listining????? I want an equalizer! Can’t be that expensive to include in the software. And also as how bout a basic draw program……..
NicolasBalan

…Wow… …Thanks a lot, the sound is amazing (much, much better-the bass is killing me)… …What we would do without people like you… …Just one suggestion to new comers… …They can download AU Lab separately (7 Mb) … …Is not necessary to download Xcode (4.5Gb) from Apple…
- http://www.dctrwatson.com John Watson
  
  Updated the instructions, thank you
  - NicolasBalan
    
    …I came back after 9 months to check something else, I was surprised to see that you mention my name…
sojournerC

awesome! thanks
Matt.

Thank you for this, so – so much.
<3
Kevin Coulter

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! As someone with over-the-ear hearing aids that don’t pickup headphone outputs this is amazing. My hearing loss is pretty frequency dependent, mostly in the voice range. To finally be able to bump that range up when listening on headphones through a browser is great.
http://www.facebook.com/blackxthink Dave Grenier

Awwww yeahhhh it’s working ! finally bass in my beats by dre which sounds almost totally flat otherwise thank you thank you
Ignacio

im sorry its just not working for me i dont have the two options for output and input settings maybe i have to old of a mac 10.5.8
Ryan Iyer

Sir, you saved my life. This is amazing. After EQ, my viewing experience increased exponentially in awsomeness.
joe f.

What you need is a DAC or DAC/headphone amplifier. Then you’ll get better sound, not just juiced-up sound.
- haruspex
  
  I’m using the FiiO Alpen E17, it’s an amazing USB DAC/Amp
  I have my Beyerdynamic DT 770 Pro headset plugged into it
http://www.facebook.com/people/Chris-Brown/1269427628 Chris Brown

What about if you are running an MBOX MINI it shows it in the devices but I get no sound or signal going to AU LAB
David

this….this is the FUCKING shit. Ugh… jamming the fuck out right now!!!
TonyG

Wow…big difference!
Rory

Simply Brilliant
Tryzub

I can confirm this works with Soundflower v1.6.5 (released within the last 24 hrs) and Mountain Lion. Thanks for the great info!
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=694282177 August Young

How a i use this with pandora and then send it to my airport express via airfoil?
Mang

I did this and the sound was great….but the volume went way down. Tried to bounce the format up to 96000 Hz, but that didn’t fix the issue. Swap back to standard Built-in Output w/ 96000Hz, and it damn near made my ears bleed, but lost the equalization…suggestions?
numnutz2005

you can also have this run on startup since whenever you reboot it makes ur sound not work again until you open your preset. You just go into accounts in the settings section > select the account you use > select login items > click the plus sign to add something > nav to wherever your preset is saved to and then put a check mark on it after its added to the startup items list. Restart your PC to verify that its working and your good to go . people probably knew that already but figured if someone didnt like me this would help them out along with the info on why the sound isnt loud when using the virtual in/out like it is on ur speakers. ty so much for this guide though i really needed it cause it was drivin me nutzz….windows allowed it by default but apple doesn’t….but no ne moreeeeee hehe. ty again!
- T ChaY
  
  If you don’t want the icon AU Lab in the Dock : http://foggynoggin.com/dockdodger
Marcello

I have been trying to get this to work but every time AU Lab starts processing the audio, i get a persistent buzzing sound which i just can’t figure out. Does anyone have any idea what is causing this / how to fix it? Thanks!
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Erik

I’m running Mountain Lion and goddamn does this works great! Every single audio input (iTunes, Spotify, YouTube, etc.) is equalized at exactly the same frequencies… simply brilliant!

Now, I’ve tinkered with the ‘Login Items’ setting and so far I haven’t been able to get AU Lab to automatically start up and play my EQ document at Login, but I have narrowed it down to a one-click affair (with that click being the AU Lab icon in the dock). Because even though I have both the AU Lab app and my customized EQ document added to the Login Items list, Mountain Lion doesn’t seem to want to completely launch AU Lab at Login. Not exactly a big deal, but it would definitely be cool to have all of this start up on its own upon User Login.

If you find a way to make this process completely automated upon Login, please let me know!

Otherwise, my means of getting all of this to the point of being a one-click process at Login was to not only add AU Lab and my EQ file to the Login Items list, but also by going into AU Lab’s “Preferences…”, selecting the “Document Settings” tab, and then by selecting the “Open a specific document:” setting in the “When Launching AU Lab:” and choosing your custom EQ “.trak” file.

Thanks again!
Erik

Not sure if this has been mentioned before, but on the matter of a lack of volume when going through AU Lab, all you need to do is go into “Preferences…”, select the “Devices” tab, click the drop-down arrow next to “Expert Settings”, and then select “Edit Device…” at the bottom. This will take you to a program called “Audio MIDI Setup”, and should open right up to the “Built-in Output” window. Once here, you’ll see that the default output levels for both channels are quite low. And so all you have do is bring those up a bit. I’ve set mine at a value of .711 / -9 dB and the volume seems to be quite sufficient. You can also bring the levels up by selecting the “Soundflower (2ch)” tab and bringing up the output levels on both channels there as well. I’ve set mine at a value of .902.

NOTE: Always remember to keep the volume levels on all of your audio input software (iTunes, Spotify, any internet source) around 90% or less. This prevents the frequencies from maxing out and getting distorted.
Huib

great!!!!
http://www.facebook.com/samuelbgale Samuel Gale

HOLY FUCK! SOUNDS AMAZING. THANKS MATE
James

do you need to be a developer to get the app, i am hesitant to create a developer profile because i do not do any of that
demien

using ios 10.7 and it works like a charm! just add it to your startup like discribed, and use dock dodger so AU lab doesnt show on your dock all the time.. Works perfect and the sound quality improves dramatically!!
Jules

Works a treat! Hardest part was waiting for email from apple developer to complete set up.
haruspex

For those without a developer account, I’ve hosted the dmg for AU Lab here:
http://www.mediafire.com/?shfszmd722i2ykz

MD5 (au_lab.dmg) = 5a82350c546ef5be778e5aeb861f9c94

Those with a developer account can confirm this MD5 hash:
http://osxdaily.com/2009/10/13/check-md5-hash-on-your-mac/
http://www.facebook.com/woutersmet Wouter Smet

Wonderful, thanks! Note that you can add other effects beyond the equalizer in AU Lab (for example AUPitch) for loads of (silly) fun
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000024771582 Carlos Carver

Airfoil is brilliant for playing to my airplay speakers from Spotify etc.
Many thanks
http://www.facebook.com/richard.splendid Richard Splendid III

somehow I seem to lose all the range I had controlling the volume via my F keys, turning down completely still kills the sound but turning it up the range is maybe 8db. did I do something wrong. any ways around that, because the sound is ace…
Guest

It worked great with my MacPro built-in speakers but I couldn’t get any sound to my headphone. Did I do something wrong? Help.
HZ

This REALLY did not work for me. AU Lab crashed constantly, and I couldn’t access my bluetooth speaker [Brookstone Big Blue Live] at all until I restarted my computer for the third time!

Running
10.6.8
Macbook Pro
intel core i5

Had to get rid of Soundflower as well as it froze and shut my computer down.

When I tried this tutorial for my macbook’s built in speakers I could change the output a bit, but completely useless when trying to access my bluetooth speaker.

I’m assuming there is something I’ve done wrong here, but I can’t figure out what.
Peter Weil

Where has this thing been hiding all this time? This is fantastic! Thank you so much for posting this!
Matthias

Awesome tut, thnx! The sound of my headphone is amazing now. But there is one downside though… The sound out of my laptop speakers is quite low.. I have already turned up the volume to the 0 mark (witch adds 4,5 dbs). But it’s still not the same as it was before. Does someone know how to fix that? Thnx
Chewy

how is it you use an EQ you make on a regular basis? Does AU Lab need to open for it to be used or not?
Don Pietro

Hey guys quick question: Could the preset be saved to the computer itself? I find that I have to open “AU Lab” to hear anything (leaving Soundflower (2ch) as the output in the system pref)? Don’t know if I did something incorrect or just ignorant about the subject, if anybody could awnser me this question I would greatly appreciate it. Pietro.
Philip

Hello guys, I am really glad I found this site.

I experience a problem though. I am probably just inexperienced but the problem for me Is that I use a “Dac” via USB. It works as a sound-card and I have to use it as output in system preferences otherwise I cant listen from my studio monitors.

If I do as you explain in the guide I only get sound from my lousy built-in speakers.

Is there anything I can do? Would really appreciate any help
ito

Seems like it does not work in Lion… No sound at all
Frank

Great guide worked well on my mac. (OS X Mtn Lion).
Kai

I am able to get the EQ to work, but I have to do everything over each time I start up my computer. I’m not sure why the audio is not coming through, even though AU Lab is opening up the .trak file at login.
- Alex
  
  Maybe it’s because you still need to switch the audio output? This can also be done at startup if you write a little apple-script which will do this every time your computer boots. (I can provide code if needed)
  - Kai
    
    Could you please provide me with the code? Much appreciated!
Andy

I’m flabbergasted at all the problems people are having with this set up. I followed the instructions and voila! Works a treat! Thanks mate…AS
R.CH

I got this to work alright but how do I get this work with my Apogee Duet? Mac built in sound card is crap. Tried tinkering with AU Lab input and output and still get nothing but feedback loop. Somebody explain please…
arizidon

Mechanically the above all works as advertised. Thanks. But the quality of the music coming out my speakers with this add in was noticeably degraded. Too bad the idea is great!
qriusme

Works fine on my Macbook Pro on 10.7.5. Thanks for this and to the commenters who left valuable info. I’m finally rockin’ some bass on my earphones.
david

Works perfect. Mabook pro on 10.8.2… putting my subwoofer to work!
Moped

This is awesome thank you!!
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bsd

Wow, thanks! I’ve got the same configuration with the same cans. After this, they sound great. Thanks for the tip! DnB sounds amazing now.
Alex

Hey guys! This works perfectly, thank you very much!

The problem is that I’m at university, so I frequently switch between the soundflower and the built in output. Doing this at least four times a day and being a rather pragmatic person, I’ve written a small os x app that inserts a menulet in the menubar at the top, from where you can easily toggle the equalizer on and off. It automatically changes the audio output and start/stops AULab.

I don’t know what would be the best way to distribute this app, but if some of you are interested, reply to this post and we’ll come up with a solution
- Preston Marshall
  
  Throw it on Github bro, like everyone else. Make a downloadable zip or something, and go ahead and publish the source too.
http://www.facebook.com/daniel.james.wiltshire Daniel Wiltshire

Just did some A/B comparisons between the default Mac OS X output and the Soundflower output with a flat EQ for quality comparison. I can honestly say I couldn’t hear any quality difference whatsoever (which is a good thing for those who are worried about the actual audio being affected!) Thanks so much for this guide. Works great on Mountain Lion 10.8.3! Using it to lower the bass from a pair of Kef Q500s in my bedroom!

Dctr Watson

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