Klark Teknik DN360 manual

In live sound applications, graphic equalisation is almost always applied separately to the stage monitor of foldback system to reduce the level of those frequencies that would otherwise cause feedback problems. These problems came about due to peaks in the frequency response curves of the monitor speaker systems, monitor positioning, and sound reflected from the stage walls. An analyser is probably best employed to do this effectively but many experienced engineers rely on their ears.

In addition to compensating for room acoustics, equalisation can also be used to counteract some of the problems caused by microphone characteristics and positioning or to tailor the response to improve speech intelligibility. Also, many speaker systems have a far from flat response, particularly mobile systems that have to be positioned in physically convenient places rather than the acoustically ideal ones. When equalising the room, these deficiencies are also catered for to a large extent.

Whatever the application, it is generally better to try to attenuate peaks rather than to attempt to boost the surrounding frequencies to the same level, Furthermore, all peaks can be reduced be attenuating their respective band but some response dips simply cannot be corrected. An example is crossover cancellation where very deep notches may appear covering two or three bands. Attempting to level the response by excessive boosting will simply eat up system power and achieve no useful result. Ultimately a dip in the response is not so audibly objectionable as a peak and so it may be as well to leave these dips alone or to try and solve the problem at source by checking your crossover systems and horn alignment.

In broadcast studios, graphic equalisers are often used during phone-in shows to help compensate for the restricted bandwidth of telephone lines. No equaliser can completely correct the signal in this way as it is impossible to boost frequencies that don't exist and telephone lines have a very restricted bandwidth. Nevertheless, the improvement in subjective terms can be dramatic.

Creative uses may include studio work, live or recorded drama and film soundtrack recordings. Voices may be harshly filtered to simulate telephone conversation or the tonal characteristics of an instrument may be modified to fit in with a particular mix.

Though other types of equaliser can often to this job, the graphic equaliser is still the easiest to set up and the controls give an instant visual presentation of the response curve. In the commercial studio where time is often of the essence, this attribute should not be overlooked.

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