Hey i'm just wondering how to make the best out of the linear eq? i mean i know what it does,to keep the phase relationship between frequencies unchanged,but does it mean the LP is always better than a normal eq? how do you usually use it when the processor power is not a problem?

 

good question, waiting for a well educated answer too...

 

With minimum phase EQ (regular EQ mode), the EQ will change the phase relationship of the frequencies within an audio signal, this is like an analogue EQ (Linear phase EQ is a purely digital phenomemon)...so this is really good when you're shaping the tone of a sound. Minimum phase EQ's are also more suited for more surgical cuts and or/boosts. So basically for shaping your sound and for creative uses (mixing) you would want to stick with a regular EQ. Linear phase EQ's will work better with gentle and/or wide cuts and boosts and will be more transparent in that way. So say for example if you want to add some sparkle or air to your mix at high frequencies then you can do that with a linear phase EQ without changing the overall tone of your master track. Linear phase EQ's are also useful when using multiple mics to record instruments as they will not affect the phase relationship between the microphones.

I hope that makes things a bit clearer for you.

 

i use them on the master channel. i dont think you have to use them on any channel or instrument. the maint point is to avoid phase issues on whole mixes and nice technical eqing.

 

I've got nothing to add, since Fuad explained it perfectly.

 

That was indeed a great explanation Fuad.

 

- parallel processing (e.g parallel compression with eq)

- master eq automation

 

yes , also keep in mind that an analog phase eq will " colour " your sound , add some distortion and change the phase relation between frequencies ( that's what the filters on an eq do , enhancing some freqs and/or lowering the others ), good for effects and get some touch of spice in your tracks , they can be subtractive ( like lowering the freqs you won't use ) or the opposite (making the freqs you use louder (thus causing more distortion ).
Linear phase eqs claim to don't touch the relation between freqs .
No one is better than the other , sometimes you need some spice ( even in a mastering session ) and some engineers use non linear eqs on master sessions ( that's about the veneration of the Pultec eq and other vintage eqs , with their characteristic distortion that so many love ).
But then again , sometimes you wish to cut certain frequencies and don't touch some others , or just want to enhance some freqs without adding any other change , then the linear eqs will be the ones .
Hope it add some to your question

 

When mixing, it's important to have a handy fast-loading and CPU friendly EQ (because there'll be dozens of instances of it all around the project) - using nice analog emulation EQ or even the built in one from your DAW is wise.

When the mix is done and you might be working on the "mastering" stage, it's going to be just one or two instances of EQ you'll need, and it's important to change the existing sound interrelationships as little as possible, so all that mixing work doesn't accidentally go to waste. So you can use a linear phase mastering EQ for this job.

Linear phase EQs have a certain clinical sound to them, it's different enough that after a while you get a gut feeling like "i better not use that linear phase one for this... it's going to be like the morgue", or vice versa where you go "oh yeah, let me get precise with this thing and kill it good with my scalpel feel instead of my warm glovey feel".