How to calibrate your headphones in your DAW for free without any plugins (Windows/Mac/Linux)

[@deardamo]

Thanks for taking the time to explain this man, really appreciate it :)

[@chasewatkins3096]

Must be really useful for mixing at the bottom of the cave. Idk why but the reverb was cracking me up. Thanks for the tip, super useful!

[@the-unconcious-mined]

I heard too much reverb at first. But now I'm using this calibration at 50% wet and 50% widening. And now my Beyers sound much closer to speakers and rooms. Prior I wasn't hearing any of my intentional reverb and shimmer, so my headphone mixes were way too wet and bright

[@guitartommi]

This is a really valuable tip. Thanks for the information.

[@galeb73970]

What if there is no specific headphones in the list?

[@Korgie_7]

very bare bone, straight to the point, perfect delivery and very helpful

[@ariansarrafan6665]

Thanks for the tip. Tried it with my cheap Samson 850s and they sound like absolute sheeeet after the correction. In every respect - frequency response, balance, tone, stereo image... Tried both with Ableton's stock plugin and NadIR. Wondered if the headphones are really that off. Then I just tried Sonarworks for the first time. Their correction/calibration sounds much less drastic and the tone sounds much more balanced and flat to my ears (to the point where I cant stand the regular tone now 😏)

[@BadDiode]

I don't experience a very drastic shift myself, but there is definitely a change in tone, which can be jarring if you are used to the way things used to sound before. Maybe there is something else going on, and you could try to see if the 10-band eq correction method works better for you. Anyhow, if you found that sonarworks is better for your case, that's good, use whatever works!

[@ariansarrafan6665]

Yeah, it sounded like there was something else going on. I'll give the 10 band eq a try when i have some time. Thank you for your help :) @@BadDiode

[@rhalfik]

try oratory1990 presets. They are corrected. Autoeq has errors from their algorithm and also from imperfect measurements. Oratory's presets are also designed to be easily tweakable, for example in squiglink.

[@mcelo5227]

Awesome tip! Thanks a lot

[@BadDiode]

Happy it was helpful!

[@mcelo5227]

@@BadDiode also I found the Ears chrome extension config in the site. That is awesome. Now I can listen to spotify, youtube or any streaming in my browser with the same flat response I have in my DAW and get used to the headphones in a reliable way.

[@guitartommi]

Can I use a convolution reverb for this or is a convolution eq so much different?

[@BadDiode]

yes, a convolution reverb with the downloaded impulse will work just fine :)

[@InnerHacking]

1:22 I also had issues with the build construction of my Beyerdynamic DT770 pro that I ordered online from them. I live in a country where you can't get this brand in any store. The left piece was significantly misaligned with the right side and even trying to adjust the position levels on each side it always felt wonky sitting on my head particularly if using them for more than an hour. Whoever built my DT770 must've had a wonky head. I also had to fix them from rattling and distortion on the left driver twice in 2 years. Prior to these I also had the DT990 pro which the left driver went mute suddenly. I will never order another headphone from Beyerdynamic again neither recommend them. Other than that, interesting and good video, I just wished there was similar instructions for FL Studio users but I will find out.

[@BadDiode]

yeah I have some issues with mine as well, in particular with the physical parts, the plastic broke so I've been using tape to keep them together. They sound fine, but I'll probably opt for a different brand next time. With regards to using this in FL, it should be a similar procedure if you put the calibration on master as long as you have a convolution device available. You can also use a 10 band eq instead. Just be careful to disable the calibration before exporting or try to find a workaround like the one I show here with Bitwig. Cheers!

[@InnerHacking]

@@BadDiode I figured it out, thanks for your time.

[@williamshaneblyth]

mine are fine no issues so very surorised they are known for being good quality but not goof if you want to travel as dont fold up well

[@flexdrumz]

@@InnerHackingcan I asked what you did?

[@InnerHacking]

@@flexdrumz Basically I used Pro-Q 3 in my FL Studio and added all the values manually that the autoeq website gave me. This was some time ago, now I just use Sonarworks SoundID Reference.

[@AMTOBurma]

Hello Can it be applicable on logic?

[@Stella-s9p1r]

I am a Bitwig user so this was super helpful. Thank you.

[@williamshaneblyth]

me too

[@gonzalezsantelices6203]

amazing thank you so much !

[@DanielRios549]

1:44 I didn't understand how it works, Can I make a earphone sounds like another like the Crinacle AutoEQ option?

[@BadDiode]

You can match a headphone response curve to other curve of your choosing. In this case to the harman curve, which in my case is very helpful to help me translate my mixes.

[@korneykretov4668]

Just group all your calibration chains to FX selector for different headphones.

[@VnowN]

for those who couldnt understand what he said he is using bitwig. Also quality video man keep it up!

[@One_Call_System]

I tried to get autoeq to work on my computer and the program will not load in giving me errors when i type in the neccessary codes.

[@Magnesius]

hmmm, how does this work in ableton? I don't think ableton has a "convolution loader", or a gain matching utility for that matter.

[@BadDiode]

Possibly the convolution reverb should work fine and you can use the stock "utility" device as well for gain matching. Alternatively you can use a free IR loader like NadIR or just use the 10 band EQ method instead. Good luck!

[@cadenzapetestudios]

Very interesting and useful!!!

[@kamikamen_official]

Really interesting, thank you for this.

[@beatskool101]

So I have a mix almost done, but wanted to try the harmon curve eq, to sort out the K-52 cheap akg's, in comparison the Harmon made everything much louder/bright compared to without, so make4s me want to adjust everything to the new supposedly truer image(it does sound more 3D), but if I put the eq on the master after the final limiting things are going into the red drastically, so I try it in different places on the chain...and I think sod this I'll stay with things as they are. I play on the headphones & speakers so make judgement from both angles, then on a mates hi end speakers & it's fine. I'd really like to know if it would actually be better if I use the harmon, might encourage me to drop down my Hi stuff, but I wouldnt want to ruin things. so where on the master chan do you put it?

[@BadDiode]

At the very end of the mastering chain, but I recommend a separate bus from monitoring as shown on the video, otherwise you have to remove the calibration before exporting your tracks

[@beatskool101]

@@BadDiode Cheers, I should watch more closely, I knew about turning it off before export, i'm not too familiar with setting up extra channel after master in bitwig.

[@Surfingnet]

excellent vid

[@Kane_62]

Hello, can u help me please, i use Cubase there is no Convolution EQ do u have any idea how to open Auto EQ files on Cubase? Like u did on ur Daw

[@BadDiode]

You can use a regular EQ, you can check different EQ types on Auto EQ

[@ringoman08]

Thanks for the Legendary Tip ❤

[@bestdisco1979]

What is the web page you went to ,,the first step ? It goes to fast in the vid and isn’t clear. Please help. Many thanks.

[@BadDiode]

autoeq.app

[@theozimbro]

Excellent!!!

[@tjosselin]

Thanks for this helpful video :-) the only issue I have is that even after equalizing I still have a big hole at around 4k for my DT770 Pro 80 Ohm. Any idea how to compensate it in autoEQ ?

[@BadDiode]

That's interesting, I guess it's just a quirk of that particular headphone model, at the end of the day these curves are used to correct an overall response, not such extreme dips. Knowing you have that issue however, you could try to put an eq at 3.8K with a narrow Q and bump that frequency a few dB to see if the response is better in your case. Make sure to use your ears, and try this correction with music you already know it sounds good!

[@williamshaneblyth]

the actual normal curve for the 770 pro is a bit of a dip at 3.5k not too much and not really wide. there is more of a pronounced increase at 10k that can make it sound a bit brittle up there especially noticable with female singers but not effected by males . so if you want a flat response its easy to bump it a little at 3.5k and reduce it a bit more at 10k and above. this is the manufacturers curve not a harmon curve. Very easy to tweak on any EQ in a DAW you dont need to use a convolution to do this just any eq a parametric is easier to get it accurate. just fine tune the frequency spot first by sweeping up and down very slowly adjusting with your ear by over accentuating it and when you can here the aera then turn that band up or down slowly till its right to you.

[@rhalfik]

You can't fix the hole one beyerdynamic headphones. Same on audiotechnica. The dips are caused by an acoustic cancellation and they cannot be fixed with EQ.

[@BlakwizLogics]

How would you do this in Logic ?

[@BadDiode]

Don't use Logic, sorry! But if you don't have an IR loader just use an EQ with the settings from Auto EQ

[@AncientGranules]

Just what I needed and for Bitwig too! Thank you

[@pixelatedbeatz]

Awesome tip. Just tried it in Ableton through the native Convolution reverb. THANKS! BTW > What's the theory behind this method?

[@BadDiode]

Thank you! Convolution with IR responses is essentially a FIR filter, which can be used as a way of doing EQ. I like this method because is simple and error free, but of course you could just use a 10 band EQ with the settings that AutoEQ presents to you and the result would be pretty much the same.

[@thataliennayr6149]

Can I just say use this on the master with a EQ with correct settings (bands)

[@BadDiode]

yeah you can do that, just need to be careful and make sure you remove/bypass the EQ before you export your tracks, which is why I recommend moving the calibration to a separate monitoring bus

[@adevine27]

Strange...for all the IRs I download from AutoEQ, even the 990 one you demonstrated, their waveforms end up looking more rectangular in Bitwig's Convolution tool. It doesn't look like you've edited its volume envelope. Any idea why this might be occurring?

[@BadDiode]

not quite sure, I downloaded it again using the same method and seems to behave as before :( if you are having trouble with it you can also just use a multiband eq and adjust the params as autoeq describes

[@adevine27]

@@BadDiode I'll try this method, listen for any differences, and report back what I find!

[@williamshaneblyth]

@@BadDiode cant beat a parametric eq though more fine tunable

[@IsaacMorseBeats]

You kinda lost me at one point. After I selected my headphones I'm unsure how to get it into my DAW. I use FL Studio. What should I do?

[@BadDiode]

The core idea is to use autoeq to get a calibration curve. You can get that in a variety of formats. In the video I demonstrate downloading a convolution impulse response to use as an EQ, but you can, for example select a 10band equalizer. You can set up an eq in FL with those settings for your master monitoring and you will be set.

[@Dakidddidit]

I dragged and dropped the sample file onto the convolution reverb and then I put a fruity balance plugin above it turned the level volume level down to -18db. It really opens things up!

[@deplaag.techno]

⁠yeah do this for your end master and you have a great sounding master 🫶

[@papamashas]

Спасибо чувак, это помогло! 👍

[@sac5608]

im sorry but you said make sure you set wet gain to 100 percent 0 what does that mean? and will this be a flat respose?

[@BadDiode]

you want to make sure the sound is 100% wet so that only the adjusted sound and not the original (without the calibration) comes from the convolution device. This will not give you a flat response, but you don't want that on headphones, you want the harman curves instead (I mean, if you wanted a flat response you could select that from the correction curve list I guess)

[@sac5608]

@@BadDiode oh ok thank you mate

[@ianreid2873]

Idk what I'm doing wrong or what i'm misunderstanding but doing this in FL Studio via fruity convolver have my tracks ear piercingly loud...

[@BadDiode]

I don't use FL so can't really say, but I did see a volume change with this method, which is why I recommend using some sort of utility device to gain match the signal before/after the correction. You could also try the 10 band EQ method instead and see if you have better luck with it.

[@wholewheaties]

I lost you after "convolution." I'm using Logic. Can you or someone introduce the key elements/plug-ins you would use in a Logic environment?

[@ariansarrafan6665]

ask chat gtp or claude or youtube about convolution reverb and how it works, and then ask one of the AIs to explain how to apply the instructions in this video to your particular use case

[@JupiterOddity]

@WholeWheaties, I put Space Designer on my channel strip which feeds my Headphone Output on my audio interface. I placed a limiter (Fabfilter Pro-L2) after Space Designer and everything works fine. My 2-bus is routed to a “meters” sub & channel strip, and I use two sends on the Meters strip; one feeds my Control Room main speakers, and the other feeds my Headphones Output. Hope this helps… Cheers- Gus

[@williamshaneblyth]

@@JupiterOddity if you use fabfilter pro or any other parametric style eq there is an option , custom parametreic eq in the drop down list rather than the convolustion option if you prefer or even simpiler is the 10 band graphic eq in there just print or copy the settings per band into these

[@haitibenefits4786]

thanks for your knoledge

[@BadDiode]

Your welcome!

[@malaclypse1409]

Thanks for the tip, going to try this! You speak just fine, but what do you say at 3:55? I cannot make it out, I'm sure I'm just being a dumbass. Thanks again!

[@BadDiode]

"Any IR loader will work for this process", sorry I'll try to vocalize better in the future haha

[@williamshaneblyth]

Bitwig ... Yah .. 👍 👍 cheers

[@JesusChristus-k3m]

you sound like NiKo from csgo holy shit

[@Flashback_Jack]

I stopped listening when you said your mixing baseline should be the Harman curve. Nope, the baseline should be as close to dead neutral as possible.

[@BadDiode]

I'm echoing what is said by people more knowledgeable than I. You want flat response speakers, but what comes out of them is not necessarily what reaches your ears. Even if you have a treated room, there is always sound coloration. As far as I understand, the Harman curve (in is various revisions) is meant to mimick that environment as close as possible. You can of course use the method I describe here to calibrate to a flat response. Ultimately there is no definitive answer on this, some people may produce better results with something they are used to. I can only talk about my own experience, and what I propose here seems to result in more transferable mixes for me but ymmv.

[@Flashback_Jack]

@@BadDiode I'm not sure what that's about. The Harman curve came about when around 250 people were asked what sounds best to them and an average curve amounting to the Harman target was the result of that "research." Sure, to my ears Harman sounds pretty good, but it is not neutral.

[@BadDiode]

@@Flashback_Jack I forgot the details, but iirc the study was about simulating a realistic listening environment close to what a pro studio would be like. Furthermore if the N people that participated in the study were averaged for their preferred "best" sounding experience, using tracks that were mixed in professional studios, I'd say is pretty representative of what "mixing" in a good conditioned room feels like. Again, I'm not an authoritative source on this, just sharing what seems to work well for me, but echoing the perspective of more experienced folks than me, like Paul Third for example. I tried to calibrate to flat and harman, and to *me* the latter transfers better to other listening environments (car, earbuds, house stereo, etc.). Your experience may not match that and that is ok, you do you!

[@kamikamen_official]

I've happened to find the answer in another thread, wasn't able to confirm it but it's late as I am typing this and will go to bed right after. The dead neutral baseline only makes sense if you're mixing with speakers. With speakers the context, air, proper room tuning will allow for a flat response to sound accurate and for your mixes to translate. On headphones though you won't get that, and in fact a truly flat frequency is unpleasant to listen to, so much so that as you mix you never reach that "satisfying" level of this frequency, or that frequency. Moreover, since your headphones are flat, if you're boosting say the bass a given amount, for you to "feel" that it's good on your headphones, you'd need to boost it to such a point that it's totally overwhelming for everyone else. So tuning to the Harman curve makes it so, if a sound sounds good on your headphones it will probably sound good on most commercial devices as well. Likewise if you need to boost/cut something, it should translate relatively well to other devices. G'night, or G'morning... it's like almost 2am as I am typing this.

[@williamshaneblyth]

I stopped listening when I decided I needed to start typing.

[@michaell.8938]

Difficult to understand you because you speak really fast.

[@MauChaza]

? KZbin give you the opportunity to choose the speed of the video, do that.. I'm not even native English speaker and he doesn't speak fast

[@BurningBushPedagogy]

Are you reading a script? it sounds so weird the way you are talking, not talking like you are not speaking for real in real time, as if everything already set. well okay

[@BadDiode]

Yes I'm reading the script I wrote for this video, sorry if the way I talk bothers you but TBH it's kind of rude to leave a comment like this in a video that was made purely with the intent of helping others. Just doing my best here, sorry I don't meet your lofty standards.

[@BlueSamMusic]

@@BadDiode I thought the commentary was excellent. I understood every word. There will always be haters. Don't let them discourage you. Liked and subbed.

[@tporter23]

@BadDiode I thought the meter in your voice was great. It sounds like you are multilingual, and I know if I were doing a video in my non-native language I wouldn’t sound half as good as you. Thanks for the video!

[@BadDiode]

@@tporter23 I'm indeed a non-native English speaker, though it's been my main language for a few years now. Thank you for your kind words, I really appreciate it.

[@williamshaneblyth]

he took a lot of time and effort to help people so im appreciative of all his efforts and its helpful..