global audio equalizer for OS X

[dbcanada]

I would really like a graphic equalizer, like the one in iTunes, that works with every app including the Finder. Does anyone know if one is available? It seems like such a simple thing; to have a software EQ that affects all audio output from the Mac.

My speakers are EQ'd in iTunes to sound great, but in VLC Player*, QuickTime Player*, iMovie, Safari, Final Cut, etc. the audio is in desperate need of EQ.
(*Their simple Bass & Treble sliders are far from adequate!)

It would be so cool to have a graphic EQ built into the Sound pane in the System Preferences. Could one of you hot programmer dudes get right on it?

[melon]

Audio Hijack can do this.

Quote: Not All Media Players Were Created Equal With Audio Hijack, you can add an Equalizer to any application which doesn't have one. DVD Player, RealOne Player and Windows Media Player all benefit from an added equalizer. Many users even prefer our equalizer to the one built in to iTunes.

Audio Hijack Pro probably does something more/better.

[dbcanada]

It's a step in the right direction, but Audio Hijack Pro doesn't work globally, it works on a per-application basis. You have to open Audio Hijack, tell it which app to 'hijack' and launch it from there. You also have to set and save the EQ setting separately for each app. After you quit an app, to re-open it you have to go back to Audio Hijack and open it from there. Very inconvenient, but better than nothing.
Regardless, thank you for your response.

[bob arctor]

Does anyone have any more on this? I too would love to see this feature, and being a relatively recent (6 months and extremely happy switcher) it's one of the few features that it amazes me that it isn't an included part of the OS.

[ThreeDee]

Not sure if AudioHijack could do it, but I know AudioHijack Pro can.

http://www.rogueamoeba.com/audiohijackpro/

[llumiaho]

I dont know if you need this information any more but here comes...

You can control your whole system volume with airfoil and it has an equalizer. Airfoil creates about a two second delay but works otherwise very well. You can use it wit airport base station to stream your music to your stereors wirelessly.

Also, in ThreeDees picture there is an option to control system audio, which is what you probably want to control with the equalizer.

VLC has an equalizer by the way. press shift-cmd-E.

Hey guys, I know that this is an old topic, but I just figured out how to do this. You'll need two pieces of software, Audio Hijack Pro and Soundflower. It also helps to have a easy menu sound switcher called SoundSource. You click on a small icon that looks like a headphones and it allows you to quickly switch audio devices.

1. First, select your normal sound source (built-in-output or whatever you use).
2. Push the volume to the max, or near max.
3. Next, select SoundFlower (2ch) as your output.
4. Open up Soundflowerbed, which makes a small icon in the menu that looks like a flower. Click on it and make sure Soundflower (2ch) is set to OFF.
5. Open up Audio Hijack Pro. Select the Input tab, and your Input Device set it as Soundflower (2ch)
6. Click on the Effects tab.
7. Click on a spot to insert an effect, click on the menu 4FX effect, and 10-band EQ.
8. Viola! Graphic EQ that works globally across the whole Mac.

The idea: Your output is being sent to Soundflower (2ch) and you use Audio Hijack Pro as the input. It has a built in EQ, which adjusts your sound before you hear it!

Hope this helps!

Quote: Originally Posted by Limeroo Hey guys, I know that this is an old topic, but I just figured out how to do this. You'll need two pieces of software, Audio Hijack Pro and Soundflower. It also helps to have a easy menu sound switcher called SoundSource. You click on a small icon that looks like a headphones and it allows you to quickly switch audio devices. 1. First, select your normal sound source (built-in-output or whatever you use). 2. Push the volume to the max, or near max. 3. Next, select SoundFlower (2ch) as your output. 4. Open up Soundflowerbed, which makes a small icon in the menu that looks like a flower. Click on it and make sure Soundflower (2ch) is set to OFF. 5. Open up Audio Hijack Pro. Select the Input tab, and your Input Device set it as Soundflower (2ch) 6. Click on the Effects tab. 7. Click on a spot to insert an effect, click on the menu 4FX effect, and 10-band EQ. 8. Viola! Graphic EQ that works globally across the whole Mac. The idea: Your output is being sent to Soundflower (2ch) and you use Audio Hijack Pro as the input. It has a built in EQ, which adjusts your sound before you hear it! Hope this helps!

Thanks for the tip, Limeroo. Unfortunately all it did was mute my sound. I can see the audio bars moving in Audio Hijack, but it just doesn't play through the speakers plugged into the headphones jack of my Macbook Pro. Maybe I'm missing a step in Audio Hijack. It is a fairly complicated piece of software.