Paul White gets to grips with the latest budget equaliser from Ross, and offers a few handy tips on graphic equalisation.
The Ross RX15S is a low‑cost graphic equaliser suitable for most general purpose applications. There are 15 centre‑detented faders per channel, with an additional fader for level control. Each band offers up to 12dB of cut or boost at ISO‑standard centre frequencies from 25Hz to 16kHz. Due to the way the ISO frequencies are distributed (according to the logarithmic nature of human hearing), half the controls are dedicated to frequencies below 1kHz, which provides plenty of scope for fine‑tuning the critical bass and mid‑range areas of the audio spectrum.
Unlike some cheaper units, the RX15S is mains‑powered via a captive mains lead. The unit doubles up the inputs and outputs on both jack and phono connectors, and the jacks are balanced, although using a mono jack forces them to work unbalanced. In addition to the main graphic controls, there's a low cut button for each channel which brings in a 6dB‑per‑octave rolloff at 30Hz. Each channel has its own Bypass switch, and a simple four‑LED meter monitors the output level up to a maximum of +17dB, which is where the unit runs out of headroom. Such metering is a good idea, as it's easy to get carried away with EQ boost, and if you don't keep an eye on the levels, you can start to run into clipping distortion due to the increase in signal level.
Listening tests with various solo instruments and mixes revealed the RX15S to be quite musical‑sounding when used sensibly and in moderation. There's a small degree of inter‑band interaction, but this is to be expected with the type of circuitry used. Most importantly, the RX15S does not have the hard, honky tone that betrays some cheaper units, and although serious pro graphics are more precise and sweeter‑sounding — and, as a result, much more expensive — the RX15S is a useful tool that wouldn't be out of place in even quite a serious studio setup. There's a lot of competition at the bottom end of the graphic market, but this one gives as good as it gets.
Graphic Detail: A Word On Graphic Equalisation
Of the many types of equaliser available today, graphic equalisers are probably still the easiest to use, simply because the front‑panel fader positions provide a convenient graphic representation of the overall filter response. Despite this, graphic EQs have had perhaps more than their fair share of bad press, mainly because they tend to get used for room equalisation. While room EQ is valid enough in live sound, the currently accepted wisdom is that studio control rooms shouldn't be equalised in the same way, because equalisation doesn't actually tackle the underlying problem of poor acoustic design. At the recording stage, studio graphics are best reserved for carving raw sounds or tweaking stereo mixes. It can be argued that parametric equalisers are more accurate for this job, but they are also rather more tricky to set up.
Graphic equalisers are particularly good for shaping electric guitar, bass, and synth sounds, but provided they are used in moderation, they can be used successfully on most material. The general rules when using graphics are: set smooth curves rather than ragged lines of faders; use cut rather than boost where possible; and use as little EQ as you can get away with.
Some of the cheaper graphics tend to suffer from inter‑band interaction, which means that whatever you do to one band will also affect what's going on in the adjacent bands, and with this in mind, it's all the more important to set the controls up in the form of smooth curves.
Pros
- Easy to use.
- Good value.
- Good tonal range.
- None at the price.
Cons
- Easy to use.
- Good value.
- Good tonal range.
- None at the price.
Summary
A competent, general‑purpose graphic equaliser at a sensible price.