DH Plugins LFO-EQ-1

Modulating your EQ parameters opens up a multitude of exciting effects. Can this affordable plugin really hit the mark? Jon Musgrave finds out

- Jon Musgrave

£39

PC MAC

Contemporary EQ plugins tend to fall into two categories, either emulating classic hardware with all its idiosyncrasies, or harnessing the power of software to deliver flexibility simply not possible in the analogue domain. LFO-EQ-1 is the latest version of DHPlugins’ modulation EQ, and falls firmly into the latter category, taking a regular EQ format and throwing in LFO and envelope control as well as four effects modules.

The core design is a 5-band EQ with three parametric bands joined by a high-shelf/lowpass filter and a low-shelf/high-pass filter. The middle band also gets an all-pass phaser mode. All five bands offer a full frequency range (20Hz to 20kHz) with +/-24dB gain, individual bypass and wet/dry mix. Parameters can be changed using the controls or via the graphic display nodes, and the display also has an optional frequency analyser.

Making a move

LFO-EQ is perfectly equipped for many typical EQ tasks. However, where things get interesting is the integration of two LFOs. Each band gets LFO-related controls including parameter-specific choice of LFO (1 or 2) and parameter-specific LFO amount settings for frequency, gain, Q and mix. These tie in with the two global LFOs, which you’ll find on either side of the plugin window. Both LFOs offer free and DAW tempo-synced options, with a choice of core shapes, adjustable curve smoothing and invert. Each also includes a custom shape. You edit this in the floating window but you can also choose from over 70 further preset curve shapes and a random option. LFO1 includes one further option, Envelope, which switches it to envelope follower mode.