EqLume vs SotF
EqLume
github.com
SotF
sotf.spinorama.orgSide by side
| Figure | EqLume | SotF |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Windows | — | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | Yes |
| Linux | — | Yes |
| Plans published | 2 | 1 |
| Spec score · Audio Equalizer Software | 7.7 (#11) | 7.4 (#15) |
| Privacy | Audio is processed in memory on the Mac and is not recorded to disk, uploaded, or shared with the developer or third parties. | SotF says it collects no user data and uses no analytics, telemetry, cookies, or tracking. |
| Support | The project directs privacy questions and requests to its public GitHub issues page. | Users can submit feedback or bug reports through GitHub and join the AudioScienceReview discussion linked from the product page. |
Plans
In their own words
EqLume
EqLume is a free system-wide equalizer for Apple silicon Macs running macOS 26.0 or later. It detects the genre of the current track and applies a matching EQ preset, with 21 presets that include hip-hop, EDM, rock, jazz, classical and ambient. The menu bar app shows a live spectrum analyzer and an EQ response curve. EqLume reads now-playing details from Spotify, YouTube Music, Apple Music and supported browsers, and offers transport controls for Spotify, Apple Music and YouTube Music. It uses a Core Audio process tap to capture system audio without a virtual audio driver or kernel extension. Audio is processed in memory, not recorded to disk or uploaded. Track and artist names may be sent to MusicBrainz and Apple iTunes Search for lookups. The built-in 3.5 mm headphone output uses tuned correction; other outputs can be enabled per device, while built-in speakers are unprocessed. The Mac App Store version omits the optional on-device classifier.
SotF
SotF is a free, open-source audio player and optimizer for room and headphone sound, available for Linux, macOS and Windows. It plays FLAC, MP3, AAC, ALAC and Vorbis files, and lists more than 40 audio plugins for equalization, compression, limiting, upmixing, binaural processing, convolution and denoising. Room EQ analyzes room response and calculates correction filters for a plugin chain; using it requires a measurement microphone, its calibration file and connected speakers. Headphone EQ calculates parametric filters targeting the Harman curve for hundreds of measured headphone models. Spinorama EQ provides correction for thousands of speakers without a microphone. SotF can export settings for CamillaDSP, Equalizer APO, EasyEffects, Wavelet, PipeWire and Roon. On macOS, a CoreAudio HAL virtual device can route audio from other apps through a configured plugin chain. The app runs on the user’s machine and says it does not collect user data or listening history. Speaker EQ queries the public Spinorama API for the selected model. SotF is GPL-3.0 licensed and has no subscription.