Equaliser vs JamesDSP

Equaliser is a system-wide audio equalizer for macOS that processes audio from every app automatically. It offers up to 64 parametric EQ bands, each with separate controls for frequency, gain, bandwidth or Q, and filter type. Compare Mode lets users hear adjusted settings against the original sound in real time, and 11 factory presets cover music, movies, and other uses. Listed specifications include a 1 Hz–22 kHz frequency range, sample rates up to 768 kHz, and 32-bit float processing. Equaliser can import filter settings from Room EQ Wizard; the project also supports EasyEffects import and exporting presets for sharing with Linux users. Processing happens locally, and the app says it does not record, store, or transmit audio or include analytics or telemetry. It is free and open source under GPL-3.0. The app requires macOS 15 (Sequoia) or later and an Apple Silicon Mac. It is not notarized by Apple, so macOS may require selecting Open Anyway in Privacy & Security settings.

JamesDSP is a free, open-source audio effects processor for Linux clients using PipeWire or PulseAudio. Its tools include automatic bass boost, multiband dynamic range compression, reverb, equalizers, crossfeed, soundstage widening, analog modeling, and an output limiter. A partitioned convolver supports mono, stereo, and full or true stereo impulse responses. The arbitrary response equalizer uses the AutoEQ database and requires a network connection. Users can build live DSP effects with EEL2 scripting in a minimal IDE that provides syntax highlighting, basic code completion, and console output. PipeWire is the intended backend; PulseAudio remains supported in maintenance mode. Selective app exclusion and changing the target device are available only for PipeWire clients. Since version 2.5.0, D-Bus IPC and command-line controls can manage settings, presets, devices, and preset rules. Installation options include Flatpak, Arch AUR, Fedora and openSUSE packages, or a source build. The Flatpak is sandboxed and has access only to its application data directory by default. The project is GPLv3 licensed and provides no warranty.