Fabfilter Pro Q2, is it worth it? (Example inside)

[Humidfume]

Hey guys, been working on mixing all of today and recently got the demo's of Pro Q v1 and v2. Below is a comparison of them both in action, same track, same riff etc etc. With Pro Q 2 I used the new features it has (peak grabber etc) so YES the EQ's are different in how they sound on the track because they are both EQ'd differently.

What's the point in this test then? Well I'm not testing the sonic quality of the EQ's (I'm pretty sure they sound almost identical) I'm testing the concept of:
"If I mix from scratch using just my ears with Pro Q v1 this is the outcome" vs "If I mix using my ears AND the newly added visual aids of Pro Q v2, this is the outcome".

Pro Q v2 let's you do fullscreen editing (really helps me hear things better by removing distractions and putting me in the zone for EQ'ing. I also had the peak grabber to really see when I'm missing little peaks etc that I'm not experienced enough to catch by ear alone yet.

Enjoy and share your thoughts below!



Pro Q v1 (First 13 seconds)
Pro Q v2 (13 seconds onward)

If you like what I do and wish to support me you can drop me a like / check out my EP / Music on the links below.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tjppo
Bandcamp: https://tjpp.bandcamp.com

-Joe

 

[inertia]

I upgraded to FabFilter Q2 as soon as it was released. I have the bundle after Total bundle, whatever that's called, so upgrading to Q2 was reasonable.

I don't hear much difference in Mix 2 sonically (it is a transparent eq afterall, so by definition it shouldn't be ) but the Q1 is a fair few years old now and there have been many code optimisations. Q2 is not strictly sonically compatible with Q1 either, due to changes in the algorithms. Since i used Pro q on practically every channel I wouldn't be surprised if Q2 was more CPU optimised.

I like the new features in Q2 plus the new filteres are useful. I can't say it's worth upgrading alone if you just want to use it exactly the same way you used Q1. If you don't have a tilt eq like T-Bone (which is excellent) you can now do the same in Q2 and I think that's a fanstatic function alone. That and the new interface is gorgeous.

 

[Humidfume]

I upgraded to FabFilter Q2 as soon as it was released. I have the bundle after Total bundle, whatever that's called, so upgrading to Q2 was reasonable.

I don't hear much difference in Mix 2 sonically (it is a transparent eq afterall, so by definition it shouldn't be ) but the Q1 is a fair few years old now and there have been many code optimisations. Q2 is not strictly sonically compatible with Q1 either, due to changes in the algorithms. Since i used Pro q on practically every channel I wouldn't be surprised if Q2 was more CPU optimised.

I like the new features in Q2 plus the new filteres are useful. I can't say it's worth upgrading alone if you just want to use it exactly the same way you used Q1. If you don't have a tilt eq like T-Bone (which is excellent) you can now do the same in Q2 and I think that's a fanstatic function alone. That and the new interface is gorgeous.

Yeah! I'm buying from new, so it makes sense for me to get it. There are student discounts etc, how does reg work? For eg what's stopping me getting my friend who is a student to buy it?

The differences lay in the clarity, there's just a touch more equality along the spectrum, tighter lowend, better clarity int he highs etc.guitars are heavily affected!

Cheers!

 

[inertia]

It's just a keyfile. There's no protection otherwise and you can install it on as many computers as you like.

I guess you pay the amount of money you are comfortable with "supporting the developer" haha. So yeah, you can get it on a student licence of course but you will need to prove it.
I got the pack during the 40% discount sale and without VAT so i saved a ton of dosh.

 

[inertia]

The differences lay in the clarity, there's just a touch more equality along the spectrum, tighter lowend, better clarity int he highs etc.guitars are heavily affected!
Cheers!

I am seriously worried about my hearing or my setup. Or it's the crappy soundcloud compression but I cannot hear the slightest different in the two sections of the clips and i've listened really hard.

 

[Humidfume]

It's just a keyfile. There's no protection otherwise and you can install it on as many computers as you like.

I guess you pay the amount of money you are comfortable with "supporting the developer" haha. So yeah, you can get it on a student licence of course but you will need to prove it.
I got the pack during the 40% discount sale and without VAT so i saved a ton of dosh.

I am seriously worried about my hearing or my setup. Or it's the crappy soundcloud compression but I cannot hear the slightest different in the two sections of the clips and i've listened really hard.

I can definitely believe I hear the difference via soundcloud. So unless I have serious placebo going on (which I blind test to avoid) I'm no sure what to say. It's a difference for sure, listen to the high end treble and kick drum etc.

In terms of supporting, my friend owes me a favour and I could pirate shit, but I'm going the route of legit out of respect and maturity, I've grown out of pirating shit. This company offers a demo, I tried it, I like it, I wanna buy it.

I think that buying stuff in a day and age where you can get anything for free says a lot (that's not an excuse or brownie points, people SHOULD buy shit!). I'm going to be spending £100's with them haha so it's just a way of me getting the tools I need to do my job, also I make videos and sound clips etc, I'm promoting them.

So it's not like I'm pirating it and selling stuff hahahaha. I'm actively promoting them and trying to get them more sales!

I wish there was a 40% off now

 

[inertia]

I sent you a pm regarding this stuff with the high frequency shit.

I went completely legit with my audio stuff when I started up again a year ago. I felt exactly the same as you do about it and in fact i have been far more productive and picky since going totally legit. No wasted time auditioning shit loads of plugins I can't afford and keeping humungous archives of software just for the sake of it (most i never used). It's actually more liberating to pay for things.

 

[Humidfume]

Ok cool I'll check it out! And yeah man, Just bought Fabfilter Pro Q2, after demo'ing the other stuff I really don't see a need for it. I have Slate for my compression and FF for my EQ. Done!

 

[inertia]

haha until you're done until Slate VMR comes out

 

[Humidfume]

haha until you're done until Slate VMR comes out

Hahaha!

 

[inertia]

Btw ProMB is amazing and a must have! Works great on Master Bus too.

If you are looking for some other decent but fair priced products I can recommend :

ToneBoosters Barricade (limiter)
ToneBoosters Reelbus (tape emulation)
Stillwell Bombardier (mix bus compressor , if you don't have a slate fg-x)
Stillwell Major Tom compressor
TDR SlickEQ (free)
TDR Feedback Compressor II (free)
GVST plugin suite (free)
Sonimus Britson (like Slate VCC)