My current studio setup consists of an SSL12 interface and a pair of Adam Audio A7V, with the room fully treated using bass traps and acoustic panels – overall a solid environment for producing, mixing, and mastering.
Since I’d already been using Sonarworks SoundID Reference for my headphones, I decided to try it for room measurement and apply an EQ curve to my speakers in order to achieve a flat response at the listening position. The process itself was smooth: measuring was quick, exporting the profile to the Adam Audio DSP was effortless, and the resulting flat curve sounded great – in fact, I preferred it over the factory setting.
However, I noticed issues. SoundID Reference doesn’t only store EQ data but also applies phase delay and level correction. When listening to music, the stereo center suddenly felt off, shifted toward the left speaker. Mixing also felt strange. After two mixes I repeated the measurement, exported a new profile, and compared it with the previous one. While the EQ curves were similar, the delay and level correction values were different.
Testing with both reference tracks and a 1kHz tone panned dead center confirmed the problem: one profile shifted the stereo image to the left, another to the right. To fix this, I kept the EQ curve but reset delay to 0.0 ms and level adjustment to 0 dB. The stereo image then leaned slightly to the right, so I fine-tuned the balance by lowering the right speaker by -1 dB. The result: a perfectly centered image.
This was a valuable reminder: no matter how advanced the measurement tools, your ears are the final authority. If something feels off, it probably is. Trust your perception, check your stereo center carefully, and use correction software as an enhancement – not as a replacement for critical listening. For me, the flat EQ curve stays, but stereo balance is set by ear.
Thank you for sharing this with us, Christian! It is really insightful and very important reminder of how important it is to train our ears and develop a critical listening experience.
Great info!! SoundID is helpful but definetly knowing your system is way more important!! Were these phase issues after applying the linear phase option rather than zero latency? Zero latency for my was super odd and wasn't able to work with that at all! Cheers
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