Guide

Mac equalizer latency, for video and games

Last updated: October 3, 2026 · By Taha Bozdemir, who builds EQBase

A system-wide equalizer sits between every app and your speakers, so any delay it adds shows up as lip-sync drift in video and as lag in games. A good one adds nothing to the direct signal by default, states a figure for anything that does add delay, and hands back exactly the samples it received when every control is flat. Ordinary EQ filters add no delay at all; the delay comes from a few specific features, and from buffers outside the equalizer that no setting inside it can remove.

What should I look for in a low-latency system-wide Mac equalizer?

Zero added delay on the direct signal by default, a stated figure for anything that does add delay, and output identical to the input when every control is flat. Ordinary minimum-phase EQ filters add no delay; linear-phase filters, lookahead limiters and block-based convolution each add a fixed amount, and every app's capture path and your output device add buffering on top, so a figure that counts only the filters is not the one you hear.

• Minimum phase or linear phase. Standard EQ filters are minimum phase: output starts at the same instant as input, at the cost of a small phase shift around each band. Linear-phase filters avoid the shift by being symmetric in time, so nothing comes out until half the filter has passed: tens of milliseconds, plus a faint pre-ring before sharp transients. For listening, minimum phase is the sensible default.
• Lookahead limiters. A limiter that sees peaks coming delays the audio by its lookahead, usually a few milliseconds. Worth knowing if it can't be switched off.
• Blocks and plugins. FFT convolution and many Audio Units process in blocks and add at least one block of delay unless the design hides it.
• The capture path and the output buffer. Whether an app installs a virtual audio device or reads the mix through a Core Audio process tap, the audio makes a round trip through macOS buffers, and the output device adds its own. Bluetooth adds codec delay on top. A figure that counts only the filters is not the number you hear.
• Transparency when flat. With every control at zero, an equalizer should hand back exactly the samples it received. Few apps claim that; fewer show it.
• Accuracy near the top. The common textbook filter design squeezes bells and shelves narrower near half the sample rate, which at 44.1 or 48 kHz bends the top octave. Better designs match the analog shape.

What EQBase adds, and where it says so

In EQBase the equalizer is minimum phase and adds zero samples of latency, and Sound Correction's convolution adds none either. Two options do add delay, both off by default and both stated where you turn them on: Linear Phase (Pro), 2,048 samples or about 43 ms at 48 kHz, shown next to the switch, and the True-peak limiter in Settings, on the General tab, exactly 2 ms. An Audio Unit plugin you load (Pro) shows its own added latency beside it.

The Devices pane shows the engine's live status, refreshed every second: a Latency line that counts everything between an app and your speakers (capture, buffering, the output device), with the breakdown on hover. That breakdown names a processing stage only when it adds delay, so with the opt-in stages off none appears.

What should I consider when using a system-wide Mac equalizer while watching video or playing games?

Latency first, then headroom, then effects. A system-wide equalizer sits between every app and your speakers, so any delay it adds shows up as lip-sync drift in video and as lag in games; EQBase adds zero samples to the direct signal by default. After that, watch for clipping when you boost bass, and think twice about surround or room effects on top of a game's own positional mix.

• Keep the zero-latency settings. Leave linear phase off for video and games; minimum phase, the default, adds nothing. For games, Low-latency audio under Settings › General › Playback uses smaller buffers for tighter sync.
• Leave headroom for bass. Boosting the low end raises peaks, and explosions and film scores are loud already. Lower the preamp by roughly what you boost. EQBase's safety limiter, always last in the chain and adding no latency, catches what gets through, but a limiter working hard is audible.
• Treat surround and room effects as a choice. Games already place sounds in the stereo field. A 3D or reverb effect on top, whether Boom 3D's 3D surround or EQBase's Spatial room simulation, adds space at the cost of precise positioning, so turn it off for competitive play. For films at night, EQBase's Night Mode (Pro) is a gentle compressor that keeps dialogue intelligible at low volume, also with no added latency.
• Bluetooth adds its own delay. Wireless headphones and speakers buffer audio for the link after any equalizer has done its work, and no EQ setting changes that. Wired output is the low-latency choice, and Low-latency audio may glitch on some Bluetooth devices.

Want surround in films rather than precision in games? See virtual surround sound on a Mac.

Related

Parametric EQ on a Mac · Does macOS have a built-in equalizer? · The best Mac equalizer apps · EQBase vs Boom 3D

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