eqtui

A keyboard-driven parametric EQ for PipeWire that lives in the terminal. Built with Ratatui.

EasyEffects is great, but sometimes I just want a simple EQ — not a full DSP pipeline with a GTK(now Qt) UI. And also i want to learn little bit about DSP stuff.

Runs as a background daemon so the EQ keeps going even after closing the TUI.

Quick Start

cargo install eqtui
eqtui daemon    # start the engine (background)
eqtui           # open the TUI
eqtui stop      # stop the daemon

Close with q — the EQ keeps running. Re-attach anytime with eqtui attach.

Keybindings

eqtui uses Vim-inspired keybindings across several modes.

Normal Mode (Navigation & Quick Actions)

Insert Mode (Cell Editing)

Filter Types: In the "Type" column, type PK (Peak), LS (LowShelf), or HS (HighShelf).

Visual Mode (Bulk Operations)

Command Mode

Features (the short version)

• Daemon/TUI split — EQ engine stays alive when the UI closes
• Parametric EQ — frequency, gain, Q, filter type per band
• AutoEQ import — :load any PEQ file from AutoEQ / Squiglink
• Profile system — save/switch presets with :w
• Vim-ish controls — Normal/Insert/Visual/Command modes
• No GTK, no Qt — just a terminal and PipeWire

Config & Profiles

Settings are stored in standard XDG locations.

• Config: ~/.config/eqtui/config.toml
• Profiles: ~/.config/eqtui/profiles.toml
• Logs: ~/.local/share/eqtui/eqtui.log

Profile System

There are 5 profile slots available for saving different presets.

• Saving & Applying: Use :w to save the current EQ bands and preamp gain to the active slot. This also sends the settings to the audio engine.
• Switching: Use { and } to navigate between profiles.
• Persistence: The daemon loads these profiles automatically on startup.
• External Files: Profiles can be linked to external PEQ files. These profiles are read-only and display an [RO] indicator in the TUI.

Resetting Profiles

To reset EQ setings there is three ways:

• Reset All Bands (R): Resets every band in the current profile (Gain: 0.0, Q: 1.0).
• Reset Selected Band (r): Resets only the highlighted band (Gain: 0.0, Q: 1.0).
• Flatten Gains (:flat): Sets all gains to 0.0dB but keeps your frequencies and Q values.

Normal vs Read-Only ([RO])

Note: Changes made to [RO] profiles in the TUI are temporary and cannot be saved or applied to the DSP engine.

Profile File Format

The profiles.toml file contains an array of 5 profiles. A profile can either define its own bands or link to an external path.

Example with external file:

[[profiles]]
name = "AutoEQ Preset"
path = "@eqs/CVJVIVIANS1_Filters.txt"

Example with inline data:

[[profiles]]
name = "Custom Tune"
preamp = -6.0
[[profiles.bands]]
frequency = 100.0
gain = 3.5
q = 0.7
filter_type = "LowShelf"

Fields:

• path: (Optional) Portable path to an external PEQ file. Use @ for paths relative to the config directory.
• preamp: Global gain offset in dB.
• bands: List of EQ filters (ignored if path is set).
  • frequency: Center frequency in Hz.
  • gain: Boost or cut in dB.
  • q: Quality factor (bandwidth).
  • filter_type: Either "Peak", "LowShelf", or "HighShelf".

Customizing Keys

You can change the default controls in your config.toml:

[keys.normal]
toggle_bypass = 'b'
add_band = 'a'
delete_band = 'd'

[keys.insert]
confirm = '\n'
cancel = '\x1b'

Background Process Details

The daemon uses a few standard Linux mechanisms to work correctly:

• XDG_RUNTIME_DIR: The Unix socket is placed here. The daemon will not start if this variable is missing.
• User Check: The daemon only accepts connections from the same user ID that started it.
• File Locking: Uses a lock file to make sure only one daemon instance runs at a time.
• POSIX Daemon: Uses standard fork and setsid to detach from the terminal.

Install from Source

git clone https://github.com/SiputBiru/eqtui
cd eqtui
cargo build --release

Needs PipeWire and a Nerd Font.

Project by SiputBiru — patches welcome but no promises :^)