Perfect Soup consists of two components: Calibration Wizard (the standalone measurement app) and Calibration Loader (the DAW plugins that apply calibration). This manual covers both.

Overview

Perfect Soup measures your room and speakers, then generates a calibration profile (.soup-recipe file) that corrects for room acoustics and speaker response. You use the plugin in your DAW to apply that correction during playback.

How It Works

Perfect Soup uses a MIMO (Multiple-Input Multiple-Output) optimization approach to room correction. Unlike traditional per-speaker EQ correction, MIMO optimization treats your entire speaker system as a single cohesive acoustical system and solves for the best combined result.

What Gets Corrected

Perfect Soup addresses a comprehensive set of acoustic problems in your monitoring environment:

• Room modes — Standing waves that cause bass buildup or cancellation at certain frequencies and positions.
• Speaker frequency response — Deviations from a flat target across the audible range of each speaker.
• Crossover alignment — Phase and level matching at the crossover frequency between mains and subwoofers (or between any speakers sharing frequency ranges within a group).
• Early reflections — Short-delay reflections from walls, desk, and console surfaces that color the direct sound.
• Speaker-to-listener timing — Arrival-time differences between speakers at the listening position, corrected via delay alignment.
• MIMO cross-speaker coherence — The combined radiation pattern and interaction of all speakers, optimized as a single system so that corrections to one speaker do not degrade the response of the system as a whole.

What Are Speaker Groups?

A speaker group is a logical grouping of one or more speakers that together reproduce a single audio channel. Each group corresponds to one input channel in the Calibration Loader plugin.

The number of speaker groups you can create depends on your license tier. Support speakers per group are also tier-dependent (see Licensing).

Configuration Examples

Below are common speaker configurations and how they map to speaker groups in Perfect Soup.

Calibration Wizard

The Calibration Wizard is a standalone application that guides you through measurement setup and execution.

The current build version is shown in the upper-right corner of the window (for example, v1.0.xxxx). You can select and copy it if support asks which build you are running.

Sign In

1. Launch the wizard
2. Click Login
3. Use Device Flow authentication:
   • A browser window opens with a verification URL and code
   • Enter the code on the website if prompted
   • Authorize the wizard
   • The wizard detects when you are signed in and continues

Two Workflows

After signing in, you can choose:

• Measure & Create a New Calibration — Full measurement flow with microphone and speakers
• Create from Existing Measurement — Create a new calibration from a previously saved measurement (speaker layout, groups, and stored sweep headroom are restored from the saved metadata)

Resume / Fork — From the welcome screen you can open Previous Measurements to resume or fork a saved session. After the wizard opens your interface and applies the session (including the saved Headroom sweep level when stored in the measurement), it runs the sample rate step first (some devices change microphone input availability when the rate changes). You must match the original measurement’s sample rate, then the wizard checks that your saved microphone input channel still exists on the device. Only then does it show the Pre-flight Checklist, including extra confirmations (saved input channel, mic preamp gain if stored, and calibration microphone label if you saved one) plus a level meter on the saved input so you can confirm signal. Normally the wizard then reuses that input and skips Select microphone input and Adjust microphone sensitivity. To choose the input channel again, press Ctrl+Shift+8 before you tap Resume or Fork (the same shortcut relaxes device matching for advanced cases). The resumed session then runs the Nearfield Measurements step again (its speaker list is re-derived for the session) and shows a short Mic Preamp Gain confirmation so the new sweeps match the saved ones. A measurement made with two separate devices must be resumed with the same topology: the wizard re-opens the original input/output device pair and keeps the original timing-reference method — a two-device measurement cannot be continued on a single shared-clock device, or vice versa.

Measure & Create Flow

Step 1: Pre-flight Checklist

Before starting, verify:

• Calibration microphone connected and powered on
• Microphone audio not routed to speaker output (no feedback loop)
• All other audio applications are closed (DAWs, browsers, system sounds) — other apps can lock the audio device and prevent sample rate changes. Turn off system notifications to avoid interrupting measurements.
• Audio connections ready — either one interface with both inputs and outputs, or two separate devices (e.g. a USB measurement microphone plus a separate output device)

Step 2: Audio Setup

The wizard first asks whether your measurement microphone and your speaker outputs are on the same audio device:

• Same device — One audio interface handles both the microphone input and the speaker outputs (e.g. a Focusrite Scarlett, MOTU, or RME Fireface). Continues with the classic single-device flow.
• Two separate devices — The microphone and the outputs are on different devices, for example a USB measurement microphone (miniDSP UMIK-1) with playback over HDMI, USB, or a DAC. The wizard opens both devices together and adds a timing reference step so the two device clocks can be aligned.

macOS note: An Aggregate Device created in Audio MIDI Setup appears as one interface — choose Same device and select it on the next page.

Step 3: Select Device(s)

Same device — choose the audio interface you want to calibrate:

• Use Refresh to update the device list
• The list includes full-duplex hardware devices only — each entry must support playback and recording at the same time on a single device. Output-only or input-only interfaces do not appear.
• Windows: this list shows ASIO devices only. If your interface doesn’t appear, install its manufacturer ASIO driver — or, if the hardware has no ASIO driver at all, go back and choose the two-device option instead (it works even when both ends are jacks of the same physical device).
• macOS: Core Audio devices exposing both directions are listed. User-created Aggregate Devices in Audio MIDI Setup are not listed here.

Two separate devices — the wizard shows two pages: Select Input Device (the device your measurement microphone is connected to) and Select Output Device (the device that plays through your speakers).

• Windows: the two-device lists use Windows Audio in exclusive mode, and only devices that allow exclusive mode are listed. If a device is missing, enable “Allow applications to take exclusive control of this device” on its Properties → Advanced tab in the Windows Sound settings. ASIO-capable hardware appears here under its Windows device name.
• If a selected pair cannot be opened, the wizard checks each device individually and tells you which one failed and why (in use by another exclusive-mode app, exclusive mode disabled, a broken driver or audio-enhancement installation, or the device was unplugged) — instead of a generic error.
• Same-hardware picks are fine: if the input and output you choose turn out to be two connections on one physical device (one shared clock), the wizard detects this and simply behaves like the single-device flow — no timing-reference step is needed and none is shown.

Step 4: Sample Rate Check

• Umami Audio requires 96 kHz sample rate for best results
• The wizard shows the current sample rate
• If not 96 kHz, change it in the device's manufacturer control panel
• Use Open Control Panel to open the device settings
• Two-device flow: the page shows one column per device (input and output). Both devices must run at the same sample rate — set them to the same rate in their control panels, then reselect the devices or refresh.

Step 5: Speaker Configuration

Configure each output channel:

• Speaker Name — Name each channel (e.g. L, R, C)
• Speaker Type — Speaker, Height (elevation channels, e.g. the .4 in 7.1.4), or Subwoofer
• Model — Optional model identifier
• Enable — Enable/disable channels for calibration
• Identify — Play a test tone to identify which channel is which

• Headroom — Controls how quietly the calibration sweep plays relative to your system's full output. Press Identify on any speaker to preview the level. After calibration, your system will be capable of playing roughly that many dB louder than what you hear during the sweep. Options: 20, 25, 30, 35, or 40 dB. If unsure, the default of 30 dB is a safe starting point for most systems.
• Enable All / Enable None — Quick toggle for all channels

Changing configuration later: Renaming speakers or editing the optional model field alone does not trigger a layout reset. If you already moved past this step, changing speaker type, turning channels on/off, or changing headroom may ask you to reset dependent steps (groups, mic setup, measurements). When you press Next, if names suggest a different speaker type, applying those fixes shows the same choice: keep the new types and reset later steps, or revert the type changes and stay on this step.

Step 6: Select Microphone Input

• Select the input channel for your calibration microphone
• An input level meter shows signal. Next stays disabled until the meter reads at least −80 dBFS on the input you selected. If you pick a different input, you must reach that level again on the new channel.
• Clap near the microphone to verify the selected input
• macOS: If the meter stays silent, approve microphone access when prompted on this page, or enable Calibration Wizard in System Settings → Privacy & Security → Microphone.

Step 7: Timing Reference (two devices only)

This step only appears in the two-device flow (and is skipped when the wizard detected that your two picks share one physical device). Because the microphone and the speakers run on separate devices, their clocks drift slightly against each other — Umami needs a timing reference to line them up:

• Use a loopback (recommended) — Wire one spare output channel of your output device back into one spare input channel of your input device. This is the most accurate timing reference. On the Loopback Setup page, pick the output and input channels you wired, choose a test level (0 / −3 / −15 dBFS), and press Test — the input meter should respond, confirming the loop is connected. Keep both meters out of the red. The loopback channel is excluded from your speaker outputs for the rest of the flow.
• Skip the loopback — Continue without one. The wizard uses your nearfield measurements as the timing reference instead.

The timing reference is locked once measurements have been recorded; to change it you must clear the session’s measurements. When you resume a saved two-device measurement, the wizard keeps the original session’s reference method (and asks you to re-connect the loopback if one was used).

Step 8: Nearfield Measurements

Before the listening-position sweeps, the wizard measures every speaker up close. These captures anchor each speaker’s exact acoustic timing and let the calibration map your full speaker and listening-position layout. An illustrated 9-slide guide precedes the step; the key points:

• Subwoofer crossover first — Before any measurement, set the low-pass / LFE crossover to its highest setting, phase to 0°, and normal polarity on your AV receiver, processor, or the sub’s plate amp — and leave them unchanged for the whole process. Perfect Soup applies the right crossover and phase in your calibration.
• Standoff — Place the mic capsule directly in front of the tweeter, on-axis, at exactly the distance set in the Standoff control (2 cm, 1 inch, or a credit card stood on its short edge — pick the gauge you’ll actually use).
• One speaker at a time — Select a speaker in the checklist, use Identify to confirm you’re at the right one, park the mic, press Measure, and step away. At each position the wizard sweeps every speaker (not just the parked one) to map the layout, so leave the mic parked until the whole sweep set finishes.
• Mic gain is free here — You may adjust the mic input gain between nearfield measurements to keep a healthy level; peaks around −12 dBFS are a good target. Only timing matters in this step — just don’t clip.
• Subwoofers — Place the mic as close to the grille as possible (without touching it), or at the closest safe distance from the center of the driver.
• Height speakers — Nearfield captures are optional for heights, but strongly recommended; even a few are better than none.

Step 9: Adjust Microphone Sensitivity

• Place the microphone at the listening position
• Press Test to play a test tone
• Adjust your preamp gain until the level is in the green zone

Microphone Calibration Files — Two slots are available:

• 0° (on-axis) — Used for height speakers and for stereo/mono setups. If this is the only file provided, it is used for all measurements.
• 90° calibration file — Used for ear-level speakers in surround setups. Required when pointing the mic at the ceiling for surround measurement.

Step 10: Configure Speaker Groups

Organize your outputs into speaker groups. Each group number corresponds to an input channel in the Calibration Loader. If you're not sure what you're looking at, you can read more about it here.

• Channel Order — Film (Cinema / DCP), SMPTE / ITU / Pro Tools (default), or DTS. Determines the ordering of channels — including where LFE sits — when you apply defaults or re-sort groups. See the Channel order reference below for the exact channel sequence per standard and format.
• Use Defaults — Apply a preset group layout in the active channel order (each group includes every other enabled output as support by default). Supported layouts include 2.0, 2.1, 4.0, 4.0+Phantom Center, 4.1, 4.1+Phantom Center, 5.0, 5.1, 5.1.2, 5.1.4, 7.0, 7.1, 7.1.2, 7.1.4, 7.1.5 (Auro 12.1), 7.1.6, 9.1.4, 9.1.5 (Auro 14.1), 9.1.6, and 11.1.6. The list is filtered to only the layouts your enabled outputs can satisfy (mains + heights ≤ enabled non-sub outputs, subwoofers ≤ enabled subs).
• Create Group — Create a custom group with all eligible support speakers selected by default until you narrow the list
• Create LFE Group — Add the single LFE channel group (only one is allowed; this control is disabled while an LFE group exists)
• Use Long Names / Use Short Names — Convert group names that match a known role between long form (e.g. Left Top Front) and Pro Tools-style short form (e.g. Ltf). Only recognised names are converted; custom names you typed are left alone. Long names are the default.
• Clear All — Remove all groups
• Drag to reorder — Drag groups up or down to change their order. The group order corresponds to the plugin input channel inside your DAW (group 1 = input channel 1, group 2 = input channel 2, etc.).
• Group name — Each card has an editable name next to its number. For normal groups the name tracks the primary speaker until you edit it manually; changing the primary updates the name automatically unless you have customized it. The LFE group defaults to LFE and does not follow subwoofer channel renames unless you type a custom name. Default layouts keep the wizard’s standard names (Left, Right, LFE, etc.). These names are stored in measurement metadata and appear as IN meter labels in the Calibration Loader.
• Click group number — Click a group's number to type a new channel. If that channel is already assigned, the two groups swap positions.
• Primary speaker swap — Clicking a primary speaker that is already assigned to another group swaps the two assignments automatically.
• Unselect All Supports (left) and Select All Supports (right) — Quick clear or select every support checkbox for that group. For the LFE group the labels are Unselect all speakers and Select all speakers. When subwoofer outputs appear in the checklist, Select subs checks every subwoofer in that group’s list without changing other speakers, and Remove subs clears only the subwoofer checkboxes. Unselect all + Select subs recreates a sub-only selection. The first two bulk controls appear when more than one speaker appears in that group’s list; Select subs / Remove subs appear whenever at least one subwoofer checkbox is available (primary speakers are excluded from support for non-LFE groups).

Channel order reference

Every standard orders the same speakers differently — in particular, where the LFE channel sits. The table below shows the canonical order each standard uses for each common format. The wizard’s defaults and the “re-sort” that follows the Channel Order dropdown both produce these exact orderings (long names shown; short Pro Tools-style names are available via Use Short Names).

Abbreviations used below: L/R = front left/right, C = center, LFE = subwoofer/low-frequency, Ls/Rs = left/right surround (5.x), Lss/Rss = side surround (7.x+), Lsr/Rsr = rear surround (7.x+), Lw/Rw = wide (9.x+), Lrs/Rrs = rear-side (11.x). For immersive (X.1.Z) layouts, height/overhead speakers always follow the horizontal mains + LFE; the height ordering is shared across all three standards.

Heights for immersive (X.1.Z) layouts — appended after the mains+LFE block in the order shown below. Combine with any base order above (e.g. SMPTE 7.1.4 = the SMPTE row for 7.1 followed by the .4 heights below).

Heights	Order (long names)	Short form
.2	Left Top Middle, Right Top Middle	Ltm, Rtm
.4	Left Top Front, Right Top Front, Left Top Rear, Right Top Rear	Ltf, Rtf, Ltr, Rtr
.5 (Auro 12.1 / 14.1)	Left Top Front, Right Top Front, Voice of God, Left Top Rear, Right Top Rear	Ltf, Rtf, VoG, Ltr, Rtr
.6	Left Top Front, Right Top Front, Left Top Middle, Right Top Middle, Left Top Rear, Right Top Rear	Ltf, Rtf, Ltm, Rtm, Ltr, Rtr

Tip: The fuzzy-matching pass for Use Defaults reads your channel names from Step 4 and tries to match them to these roles automatically (e.g. FL → Left, SL → Left Surround, Lts → Left Top Middle). If you keep names close to one of these conventions, defaults will place each speaker correctly on the first try.

Step 11: Microphone Placement

The wizard includes a 9-slide illustrated guide. Key points:

1. Start at the center — Place the mic at the exact center of your main listening position (where your head normally sits). This is the most important measurement point.
2. Expand symmetrically — Move the mic left, right, forward, backward, and diagonally. Space positions roughly 5–15 cm apart. The averaged center of all positions becomes your acoustic focal point.
3. Position count for calibration — The goal is at least max (30, twice the number of enabled speakers) cumulative “position score.” Until you have 30 primary (main listener) positions, only primaries contribute to that score. After 30 primaries, both primary and secondary/client positions contribute. The measurement page shows progress ÷ required using that rule (required updates if outputs change). You can save and upload with less; the measurement is marked incomplete until satisfied (e.g. resume later).
4. Cover your listening area — Spread positions across everywhere you (or listeners) might sit or move, plus a little further out.
5. Vary the height — Include measurements at multiple heights to account for posture changes and listeners of different stature.
6. Client positions (optional) — Record all main listener positions first. Then switch the toggle on the measurement page to "Client Position" and measure secondary seating. Once switched, you cannot go back. Client positions do not influence the acoustic center calculation.
7. Mic stand setup — Always use a mic stand. Slide the mic as far up the clip as possible so the diaphragm is as far from the clip and stand as you can get it.
8. Subwoofer crossover — Keep the settings you made before the nearfield step: crossover at the highest frequency, phase 0°, normal polarity (invert off). Perfect Soup will apply the correct crossover, phase, and polarity for you automatically.
9. Mic orientation — For stereo, point the mic towards the phantom center between your speakers (use the 0° calibration file). For surround, point the mic straight up at the ceiling (use the 90° calibration file).
10. Stay clear during measurement — After pressing Record, the pre-sweep delay gives you time to move out of the speaker-to-mic path. Sit somewhere off to the side and stay quiet.
11. Noise = abort and redo — If noise occurs during a sweep, press Abort Sweep. Interrupted sweeps are automatically discarded. Then record that position again.

Step 12: Measurement

• Position type toggle — Set to Main Listener (default) or Client Position. Record all main positions first.
• Layout preview — As positions accumulate, a live map card shows your decoded speaker layout and every already-measured position (numbered circles), in top view — plus a side view when height speakers exist. Locate mic (live) tracks the microphone’s current position on the map so you can see where you are before recording.
• Automatic noise protection — Each speaker is swept more than once and the sweeps are compared. If background noise makes them disagree, the wizard shows “Background noise detected” and automatically sweeps that speaker again. If several extra takes still don’t agree (persistent noise — traffic, HVAC surges, footsteps), you choose: Retry re-measures the speaker from scratch, Accept keeps the cleanest sweep and moves on.
• Pre-sweep delay — Adjustable (default 7 seconds). Time before the sweep starts so you can move away.
• Auto next — Optional. After each successful sweep, plays a short cue tone, then starts the pre-sweep delay for the next position. If you have never changed the pre-sweep delay from its default, turning Auto next on sets the delay to 10 seconds; if you have already chosen a delay, it is left unchanged. LFE groups are identified by type in the wizard, not by name. Leaving the Measurement step or Abort Sweep cancels pending auto-next steps.
• Record Position — Starts a measurement sweep for the current mic position.
• Input Level — Live microphone meter under the record controls (same style as earlier mic steps). Use it to confirm signal before you press Record.
• Abort Sweep — Cancels the current sweep. The interrupted data is discarded automatically.
• Position log — Shows each recorded position and whether it was a main or client measurement, plus a progress / required line (primaries-only toward the goal until 30 mains, then mains + client rounds both count; required = max 30 or twice enabled speakers).
• Keep the room quiet during sweeps.

Step 13: Upload Results

• Give the measurement a name (e.g. "Studio A — March 2026")
• Calibration name — Optional on this step (measurement upload). The field starts with the default UTC timestamp pattern (the same format the cloud uses when no custom name is provided). Edit it, or clear it to have the cloud set the name from the calibration job time.
• Calibration microphone (optional) — When you can enter mic gain (dB) for a digitally controlled preamp, you can also enter a short label for your reference mic (for example model and serial). It is stored in the measurement and shown on resume/fork pre-flight when present.
• If you continue without enough positions, the button reads Save: files upload, the measurement is stored, but GPU calibration does not start until requirements are met. The Saving Progress dialog explains this and strongly encourages finishing all positions in one go. If your audio interface does not use digitally controlled gain, leave the preamp gain knob exactly where it is when you pause or resume.
• Upload progress is shown; then the server processes the calibration when eligible.

Step 14: Complete

When complete, the calibration is ready.

Create from Existing Flow

• Select a previous measurement from the list (incomplete measurements appear with an Incomplete badge). If you tap an incomplete one, the wizard offers to open the Resume flow for that measurement so you can finish it, then create a calibration later. If you go Back to the list afterward, choosing a completed measurement continues normal create-from-existing for that measurement.
• Speaker groups start empty; speaker names and layout flags still come from the measurement. If you already have a completed calibration for that measurement, a Copy group layout from a previous calibration control appears so you can reuse it; otherwise use Use Defaults or Create Group and edit as needed
• On “Name your calibration,” the field is pre-filled with the default UTC timestamp pattern; edit freely or clear it to let the cloud set the exact time when you queue the job
• Create a new calibration profile from that measurement once position requirements are satisfied

Calibration Loader Plugin

The Calibration Loader plugin applies room correction in your DAW. Calibration profiles are automatically synced from the cloud after processing completes.

Plugin Formats

• VST3 — Most DAWs (Ableton, Cubase, Logic, etc.)
• AU — Logic Pro, GarageBand, and other AU hosts (macOS)
• AAX — Pro Tools

Software updates

The Calibration Wizard and Calibration Loader check in the background whether a newer public build is available (compared to the installer version published on umamiaudio.com/download). When an update is listed, use the on-screen control to open the download page and install the latest package.

Plugin Interface

The plugin window is resizable; minimum height is 720 px (layout is designed for at least that vertical space).

Configuration

• Calibration selector — Choose from your available calibration profiles (automatically synced from the cloud)
• No configuration loaded / filename — Shows the currently active calibration

Volume

• Volume slider — Master output level. Drag to adjust, or use the scroll wheel while hovering. Scroll speed is adaptive: slow scrolling gives fine control, fast scrolling makes larger jumps. Hold Shift to halve each wheel step without going below the usual minimum fine tick.
• dB display — Shows the current level in dB. Drag up/down for continuous adjustment (hold Shift for finer scrubbing, about quarter speed). Click to edit: after a short delay the field clears so you can type (double-click still resets immediately). If you leave the field empty or invalid, the previous value returns. Double-click the slider or dB display to reset to 0 dB. Also responds to the scroll wheel.

Dim

• DIM button — Momentary output attenuation for quick reference checks.
• Dim amount (Settings > Audio) — Sets the attenuation level when DIM is active. Drag up/down (Shift for finer scrubbing, about quarter speed), scroll wheel (Shift slows steps without dropping below the minimum fine tick), or type a value. Single-click edit uses the same delayed clear as other numeric fields; double-click resets to −30 dB.

EQ (input)

• Graphic curve — Drag nodes to adjust frequency and gain (peaking and shelves). Hold Shift while dragging for finer moves (about quarter speed). Hold Ctrl (Windows/Linux) or Control (macOS) to adjust gain only; hold Alt / Option for frequency only. You can combine Ctrl or Alt with Shift (e.g. slow gain-only tweak). With both Ctrl and Alt held, dragging does not move the node. Shift + scroll wheel on a node adjusts Q (0.1–50). Double-click a node to reset that band. Low cut and high cut bands use a triangular marker on the 0 dB line; drag horizontally for cutoff.
• Toolbar — dB range sets the vertical scale of the graph (±6–±30 dB, similar to common graphic EQs). Per-band gain is still up to ±18 dB. Reset all bands restores the default frequency layout and flat response.
• Active band — The summary strip under the toolbar shows type, frequency, note name, gain, Q, and slope for the selected node or band.
• Band editor — Each band has Off/On, type (Peak, Low shelf, High shelf, Low cut, High cut), frequency with note readout, gain (±18 dB; N/A for cuts), Q, and slope. All numeric fields: drag vertically (Shift = slow), wheel with Shift-scaled steps. Gain and Q use a short delayed single-click clear before typing so a slow double-click can still reset (gain to 0 dB, Q to 1). Frequency, note, and slope clear for typing on the next frame after a single click and have no double-click default. For cuts, rolloff is set in dB/oct (step depends on the filter Shape: Butterworth/Bessel/uniform‑Q cascades snap in 6 dB/oct steps; Linkwitz–Riley snaps in 12 dB/oct steps for even total orders—from LR2 (12 dB/oct) upward).
• ALL vs extra tabs — The ALL chain applies to every input. Right-click ALL for Bypass / Enable: when bypassed, ALL-band EQ and ALL-tab EQ gain are skipped on the wire (safe-headroom peak math still includes the ALL curve, same idea as bypassed extra tabs). The Target tab is always present (after ALL): use it for listening-target preset curves; it defaults to routing those bands to every input group (toggle groups in the gear menu like other extra tabs). Additional numbered tabs (via +) can target selected groups only; together with Target you can have up to eight extra EQ chains (matching the DSP). Side-panel EQ gain fields use the same numeric gestures as the band strip (drag, Shift-slow wheel, delayed click-to-type, double-click to 0 dB).
• Target tab (right-click) — Bypass / Enable toggles that chain like other tabs. Below that, a preset row (Target - Dolby Atmos Music) loads a coarse parametric EQ starting point into this tab—not exact standard compliance; choosing it focuses the Target tab and sets its title to Target -- Dolby Atmos Music. The tab cannot be removed or manually renamed.
• Numbered EQ tab (right-click) — Bypass removes that tab from the audio path; Enable brings it back when it is already bypassed. The bypassed tab label and (when that tab is selected) the graph and band strip look muted, but you can still edit settings. The menu stays at normal contrast. Safe headroom still uses the full combined curve (including bypassed tabs) for its peak estimate, so the trim does not change when you A/B a tab.
• Add tab + — Adds another numbered EQ tab (left-click only), until the extra-chain limit is reached.
• Safe headroom (ALL tab) — When enabled, after the full EQ for each input (ALL bands, master gain, and any extra-tab EQ/gain routed to that input), the plugin applies a gain reduction equal to the maximum combined boost in dB found across inputs and frequencies. That keeps the worst-case peak from exceeding digital full scale when EQ stacks boosts; if nothing goes above 0 dB relative to unity, no trim is applied.
• LFE gain and MUTE LFE (ALL tab) — Shown when the loaded calibration includes an LFE input channel. LFE gain is a ±12 dB trim on that channel only (0 dB = unity), always included in safe-headroom math; same numeric gestures as other gain fields (drag, wheel, delayed click-to-type, double-click to 0 dB). MUTE LFE only silences that channel’s audio after the trim (same control styling as DIM).

Bypass

• Bypass — Disable processing (pass-through)

License selection

• If you are signed in but have not selected an active license yet, opening the Calibration Loader brings Settings forward with other sections de-emphasized so the License block is easy to find.
• License tiers in the list use the same names as on the website (for example, Project Studio, Platinum Studio, Perfect Soup), with group and support limits spelled out (for example, “6 groups / 6 support”).

Auto Bypass when Rendering

• Auto Bypass when Rendering — Automatically true-bypasses the plugin (input = output, no processing at all) when the DAW is performing an offline render or bounce. This prevents your room-specific calibration from being baked into rendered audio files. Enabled by default.
• Found in Settings > Audio.
• This feature only works with offline/non-realtime renders. Realtime bounces are not detected — disable calibration manually if your DAW uses realtime rendering.
• DAW compatibility:
  • Not available in Ableton Live — Ableton does not report offline rendering state to VST3 plugins. The option is hidden in the plugin when running inside Live.
  • FL Studio — Enable “Notify about rendering mode” in the plugin’s VST wrapper settings (gear icon on the plugin slot).
  • Reaper — Enable “Inform plugins of offline rendering” in Preferences > Audio > Buffering.
  • Cubase, Logic, Pro Tools, Studio One — Works automatically.

Meters

• IN / OUT meters — Show peak levels per channel. By default, only channels defined by the loaded calibration are shown, with labels taken from the group names stored in the calibration. You can click an IN or OUT meter label to rename it; those renames are saved with the DAW project only and are not written back into the calibration file.
• Show extra channels in meter — When enabled (Settings > Audio), the meters also display any additional input/output channels from the DAW that are not part of the calibration. These extra channels are labeled “Input 1”, “Input 2”, etc. for inputs and “Output 1”, “Output 2”, etc. for outputs.

Usage

1. Insert the plugin on your monitor bus or output
2. Sign in with your Umami Audio account
3. Select your calibration profile (automatically available after cloud processing)
4. Adjust volume if needed
5. Use Bypass to compare with/without calibration

Licensing

Perfect Soup requires an Umami Audio account and a valid license. The software is free to download; a license is required for full use.

License Categories

A Perfect Soup license grants use of the Calibration Loader plugin and the ability to create calibration profiles.

• Can be perpetual (one-time purchase) or rent-to-own (monthly; converts to a permanent license after 24 payments).
• Install on as many computers as you like; only one computer may actively use the plugin at a time.
• Perpetual licenses include 1 year of calibration access, activated on first use. After that, calibration access can be extended via the Calibration Extension add-on.
• Rent-to-own licenses include calibration access for the duration of the subscription; when they convert to perpetual, the standard 1-year bundled calibration applies.
• New accounts receive a free 60-day trial of The Perfect Soup tier (full access, unlimited groups and supports). It expires automatically and requires no payment.
• When calibration access expires, existing calibrations remain usable; you just cannot create new ones.

License Tiers

All paid tiers are available as a perpetual one-time purchase or as monthly rent-to-own (which becomes a permanent perpetual license after 24 payments). See umamiaudio.com/purchase for current pricing.

Tier	Speaker Groups	Supports / Group
Micro Studio	Up to 2	0 (base) — 2.0 stereo
Mini Studio	Up to 2	1 (base)
Project Studio	Up to 2	3 (base)
Platinum Studio	Up to 6	6 (base)
The Perfect Soup	Unlimited	Unlimited

Extra Supports

If you need more supporting speakers per group, you can purchase Extra Supports — each adds +1 support per group, as a one-time purchase. You can also start a free 30-day Extra Support trial, up to twice per license per year (the allowance resets when you buy a paid Extra Support). See umamiaudio.com/purchase for current pricing.

Extra Supports are available for every tier except The Perfect Soup, which already has unlimited supports.

Calibration Extension

For perpetual license holders whose included calibration access has expired, the Calibration Extension allows you to renew for 30 or 365 days. See umamiaudio.com/purchase for current pricing.

Rent-to-Own & Activation

Rent-to-own is billed monthly and includes calibration access while active. After 24 monthly payments the license automatically converts to a permanent perpetual license at no further charge. Cancelling stops billing and your progress toward ownership; access continues until the end of the paid period.

All subscription periods (including bundled calibration from perpetual purchases) do not begin counting down until first use. First use is defined as the first time the VST plugin is activated on a computer, or the first time a calibration job is submitted.

Upgrades

Perpetual licenses can be upgraded to a higher tier through the Umami Audio website dashboard. The Micro, Mini, and Project tiers share the same 2 speaker groups and differ only by supports per group, so they cannot be upgraded to one another — add capacity with Extra Supports instead. Micro, Mini, and Project can all upgrade to Platinum Studio or The Perfect Soup. See umamiaudio.com/purchase for current upgrade pricing.

License Transfers

Perpetual licenses can be transferred to another Umami Audio account for a fee. The transfer deactivates the license on all of the original owner's computers. See umamiaudio.com/purchase for details.

VST Plugin Activation

• The Calibration Loader plugin requires you to sign in with your Umami Audio account.
• On sign-in, if you have exactly one license, it is automatically assigned.
• If you have multiple licenses, select which one to use from the plugin's settings.
• Which computer holds an active seat is determined by a device identifier.
• The plugin sends periodic license checks to confirm validity and that the license is not in use on another computer simultaneously.
• If your computer goes offline, a 7-day grace period allows continued use before the license is marked expired.
• If the plugin detects an expired, exceeded, or conflicting license, audio is muted for 5 seconds every 60 seconds as a reminder. Bypassed and no-calibration states pass audio through unaffected.

Refund Policy

You may request a full refund within 14 days of purchase — or within any longer period required by consumer-protection law in your country — by contacting [email protected]. We recommend using the free 60-day trial to confirm the product and system requirements fit your setup before purchasing.

Workflow Summary

Step	Action
1	Install Perfect Soup (installer includes Wizard + plugins)
2	Create an Umami Audio account
3	Run Calibration Wizard and sign in
4	Complete the measurement flow
5	The calibration is automatically synced to the Calibration Loader plugin in your DAW

System Requirements

Minimum

• Windows: Windows 10 (64-bit) or later. Single-device calibration requires an ASIO compatible audio interface; the two-device flow works with any Windows Audio devices that allow exclusive mode.
• macOS: macOS 11.0 Big Sur or later (Intel or Apple Silicon), Core Audio compatible audio device
• 4 GB RAM
• 500 MB free disk space
• Internet connection (for cloud calibration processing)

Recommended

• 8 GB RAM or more
• 1 GB free disk space
• Audio interface with measurement microphone
• High-speed internet for faster job processing

Wizard Requirements

• Windows: WebView2 Runtime (installed automatically if missing)
• Calibration microphone
• Audio setup with inputs and outputs — either one interface with both, or two separate devices (e.g. a USB measurement microphone plus a separate output device) via the two-device flow

Troubleshooting & Support

For all other issues, contact us at [email protected].