^^^^^
I've turned it off. I just spent time playing with it (again) and found it very easy to introduce distortion. No more EQ for me.
FastKayak / Larry
Some of that distortion may be clipping related, but some of it may be tonal balance related. All recorded music includes some distortion (as an unavoidable by-product of the recording process), and quite a bit of recorded music includes additional distortion deliberately added during the recording, mixing, or mastering process. In the latter case in particular, a little distortion added to, say, an 80Hz fundamental note played on a bass guitar may make it sound fuller/heavier/darker, but may not sound out and out distorted to a casual listener, especially when mixed with all the other music going on. But if you suddenly boost the frequencies around 80Hz, suddenly that 80Hz fundamental (and its attendant distortion) is leaping out of the mix at you. Subjectively, it sounds as though you've introduced distortion, but in reality you've really just shone a spotlight on some quiet distortion that was intended to blend in with everything else.
I don't EQ unless I'm trying to do speaker or room correction (i.e. when I know based on measurement that my speakers or room are too bass heavy, or too light on the treble, etc.). I think you can compare applying EQ to try and improve the sound engineer's mixing or mastering to putting salt in your coca-cola: it's probably harmless, you might like the way it tastes, but it's easy to wind up with something unpalatable if you go too far.