If you think about it, distance settings can't be affected by frequency response because you're setting delays for each channel independently. Not like you're setting delays based on the interaction of two or more channels, where incorrect delays can result in constructive and destructive interference. So you can do distance settings before or after the EQ step.

It's different when setting levels. As mentioned before, frequency response can affect levels setting: e.g., a large peak can throw off a SPL meter, making the channel seem louder than it really is, resulting in the level being set to low. Smoothening out the response for each channel first (to whatever extent you can) will subsequently make for more closely matched levels.