Although there were several variations, the two most widely used models of the Pultec collection were the EQP-1A and the MEQ-5, both included as components in the PuigTec EQs, modeled from Jack Joseph Puig’s (U2, Green Day, Lady Gaga) impeccably maintained personal collection. Even at the most extreme settings, Pultecs always sound musical. So what makes the Pultec designs so special? Transparency! If there was such a thing as a linear phase EQ in the analog realm, this is about the closest thing to it. The result of this incredible design makes it perhaps the most widely regarded EQ in the history of audio. The insertion loss (loss of voltage level) was made up for after the equalization stage with a tube output amplifier, buffered with transformers to isolate potential impedance issues. It was a passive design, meaning that the components responsible for the actual equalization did not require a power source. (Pultec) released a “program” equalizer that took the audio world by storm. In the early 1950s, a company named Pulse Techniques, Inc. So which designs have their footprint most deeply embedded in the music we know and love? How were they most frequently used and how can you get the most out of the vintage EQ emulations you have? When approaching a selection of legendary, vintage-modeled EQs, there are many to choose from. It is increasingly common to hear of seasoned mixing engineers using digital versions of analog gear that they have readily available in their studio, due to the software’s accuracy, reliability, recallability and being able to insert as many instances as is necessary either in lieu of or in addition to the hardware units. When the original hardware is not available, studios look to finely crafted, digital emulations for use ‘in the box’ in their DAW.
#BEST FREE PLUGINS FOR VINTAGE SOUND PROFESSIONAL#
These comprise the pieces of classic, vintage hardware that are still widely used in professional recording studios and project studios worldwide. In the history of analog EQs, few designs have withstood the test of time.
This may sound like a recipe for disaster, but when the right balance of components and design are achieved, something truly pleasing, beautiful and artistic can emerge. As such, designing an analog EQ is a balancing act of limited form and function that ultimately results in a small degree of phasing and harmonic distortion, non-linear resonances and added noise to the source signal.
The beauty, and frustration, of analog design is that each component has inherent physical limitations. The answer lays in the perfectly imperfect analog components.
So what is it about vintage EQs that separates them from their digital counterparts? Why is it that the equivalent settings in an analog circuit EQ often seem to come across as more ‘musical’ sounding over digital EQs?
#BEST FREE PLUGINS FOR VINTAGE SOUND HOW TO#
Get tips on how to choose and use different EQ plugins modeled on vintage hardware equalizers, and find out why engineers are still using these tried-and-true EQs after decades of recording technology innovation.ĭespite the flexibility, accuracy, and microscopic detail offered by digital plugin EQs, vintage analog EQ emulations continue to be an enduring part of almost every mixing workflow.
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