“Ah ha”, I thought, “maybe if I sprinkle some vintage fairy dust on it …”.
Then one day I was trying to figure out a way to make a somewhat lifeless synth sound more interesting.
#Pultec equalizer schematic software
But I would occasionally read very favorable posts about Pultec software in general and about the Nomad Factory implementation in particular which I filed away in the back of my mind. The Pulse-Tec being part of that bundle, the plug-in had been sitting on my DAW machine unused and unappreciated for quite some time. I happened to own the Pulse-Tec courtesy of a marvelous all-you-can-eat sale of Nomad Factory gear about three years ago. But the essential EQ-ing features of the originals are still there. Nomad Factory took a little liberty with the hardware origins in that they included a third, separate amplifier component in the interface. The software we’re going to focus on here is the Nomad Factory Pulse-Tec EQ, primarily because it’s a plug-in that I own and also because it conveniently combines both the EQP-1A and MEQ-5 into one unit.
There are probably a fair number of home studio producers who have at least an EQP-1A emulation since it is part of the IK Multimedia T-Racks basic package (IKM does not offer an MEQ-5 emulation at this time). This list of companies includes Waves, UA, IK Multimedia, Softtube and Nomad Factory. In any case, with this background, it’s no surprise whatever that a number of major plug-in vendors took aim at creating emulations. I say “allegedly” because I’ve never had my hands on a hardware unit, nor am I likely ever to do so. Another reason for their popularity is the inspired passive circuit design, which allegedly produces very music-friendly audio spectrum alteration. This gear was also noted for superb build quality, one reason some of these units are still in service today (not to mention that they command a premium price when they come on the market). It turns out that the two models made for very successful collaboration when paired. We’ll get back to the panel layout in a bit. Although the controls for the MEQ-5 are symmetrical, they are a little strange to those accustomed only to modern software EQ design. It had amplification from the start, so there was not a need for a MEQ-5A moniker. Later a second model, the MEQ-5, appeared which was more focused on mid-band regions of the audio spectrum. A tube amplification stage was later added to restore the lost signal level, resulting in the EQP-1A. It was a passive unit, meaning it did its thing but signal level was sacrificed in the process. This was the EQP-1, and it first appeared all the way back in 1951. They originally created an EQ that addressed a variety of boost and attenuation needs with an unsymmetrical set of controls. They did everything: engineering design, production, marketing … the works. The Pultec company was actually just two individuals, Ollie Summerland and Gene Shank. What’s the secret of this magic? I attempted to discover it and the report of those findings follows.
This is said to be the case for both the hardware gear and software emulations. Claims by respectable sources have been made that sound can be improved simply by passing signals through the units with no boost or attenuation dialed in. Software emulations from a number of companies are also very popular. The hardware originals (or faithful recreations thereof) are still in demand today, a half century after they were first introduced. We’re going to take a look at two EQs in this study, the Pultec EQP-1A and its frequent companion, the Pultec MEQ-5. What’s their secret to their allure? Let’s find out. Software emulations are well- regarded as well. Pultec EQs are highly-prized (read “expensive”) pieces of gear.